It’s been seven long months since I first published my Sens prospect rankings.
The Ottawa Senators had yet to start the 2019/2020 regular season and while the experts had them pegged as a last place team, there was hope for the future. New Head Coach DJ Smith brought a new energy to the team and with a prospect pool as deep as anyone in the league, the Senators were ready to surprise some people.
And then the realities of a long, rebuilding season hit. The NHL roster was filled out with veterans while many of the team’s top prospects spent the season in the American Hockey League.
While the NHL team predictably struggled, the prospect pool is still in great shape. In August, I ranked the current batch of prospects. Here’s how it looked.
- Erik Brannstrom
- Drake Batherson
- Logan Brown
- Josh Norris
- Lassi Thomson
- Alex Formenton
- Jacob Bernard-Docker
- Filip Chlapik
- Filip Gustavsson
- Max Lajoie
As a reminder, at the time we limited it to players aged 22 and under. Guys like Christian Jaros, Christin Wolanin and Anthony Duclair were considered too old and Thomas Chabot, Brady Tkachuk and Colin White were left off because they were already full-time NHLers.
We now know there will likely be two new names on this list at some point this summer but how would the Top 10 look today? Has there been much movement? Have any new players forced their way into the conversation?
Great questions, SensChirp. Thanks, SensChirp. Hey, no problem, SensChirp.
Anyway, here goes nothing. Presenting, the updated prospect rankings.
10. Rudolfs Balcers – Balcers was 11th back in August but another productive American Hockey League season is enough to force his way into the Top 10. Balcers has racked up 36 points in 33 games in the AHL and shown flashes during his 15 games at the NHL level. Still not sure about his NHL ceiling but all the tools are there.
9. Filip Chlapik– Chlapik moves down a spot but not by any fault of his own and more so because he has been passed by a guy with a little higher ceiling. And actually, Chlapik looks pretty close to making the jump to everyday NHLer too. He’s more of a bottom-six guy, it would appear, but still a useful player.
We interrupt this prospect list for a message from Ottawa Public Health.
8. Jacob Bernard-Docker– Another guy who drops a spot but not because of anything he did wrong necessarily. He had a great showing at the World Junior tournament and certainly looks like a player with top four potential. 25 points in 32 games in the NCAA suggests there may be some offensive potential there too.
7. Shane Pinto- The biggest mover on the list, Pinto is up six spots from where I had him in the summer. At the time, I said it was hard to get a good read on Pinto because we didn’t know much about him. We do now. A dominant World Junior performance and a stand-out rookie season at the University of North Dakota are great ways to get noticed. In the words of noted draft expert Bobby Boogie- “GREAT pick”.
6. Lassi Thomson- Lassi is down a spot on this list but his stock as a prospect has probably still increased over the last seven months. The 19th overall selection in the 2019 Draft looked impressive in Liiga play this season and was the Captain of Team Finland at the World Juniors. The sooner he can make the transition to the North American game the better.
5. Alex Formenton- Update- Alex Formenton is still ridiculously fast. The good news is if this last season in Belleville is any indication, his hands and hockey sense are finally starting to catch up to his feet. Formenton scored 27 goals and added 26 assists which is a ridiculously productive year for a 20-year old in a league that can be tough on young players.
And now, a message from the Prime Minister.
4. Logan Brown- Update- Logan Brown still can’t stay healthy. Patience is starting to wear thin among some fans when it comes to Logan Brown but he still has all the tools to be an impact player in the NHL. Okay, some of the tools. He showed flashes at the NHL level this season in 25 games and dominated the AHL when healthy. Really hope the organization sticks with him because I still think Logan Brown is going to be a hell of a player.
3. Erik Brannstrom- Brannstrom was number one back in August but he drops two spots this time around. Brannstrom really is an interesting prospect. Those that expect him to dazzle offensively are often left disappointed but the thing that really impressed me about Brannstrom this season was the way he handled NHL forwards in his own end of the rink. The offensive side of his game will come but it’s encouraging that he can handle defensive responsibilities at such a young age.
2. Josh Norris- Up two spots and knocking on the door of the top spot, Josh Norris officially “arrived” this season. The American Hockey League can be a bit of a grind for young players at times but Norris has made it look easy down there, scoring goals at a rate rarely achieved by players his age. He had 61 points in 56 AHL games and showed an offensive flair that wasn’t as apparent during his time at the University of Michigan. Norris looks like a first or second line centre at this point.
1. Drake Batherson- Two games into the NHL season and some fans were ready to call Batherson a bust but as the year rolled on, Batherson lived up to the hype. For the second straight season, he made the AHL look easy and recently, started to show some of those offensive abilities at the NHL level too.
How would you rank ’em? Anybody you would include in the Top 10? Have you washed your hands recently?
Let me know in the comment section below.
