The 2025 NHL scouting mix came about in Buffalo this previous weekend — with just a little spin to it.
With the draft decentralized this yr — with all crew personnel at their very own headquarters whereas the draft takes place in Los Angeles — execs won’t have the chance to take prospects to dinner throughout draft week, meet their households or get yet another analysis finished previous to draft night time. So the everyday health testing, conferences and interview course of came about in Buffalo.
The scouting mix has modified dramatically over the previous decade. Every crew makes use of a non-public suite on the Sabres’ KeyBank Middle to arrange their interviews. Gamers go from room to room, in 15-minute intervals (one participant termed it the “interrogation gauntlet” a number of years in the past). That is the primary time gamers will meet with crew executives, as most groups have their common supervisor and the assistant GM who oversees the scouting division current. All through the season, space scouts will interview prospects or ship questionnaires. When groups choose who they’d wish to interview on the mix, having base information of the participant removes the necessity for small discuss.
Often, groups take three or 4 gamers out for dinner throughout draft week and can meet with a number of others. Gamers are unlikely to attend dinners with groups that haven’t any probability of taking them. No. 1-ranked prospect Matthew Schaefer is not going to dine with any of the highest groups, and admittedly, most likely does not want to satisfy with anybody in addition to the New York Islanders and San Jose Sharks, who decide first and second.
For gamers like James Hagens and Porter Martone, they could meet with 4 or 5 groups within the vary to pick out them. For what it is value, the Isles took Schaefer, Michael Misa and Hagens to dinner throughout mix week. Had the draft been centralized, it’s doubtless they’d have met once more over a meal, together with their households.
Extra attention-grabbing, Chicago, which owns the third decide, didn’t take anybody to dinner. That’s definitely a calculated determination from its brass. Maybe the Blackhawks plan to ask gamers to Chicago (or fly out to them) throughout draft week? It is anybody’s guess, however their technique was the subject of some dialog amongst different groups. The Philadelphia Flyers famously handed on the chance to take Jett Luchanko to dinner final season earlier than drafting him, in order to not elevate alarm bells with different groups. Maybe Chicago is taking a web page out of that e book.
Hagens additionally dined with the Utah Mammoth (selecting fourth) and interviewed with 16 groups general — a variety for a participant anticipated to go very early. If Hagens falls out of the highest 5, we might even see a crew commerce as much as seize him as a result of he turns into a worth decide after third general. Utah additionally had conferences with Jake O’Brien and Brady Martin, although it’s believed their decide could possibly be out there for the proper worth in commerce.
If the Islanders choose Schaefer at No. 1 (as many predict they’ll) and Hagens remains to be there at No. 4, there are a number of individuals who assume the crew will make a play for that decide as effectively; one rumored deal has the Isles providing a number of early-round picks to maneuver up. In spite of everything, Hagens did say his dream is to win a Stanley Cup with the Islanders.
The Flyers forged a large web, together with O’Brien, Martin and Porter Martone. It’s no secret the Flyers want a middle, and they’re definitely ready to draft one with the No. 6 decide. Notably, Martone is a winger, however he is massive and has some pest qualities to his sport, which might curiosity the Flyers. The Flyers additionally met with fairly a number of goalies on the mix, and given their uncertainty in objective, is it simple to see why they’d have curiosity in Joshua Ravensbergen, Jack Ivankovic, Alexei Medvedev and Semyon Frolov. With three first-round picks — additionally they have the Avs’ decide at No. 22 and the Oilers’ at both No. 31 or 32 — it is not arduous to think about a state of affairs by which the Flyers take a goalie.
The Canucks took Braden Cootes to dinner and are believed to have finished vital due diligence on Roger McQueen. Their organizational want for a middle is effectively documented, and given the absence of GM Patrik Allvin on the mix, which raised lots of eyebrows, many consider the Fifteenth decide can be utilized in a commerce to accumulate quick assist at middle. Equally, there’s perception that the Columbus Blue Jackets wish to transfer a few of their draft capital for quick assist.
Brady Martin has constructed a hype practice that’s chugging full steam forward. Whereas he is doubtless the Twelfth- to Fifteenth-ranked participant out there, Martin’s inventory has seen a lift from Sam Bennett’s playoff efficiency with the Florida Panthers. The farm boy who had a novel coaching routine rising up is now rumored to go as excessive as No. 4. When requested by reporters who he fashions his sport after, he referred to as out Bennett, Matthew Knies and Tom Wilson.
The prevailing perception is that he will not get previous Boston at No. 7, that means the likes of Martone, O’Brien and McQueen could possibly be out there a lot later than anticipated. Some scouts love his uncooked potential, and a few see him as a second-line pest sort. If a crew really believes he could be the following Sam Bennett, there’s an argument to take him within the high 10, however there are a lot of cautionary tales of passing on gamers with greater ceilings whereas drafting for a sure sort of participant.
There have been some enjoyable interview tidbits to return out of the mix too. The Pittsburgh Penguins used video of their conferences, a Kyle Dubas particular. The crew had clips of every participant and performed them again slowly, quizzing the participant on what occurred subsequent, why they made a sure determination and what they noticed on the play. In talking to individuals who have been a part of the mix course of throughout Dubas’ time with the Leafs, he does this to get a really feel for a participant’s capability to learn the sport, in addition to their perception in themselves when pressed a few determination they made on a selected play.
The Ottawa Senators requested gamers to inform a joke, a lighthearted manner of discovering out who can assume on their ft or who could also be a jokester within the locker room. Recognized for his or her odd questions, the Montreal Canadiens requested gamers what they’d do in the event that they have been stranded within the desert with one other particular person, a bottle of water and a baseball bat — and the opposite particular person took the water and wouldn’t share it. Different questions from groups included what sort of animal a participant thinks he’d be.
The consensus from the interviews was that Martin, Anton Frondell and Caleb Desnoyers actually impressed NHL executives. They have been partaking in dialog, and that can definitely assist all three. Desnoyers has steadily climbed draft boards, however he did not participate in testing due to wrist accidents he suffered through the season.
Talking of damage, all eyes have been on Roger McQueen throughout health testing. There’s vital concern about his again and the chance it could possibly be a recurring challenge, although it was a fracture and never a muscular damage. One government mentioned he’d be within the dialog for second general if damage issues weren’t an element.
As an alternative, McQueen might discover himself out there by way of the early teenagers. He accomplished the mix testing with out challenge, instructed groups he felt 100% wholesome and ripped off 9 pull-ups through the mix, and practically hit a tenth. Given the again muscular tissues related to that check, McQueen’s efficiency is believed to have quelled a number of the issues.
Will Horcoff confirmed off high-quality explosiveness, setting the mix report for the standing lengthy bounce, and he completed first within the no-arm vertical. Whereas these aren’t exams of his skating explosiveness, these scores are an indication of his muscular make-up and his potential. The son of Shawn Horcoff was already climbing draft boards and did himself fairly a number of favors along with his health testing and interviews.
Questions on Anton Frondell’s health appeared to linger amongst scouts, and he all however shut these down, with probably the greatest performances on the VO2 max check, together with Cole Reschny.
Mason West, the dual-sport dynamo from Minnesota, declared that he was selecting hockey. The highschool quarterback measured at 6-foot-6¼ and is taken into account to be one of many extra attention-grabbing prospects within the draft. Many consider multisport athletes are extra profitable after they lastly specialize as a result of their athleticism will not be constructed round one sport — they’re more likely to have higher coordination and response abilities and be functionally stronger. Given West’s measurement and uncooked expertise, he’s somebody to look at very early on Day 2 of the draft.
Outdoors of the everyday mix testing, the decentralization added one other twist. The draft ground is the place lots of trades and chatter happen. That will not occur this yr, and the overwhelming feeling is that lots of these discussions came about on the mix — given it’s the solely alternative for the GMs to be in the identical metropolis previous to the draft. That made Allvin’s absence all of the extra curious given the Canucks’ objectives and potential for setting off some severe commerce fireworks.
Not solely have been many GMs current, however the entire main brokers have been additionally current. A who’s who of the hockey world descended on Buffalo, and the prevailing feeling was that lots of groundwork was laid on potential trades and free agent signings (regardless of tampering guidelines) over the previous week.
One factor is for positive: Now we have entered the foolish season, and first-round draft picks are unlikely to be the one main chess strikes within the coming weeks.
