The Athletic’s Corey Pronman lists his top prospects in the NHL this morning, all 172(?) of them…
And he lists Nate Danielson #42nd, Simon Edvinsson #46th, Marco Kasper #52nd, Axel Sandin Pellikka #54th, Carter Bear #66th, Michael Brandsegg-Nygard #68th, and Sebastian Cossa #137th.
Pronman is bullish on Danielson…
Danielson’s production in Grand Rapids wasn’t amazing this season, but he played huge minutes and was often highly noticeable, a trend that’s followed him the last few years. He has excellent one-on-one skills, he skates well and his ability to create chances in transition will make him dangerous in the NHL. He’s a strong passer and shooter who can make a lot of things happen inside the offensive zone. Danielson is also a diligent two-way center. I get the concerns about his production, and at some point, he’s going to need to produce points consistently, but when I’ve watched him, I think his skill is legit and that he can be a top-six forward.
But a little less psyched about Axel Sandin Pellikka…
Sandin Pellikka had an excellent season, posting huge numbers in the SHL for a teenage defenseman, and was the best defenseman at the World Juniors. ASP is a highly skilled and poised defenseman. He looks calm and intelligent with the puck, making a lot of great plays, and has the soft touch of a power-play quarterback. ASP can beat teams with his skill, but also his shot, as he has a bullet one-timer from the left circle that projects to be a legit weapon versus NHL goalies. He’s not that big, but he’s mobile and wins a surprising number of battles for a guy his size. He projects as a top-four defenseman who should be OK defensively in the NHL while being able to run a first power-play unit.
Trey Augustine doesn’t make his list at all, with Pronman believing that the 6’1,” 194-pound Augustine is too small to stick in the NHL, per the embedded audio clip.
5’10,” 170-pound Dmitri Buchelnikov probably misses the list due to his size as well.
Augustine’s size will not be an issue. He is solid all around