The Hockey News’s Steven Ellis offers a detailed scouting report on Red Wings prospect and 2022 8th overall draft pick Marco Kasper this evening:
“He really forced himself into the top 10 conversation as the season went on because he’s such a fascinating player,” a scout said. “Detroit made the right choice taking him. He’s going to be great.”
After going eighth overall, Kasper became the second highest drafted player in Austrian history behind Thomas Vanek after the Buffalo Sabres picked him fifth overall in 2003. Kasper just edged out Marco Rossi (ninth overall, 2020) by one spot and became the fourth Austrian ever selected in the first round.
So, for Kasper, there’s a nice sense of pride. And the Red Wings are getting an electrifying forward with a bright future.
At 18, Kasper has nearly games of pro experience with Rogle during regular season, playoff and Champions Hockey League play. He doesn’t have a ton of offense to show for, but SHL teams are conditioned to win, which means some top prospects get lost in the shuffle. As a comparison, Kasper had 11 points in 46 regular season games compared to Lucas Raymond’s 10 points in 33 games in his NHL draft year. Definitely a better points-per-game average for Raymond, one of the top rookies in the NHL this past season, but still solid results for Kasper, who led all U-18 SHLers in scoring this year.
Kasper had six points in 11 games with Austria’s men’s national team, where he quickly forced himself up the lineup, playing over 19 minutes a night in three outings at the World Championship.
“It’s tough to play against men, I think seeing what the pros do every day, it’s helped me to see what it is to live like a pro and it’s helped me a lot,” Kasper said at the NHL draft combine in early June.
