Red Wings prospect and University of North Dakota graduate Dylan James was pretty much dialed into spending his entire college-eligible career playing for the Fighting Hawks as it generally takes 4 years for players to truly blossom in that particular college program.
As such, the 6’1,” 192-pound forward is starting his professional career a little later than some Red Wings prospects, but, as Detroit Hockey Now’s Bob Duff notes, the Red Wings and James alike believe that the 22-year-old will be worth the wait:
Three Reasons Why James Will Play in the NHL
- He’s a stellar penalty killer. A strong skater, James uses his speed to take away time and space.
- James is a physical presence on the forecheck, pressuring defensemen into committing turnovers.
- Coaches can trust his game without the puck.
What May Hold Him Back
By taking four years to develop, James is coming into his first pro season at the age of 22. His window of opportunity to move up the ladder will be shorter than some of his compatriots with the AHL Griffins.
He has the skating ability, the defensive acumen, and the 200-foot game. The question that James will need to answer to make the show is whether he can generate enough offense to be an effective player at the NHL level.
Continued; everything I’ve heard about James is positive in terms of his work ethic and skill set. As Duff suggests, it’s going to be up to James to replicate offensive numbers like his 21-goal, 32-points-in-40-games-played offensive numbers from his final NCAA season.
