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Created: Sunday, 03 January 2016 16:22
Originally published by Brock Otten at OHL Prospects Blog on January 3, 2016
This is a yearly tradition (take a look at the Sunday Top 10 sidebar for other years). It's time to take a look at the top overagers in the OHL, available to be signed by NHL teams.
For the first time in a few years, none of the players on this list have signed an NHL contract already, but even if they had, they would still be included. This list intends to rank players according to the likelihood that they continue their career at the professional level.
Likely half of the players on this list will not end up getting a professional contract and will play in the CIS. It's the nature of the beast. The bottom line is that a few will and many will not (be signed) and those players who do not, will take advantage of their education package while continuing to play a high level of hockey at a Canadian University.
It's important to note that this list does not include overagers who have yet to sign NHL contracts, despite having their draft rights owned by a team (like Matt Mistele). This list is for those players who are NHL free agents after going through the draft two or three times (depending on their birth date).
Read more: OHL Prospects - Overagers Worth Signing (2016)
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Created: Tuesday, 29 December 2015 19:29
Composed by Brock Otten from OHL Prospects Blog
The start of the 2016 calendar year is nearly upon us and that means it is time for me to re-evaluate my rankings for the 2016 Draft. The OHL season is past the half way mark (for most teams) which gives us a great indication of how certain players have developed in their draft season. Many players have stepped up to assume large roles on their club, while others have disappointed and find themselves on the outside looking in.
I really like the crop for this year's draft from the OHL. The top end talent is very good, with IMO, upwards of 8-9 guys vying for spots as lottery selections. This includes three guys (Chychrun, Tkachuk, and McLeod) who could be top 5 picks. The depth is very solid too, with some real potential diamond in the rough guys who look like they could end up being solid mid-late round selections. I will say that the goaltending crop has disappointed me. I thought that this would be a banner year for OHL goaltenders, but many have struggled with consistency and as such haven't established themselves as top flight prospects (at least not yet).
Read more: OHL Prospects: Midseason Top 30 for the 2016 NHL Entry Draft
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Created: Tuesday, 08 December 2015 13:14
Originally published by Brock Otten at OHL Prospects Blog on Monday, December 7th, 2015.
The 2016 OHL Trade deadline is set for January 8 and 11. January 8th is the deadline for overage players to be dealt. January 11th is the deadline for all other deals.
We've already had several high profile players move, but I think we're far from done. The Eastern Conference is completely wide open. Barrie, Niagara, Kingston, Ottawa, Peterborough, and Mississauga are all in the running and should be looking to make the upgrades necessary to take home the Conference. In the West, there isn't quite as much parity, but we've still got a few teams who surely believe that this year is their year. More importantly, we've got a lot of teams who will look to sell to recoup assets in non-competitive years.
To sum it up, I expect this to be a very busy deadline.
I present to you a look at some of the high profile players who could be (and likely will be) trading places before the 8th/11th. I've also tried my hand at predicting the most logical destination for said players.
Read more: OHL Prospects: OHL Trade Deadline Preview
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Created: Monday, 23 November 2015 16:53
Previously posted by Brock Otten at The OHL Prospects BlogPreviously posted by Brock Otten at The OHL Prospects Blog
The 2015/16 OHL season is now nearly a third of the way complete. This means that the draft crop has really started to take shape. With my preliminary media/scout Top 10 being released last week, it's a great time to take a look at some of the guys flying under the radar right now.
Here are 10 guys to really keep an eye on over the next two thirds of the season (in alphabetical order).
Read more: OHL Prospects: Under the Radar Draft Eligibles for 2016
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Created: Sunday, 15 November 2015 23:11
Originally published on OHL Prospects by Brock Otten
It's time for the first media/scout top 10 for 2016. Certainly no surprise at number one. At this point, Chychrun seems to have solidified his spot at the top of the OHL draft crop. But after that, opinions vary. Tkachuk is a consensus top 5 pick, but then we've got a large group of players vying for a spot in the overall top 10. Once again, the OHL looks to have several candidates for the lottery selections.
For those unfamiliar with how this works, I poll many of the OHL's brightest minds; those who cover the league incredibly well and know the OHL inside, and out. These contributors supply me with their top 10 available players from the OHL, in addition to some comments. I then put it all together and provide you with a cumulative list. Call it "the consensus."
As always, this list involves contributions from a rather colourful cast of characters. Contributing their rankings and thoughts to this preliminary list for 2016 were:
Read more: OHL Prospects: Preliminary Media/Scout Poll for 2016
