Detroit Hockey Now’s Bob Duff discusses Red Wings prospect Jesse Kiiskinen this morning, offering pluses and minuses about the 21-year-old right wing who stands at 6’1″ and 190 pounds:
Three Reasons Why Kiiskinen Will Play in the NHL
- Kiiskinen is a natural goal scorer. And he gets hard-working goals by driving the net.
- He likes to play the game in the dirty areas. You’ll usually find Kiiskinen battling for loose pucks along the boards and in the corners, or at the net-front in the offensive zone.
- Kiiskinen gets on people’s nerves. He’s an agitating presence. He rarely has an uneventful shift.
What May Hold Him Back
Kiiskinen is far from a polished skater. He lacks explosive speed or high-end mobility to be able to easily separate from defenders. And he’s not much of a playmaker. He’ll need to upgrade in one of these areas to be considered a legit NHL prospect.
Continued; Kiiskinen remains a “project prospect,” but he’s got grit and a little “piss and vinegar” to his game.
