Wednesday, April 14, 2010

Don't miss the Central Scouting North American rankings recap

I started it yesterday and saved/edited, so it's about 3 or 4 posts down from this one as opposed to being at the top of the blog.

Linky here for ease of access.

Enjoy!
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6 comments:

  1. Kirk LuedekeApril 15, 2010 at 8:54 PM

    Thanks, bro-

    There's more on the way. I got swamped today, but the analysis is coming of Central's European list is coming, and I tracked down Tyler Seguin today, so watch for a 2 Minutes in the Box with... feature on him tomorrow or Saturday.

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  2. Joseph CuetoApril 16, 2010 at 9:07 AM

    Kirk, in your opinion (and you may have answered a question of this kind over at hfboards.com, where I lurk and read your inputs), how much weight does NHL GMs and scouting personnel place on these rankings? Honestly (and i don't consider myself an expert on the evaluation of nhl entry draft prospects), after reading about reviews on pysyk and etem, 2 players who I was thinking if I'd love for them to get drafted at 17 (our own pick), i began to have second thoughts/to demote them on my unofficial "prospects i'd consider at 17" list. Are NHL GMs and scouting personnel also prone to such "overreactions" or do you feel they have a much bigger body of work for them to make a more accurate evaluation of these prospects? Thanks. Have largely enjoyed reading your blog all the way from Manila, Philippines. Go Bruins!

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  3. Kirk LuedekeApril 16, 2010 at 12:04 PM

    Joseph- The short answer is: not much.

    The reality is- that NHL teams invest a huge amount of time, effort and capital in scouting the players themselves. They have a very specific view and it may or may not coincide with Central's.

    That said- Central provides a valuable service. Their rankings can help teams to go out and reevaluate players based on where Central has them vs. the NHL team. And- it is a list provided to the public free of charge. NHL teams keep their lists secret-- even after the draft (they don't want other teams knowing how much they like a certain player so that later on, if a trade is possible- they can go out and get them without getting fleeced. Tuukka Rask is the classic example of this- I'm told that he was the guy Boston was getting ready to pick at 22 when Toronto scooped him one pick before at 21. But, they never gave up on him. If then-Leafs GM John Ferguson Jr. had known how highly-rated Rask was on Boston's list, he may have demanded a higher price than Raycroft, you see?)

    So- NHL teams have uses for Central's rankings, but the fact that the final list comes out before the playoffs, while NHL teams will be scouting right up until the very last Memorial Cup game is played in late May, tells you how big the grains of salt are you need to use when digesting it.

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  4. Michael ByrnesApril 16, 2010 at 12:43 PM

    Hi Kirk,

    I just found your blog. Fantastic!

    Question: How do you see Hall and Seguin stacking up against recent #1 and #2 picks? I've seen some speculation that they may be a step down from Tavares, Stamkos, etc. and would love to get your take on that.

    Question 2: Who the heck was the "Taylor Hall" who got into 7 games for the Bruins back in the 80s? I have a great memory for names, can recall many an immortal Bs short-timer from that period, the Syvestris, Kostinskis, etc., but was stunned to recently learn that they (briefly) had a Taylor Hall back then...

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  5. Kirk LuedekeApril 16, 2010 at 1:09 PM

    Thanks for the kind words...my goal is for this blog to be a go-to page for anyone who wants to know as much about the 2010 draft and prospects as possible, so I thank you for reading.

    To answer your first question, I've heard that these guys could be cornerstone-type players, but that they are not generational talents and may in fact be a cut below some of the other recent high-end picks like Stamkos and Tavares. The problem with trying to peg these guys down at 18 when they are in junior is that the evaluation is so subjective. What's the metric? How do you really measure a player's NHL potential when he's skating against fellow amateurs? It is not an exact science. If you had asked me about Steven Stamkos when I saw him in January, 2009, I would have told you I had questions about his longterm NHL upside. Now, just look at him. So, in fairness to Hall and Seguin- this is a discussion that really can't be had at this stage. We'll just have to see how it plays out for them when/if they reach the NHL and have a chance to prove themselves.

    As for Taylor Hall v.1- I know he got into 7 games in 1987-88, but don't remember him other than Fred Cusick mentioning him a time or two. He's in the back of the 1987-88 and 1988-89 Bruins yearbooks-- the b&w headshot "futures" sections.

    Like other such stalwarts of the era such as Ray Podloski and Paul Guay, Hall played for the B's, but his legacy really only is kept alive via hockeydb.com

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  6. Joseph CuetoApril 16, 2010 at 6:32 PM

    Thanks for the insight, Kirk. An article by Fluto Shinzawa on Boston stealing Tuukka from Tor was published a day or 2 before we opened our series against Buf. He mentioned that Tuukka was included in the Top 3 prospects they wanted/they had pegged at pick 22 until Tor nabbed him a pick earlier.

    I was about to ask you who you envision the Bruins drafting at their own pick but I saw in the "Looking ahead 5 months...The OFFICIAL 2010 NHL Draft Thread (2nd half)" over at HFBoards.com that you're coming up with a discussion/preview on our succeeding picks. Looking forward to it. Hope you let us know through this blog if it's up! ‎

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