At the start of the 2019-20 hockey season, it appeared that the title of top draft-eligible defenceman was going to be contested by two players in the Canadian Hockey League: Jamie Drysdale and Justin Barron. In Bob McKenzie’s pre-season draft rankings, published in September of 2019, NHL scouts had ranked Drysdale as the eighth-best prospect, and Barron the 10th.
Drysdale’s play in his draft year not only justified those initial projections, but exceeded them, He increased his goal and assist totals with the Erie Otters despite a shortened season, and showed he had room to grow and flesh out his skill set. Barron, on the other hand, was unable to strengthen his case.
Birthplace: Halifax, Nova Scotia Date of birth: November 15, 2001 Shoots: Right Position: Defenceman Height: 6’2” Weight: 198 lbs. Draft-Year Team: Halifax Mooseheads (QMJHL)
The Haligonian was only able to play about half of the games for his hometown team, forced to the sidelines by a blood-clot issue. His point totals were actually a step down from what he’d produced in his draft-minus-one campaign.
With added scrutiny of his game in the last action before the NHL Draft, scouts began to question how much of an offensive impact he’d be able to have at the top level. A progression is expected for any player projected to go in the opening round, and especially one in the top 10, but with less of a supporting cast to work with, that leap never happened. That alone allowed several promising forwards to overtake him in the rankings as the year went on.
[embedded content]
There were still things to like about his offensive game. First and foremost, he’s a mobile blue-liner, so when he joins the rush he can just skate past recovering players to get to the net. He has a low shot from the point that can be easily tipped, and that’s how he got most of his points.
It clearly wasn’t an overly dangerous shot, as he had just four goals on the year. Part of that is some slow reactions when he has the puck, often taking too long to make his play and having the lanes close just as he’s ready to fire. The same is true of his playmaking, as he had trouble moving the puck quickly to teammates, or even finding them if they were open because of some pass-accuracy issues.
Rankings
Elite Prospects: #70 Future Considerations: #38 Hockey Prospect: #46 McKeen’s Hockey: #54 McKenzie/TSN: #25 NHL Central Scouting: #16 (North American skaters)
At the opposite end of the ice, his defensive play which has always served as the basis of his game remained intact. He denied forwards at the blue line, threw his body around, and used an active stick to stop plays in front of the net. There are few players in his class better at defending against forwards carrying the puck.
There are better defencemen at keeping tabs on players who don’t have possession, and that became more apparent this season. Some issues with awareness let players simply skate around him in his own zone, and not even his quickness could help him recover.
It didn’t help his case that two similar blue-liners — Kaiden Guhle and Braden Schneider — showed fewer weaknesses in their games. Both of those WHLers surpassed Barron this season. Jake Sanderson, a better skater than all of them, raced past all of those peers to currently slot around the 10th position Barron originally occupied to start the year.
In the not too distant past, just having great mobility would have been enough to earn a high selection. As the game transitioned from a tight-checking style to more of an offensive flow, the league needed defencemen who could keep up. Now that most players in the league can be classified as mobile, the next transition is in the speed of processing the game. There’s very little time to make decisions when an opponent can be on top of you in a split-second, so you need to make the right one in an instant. In the 2020 class, a handful of players proved they can do that better than Barron, and that has some scouts and analysts questioning just how valuable the Mooseheads defenceman’s game will be.
Originally projected as a top-four option with a good overall game, some concerns with consistency and his ability to keep up in the modern game peg Barron more as a third-pairing option. He could still be a significant part of an NHL team, but probably not be deployed against the top players in the league, and his drop in the rankings reflects that thinking. Bob McKenzie’s end-of-year survey of NHL scouts revealed that many still have him in quite high regard, so a first-round selection is far from out of the question, but there will need to be some significant improvements in Barron’s game to live up to that positioning.
TORONTO – Reigning PWHL MVP and scoring champ Natalie Spooner will miss the start of the regular season for the Toronto Sceptres, general manager Gina Kingsbury announced Tuesday on the first day of training camp.
The 33-year-old Spooner had knee surgery on her left anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) after she was checked into the boards by Minnesota’s Grace Zumwinkle in Game 3 of their best-of-five semifinal series on May 13.
She had a goal and an assist in three playoff games but did not finish the series. Toronto was up 2-1 in the semifinal at that time and eventually fell 3-2 in the series.
Spooner led the PWHL with 27 points in 24 games. Her 20 goals, including five game-winners, were nine more than the closest skater.
Kingsbury said there is no timeline, as the team wants the Toronto native at 100 per cent, but added that “she is doing really well” in her recovery.
The Sceptres open the PWHL season on Nov. 30 when they host the Boston Fleet.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 12, 2024.
LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) — A top official of the Pakistan Cricket Board declined Friday to confirm media reports that India has decided against playing any games in host Pakistan during next year’s Champions Trophy.
“My view is if there’s any problems, they (India) should tell us in writing,” PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi told reporters in Lahore. “I’ll share that with the media as well as with the government as soon as I get such a letter.”
Indian media reported Friday that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has communicated its concerns to all the Champions Trophy stakeholders, including the PCB, over the Feb. 19-March 9 tournament and would not play in arch-rival Pakistan.
The Times of India said that “Dubai is a strong candidate to host the fixtures involving the Men in Blue” for the 50-over tournament.
Such a solution would see Pakistan having to travel to a neutral venue to play India in a group match, with another potential meeting later in the tournament if both teams advanced from their group. The final is scheduled for March 9 in Pakistan with the specific venue not yet decided.
“Our stance is clear,” Naqvi said. “They need to give us in writing any objections they may have. Until now, no discussion of the hybrid model has happened, nor are we prepared to accept one.”
Political tensions have stopped bilateral cricket between the two nations since 2008 and they have competed in only multi-nation tournaments, including ICC World Cups.
“Cricket should be free of politics,” Naqvi said. “Any sport should not be entangled with politics. Our preparations for the Champions Trophy will continue unabated, and this will be a successful event.”
The PCB has already spent millions of dollars on the upgrade of stadiums in Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi which are due to host 15 Champions Trophy games. Naqvi hoped all the three stadiums will be ready over the next two months.
“Almost every country wants the Champions Trophy to be played here (in Pakistan),” Naqvi said. “I don’t think anyone should make this a political matter, and I don’t expect they will. I expect the tournament will be held at the home of the official hosts.”
Eight countries – Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, England, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand and Afghanistan – are due to compete in the tournament, the schedule of which is yet to be announced by the International Cricket Council.
“Normally the ICC announces the schedule of any major tournament 100 days before the event, and I hope they will announce it very soon,” Naqvi said.
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – Ottawa‘s Gabriela Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe of New Zealand are through to the doubles final at the WTA Finals after a 7-6 (7), 6-1 victory over Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the United States and Australia’s Ellen Perez in semifinal action Friday.
Dabrowski and Routliffe won a hard-fought first set against serve when Routliffe’s quick reaction at the net to defend a Perez shot gave the duo set point, causing Perez to throw down her racket in frustration.
The second seeds then cruised through the second set, winning match point on serve when Melichar-Martinez couldn’t handle Routliffe’s shot.
The showdown was a rematch of last year’s semifinal, which Melichar-Martinez and Perez won in a super tiebreak.
Dabrowski and Routliffe will face the winner of a match between Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend, and Hao-Ching Chan and Veronika Kudermetova in the final on Saturday.
Dabrowski is aiming to become the first Canadian to win a WTA Finals title.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.
:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/21925981/Screenshot_2020_09_30_CHL_2019_20_Percentile_Rank_Tool_3_.png){kind=icon}
