Today the Sens signed WHLer Parker Kelly to an ELC. It’s the first free agent signing by the club this entire off season–having drafted just four players, it makes sense to add prospects to the pipeline. Whether Kelly himself is a good addition or not remains to be seen, but we do have some information to go on.
Parker Kelly, CL/W, 18, 5’10/11
2015-16 WHL (Prince Albert) 68-8-11-19 (0.27)
2016-17 WHL (Prince Albert) 72-21-22-43 (0.59, 4th ppg)
On the surface the center has middling numbers, but those anemic totals put him second on his team in points and fourth in points-per game. A strong second half put him on the map for the draft, but only two guides listed him (I slotted him in the seventh round) and only one (Hockey Prospects) included a scouting profile, which can be summarized as follows:
-can play both wing and center
-exceptional skating and work ethic
-impressive agility and explosiveness
-elusive on the cycle
-keeps his feet moving and creates turnovers
-a pest
-smart defensive positioning
-not offensively creative, but above average on-ice vision
-heavy, accurate shot
For the org clearly his performance in both development camp and the rookie tournament was sufficient to sign him (for my part his skating and tenacity were well in evidence in the latter). He’s an undersized addition (5’10 or 5’11 depending on where you look), which is a nice change of pace for the size-obsessed club. The “pest” label concerns me, because every pest the org has drafted has bombed badly (Vincent Dunn is the current poster boy for this), but I’m not going to get hung up on that just yet.
Because of his age and the league he’s from he’ll be returning to junior this season (and next), so the return on investment is some ways off, but while he’s not an exciting prospect (in the sense that his ceiling is low), he’s potentially a useful one down the line.
This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)
eyeonthesens 