Tom Thompson a former Minnesota Wild assistant GM, longtime scout and current The Hockey News insider blogger on the possibility of Rangers 2010 first round pick Dylan McIlrath making the Canadian World Junior Championship team despite not being invited to summer camp...“On merit, he should (be on Team Canada’s WJC team); maybe they just think he’s a one trick pony. He’s the king of the jungle, there’s no doubt about that. He can skate. His puck skills have not been great, but I think they’re getting better as he gets more confident. I would think if he’s not a candidate this year (for the WJC) he’ll be a candidate next year. If I was picking the team, he’d be at the camp. But that’s me.”
...from Thompson's report it sounds like McIlrath has a lot of development to do, so anyone that had any hopes of McIlrath competing for a spot next season should probably drop them.
18 comments:
Just the fact that he can skate coupled with his size and willingness to throw down keeps me excited about this pick. Puck skills will come with time. Beukeboom wasn't dangling or leading the rush and neither will this kid. It would be cool in 3-4 years to see a McIlrath/Del-Zotto coupling akin to Beukeboom/Leetch.
McDonaghs turn first.
Let's see how he does against other prospects in Traverse City. It must really be the doldrums of summer if the hockey news is writing about unpolished prospects
I still can't believe you took McIlrath over Fowler...Oh, wait, I don't care, our prospects are better.
Ryan,
Well you see McIlrath is better at fighting. And fighting wins games. Fowler can score but when has that been known to ever help a team win.
Oh how I wish we had someone smarter than that cigar-sucking clown running the team.
Here come the douche bag Islander fans like Janblowme talking crap when they would not know a prospect if it bit them in the ass.
LTP,
He has a point. Fowler would have been a better pick. He's more likely to be good in the NHL.
Yeah, that's why Fowler dropped to #12. I'm sorry, isn't the only thing saving your franchise from kansas city a last place finish two years ago? Get at me when your franchise goaltender can actually play a game again.
Im not upset about the pick. In fact, im optimistic. BUT, am I being harsh in saying if he made the team it wouldn't be saying much of the team's d? I don't think so.
Gary,
The Rangers reaching for McIlrath and drafting him tenth does not imply that Fowler will be a worse player. That's like saying because the Rangers reached for Hugh Jessiman and Dustin Brown, Zach Parise, Steve Bernier, Mike Richards, Corey Perry, etc. fell in the 2003 draft they're not as good as Jessiman. It's a draft. There is a lot that is unknown. But the consensus was and is that Fowler has a much higher likelihood of being an elite NHL player.
And I'm not an Islanders fan. I'm a Rangers fan, just trying to keep some objectivity.
And there are times when a team will project a player above and beyond what has been reported and written about because they actually scouted the kid and saw first hand the leaps and bounds of improvement that took place. The fact that other teams were also in the mix of choosing the player only confirms that our choice was not as far off as McGuire would lead you to believe. What strikes me as funny is that the skill set, while still maturing in a 18 yr old can be accurately projected by fans who have yet to see him even lace up those skates. And while the skill set is the most obvious aspect you project in a project, it should be noted that the NYR management chose Mc because of the character traits that seperates him from the Fowlers and Gormleys, players that play a soft D with a little offense sprinkled in.
I think that because MDZ has the offensive potential to seperate himself (aka Leetch), it opened the door for a player like Mc to be drafted.
Rick,
Yes I understand the Rangers had him ranked higher than other teams. And that one or two other teams also had him moving up their boards. However, as much as we like to think that Sather is the only outdated GM in the NHL, he's not. The reality is that a majority of NHL talent evaluators: scouts, GM's, etc. had Fowler ranked much higher than McIlrath.
"And while the skill set is the most obvious aspect you project in a project, it should be noted that the NYR management chose Mc because of the character traits that seperates him from the Fowlers and Gormleys, players that play a soft D with a little offense sprinkled in." You could just as easily be talking about Hugh Jessiman there.
And the fact remains that, unless an NHL team has a pick in the top couple of slots, there is no way it should ever draft for current need. The draft is too much of a crap shoot and players take too long to reach the big club for that. Teams draft for 3, 4, 5 years in the future. That's what makes the Red Wings, Blackhawks, Sharks successful. And it's also what keeps the Rangers stuck in system mediocrity.
rick, pierre mcguirre thinks everything is an awful move unless it involes ray shero and the penguins, he was getting uncomfortably excited when they signed michalek and martin on july 1
Fowler would have been a better pick for who not us we're stocked as far as offensive defensemen go we MDZ , Gilroy & Staal who as much as I would rather trade him will eventually be a 50 point producer with the big club, we have Mikhail Pashnin who's the top point producing defenseman & #1 overall pick in the KHL he'll be coming over in the next year or 2 more likely =. What our organization lacked was a true crease clearing, defensive minded, heavy hitting blue liner & thats what we got & mark my words this kid is going to be on the fast track tot he NHL. There wa sa reason Fowler dropped & thats because he does not play the body & his overall game is not as good as many would have you believe.
we're overstocked on players who can't play in the nhl. gotta love our team. and yes im a negative nancy.
He. Is. Just. A. Kid.
seriously, isnt he like 4+ years away?
gilroy is not a good example. in 3 yrs when the guy drafted is ready gilroy will be 29. so don't draft for current need. although having said that i think gormley and fowler are pretty weak defensively so i'm ok with the mcilrath pick
We wouldn't know a prospect if it bit us in the ass? And how exactly would a last place finish save us from Kansas City? Please edit ur posts b4 u post them. Thank you.
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