I’m only looking at those who were not playing pro (excluding Halliday and Pettersson, as they played significant time in Belleville where they were discussed). The prospects are arranged by age (oldest to youngest) since I think that’s a better indicator of where they are in their development. Those signed are in green.
Djibril Toure, 06/03, undrafted, 6’7, DR
23-24 OHL 45-8-10-18
22-23 OHL 57-5-11-16
His numbers dropped when he moved from Sudbury to Windsor. Like many of the org’s draft picks, the Sens gambled on size. Toure will have to make it as a strong defender. I think what you hope for is not a physical player, but someone like Kjell Samuelsson–very long who can take away time and space while clogging up the zone. He should be in Belleville this season, as he’s already burned one year of his ELC in the OHL, although as it stands he’s fourth on the depth chart on the right side.
Oliver Johansson, 07/03, 3-74/21, 6’0, LW/C
23-24 SEL 51-5-3-8
22-23 Allsven 27-6-3-9
Picked in large part because of his work ethic (cf), his rookie numbers in the SEL are fine, but don’t tell us much (he certainly needs to produce more to be worth signing). I don’t know enough about him to say if he’s an offensive dead zone like Parker Kelly (although the odds do lean towards that).
Theo Wallberg, 12/03, 6-168/22, 6’5, DL
23-24 NCAA 38-2-19-21
22-23 USHL 60-5-17-22
Another gamble on size. After an abysmal USHL season he finished second on his team in defensive scoring and I imagine his shocking numbers are due to his partner Scooter Brickey (this phenomena is not uncommon, think of Jared Cowen playing with Jared Spurgeon). We’ll want to see him produce without that help to feel better about his abilities.
Cameron O’Neill, 01/04, 5-143/22, 6’0, RW
23-24 NCAA 28-3-4-7
22-23 USHL 56-9-18-27
While there’s still plenty of time for him, there’s nothing that jumps out yet (very unremarkable USHL numbers). As an undersized forward, he needs to be either smart defensively or productive (the former seems like his only option, but even so, you need some talent to go along with it).
Tyson Dyck, 02/04, 7-206/22, 6’0, CL
23-24 NCAA 28-0-9-9
22-23 NCAA 28-5-4-9
You want to see progression from season-to-season, which we don’t here, but he has the upcoming year to demonstrate there’s light at the end of the tunnel.
Filip Nordberg, 03/04, 2-64/22, 6’5, DL
23-24 USHL 52-1-13-14
22-23 Allsven 33-2-4-6
These are not good USHL numbers (even worse than Wallberg‘s above), albeit there’s an adjustment from Europe to that league. He needs to demonstrate something soon or he’s another failed gambit on size.
Tomas Hamara, 03/04, 3-87/22, 6’0, DL
23-24 OHL 44-1-19-20
22-23 OHL 56-2-15-17
He was much more productive when moved to Brantford mid-season (26-1-16-17), which is the first time outside of international play we’ve seen him demonstrate the talent the org believes is there. As a smaller d-man it’s hard to imagine he’s in the org’s long term plans and I expect him to be moved. In theory he’ll be in Belleville this season (albeit as a spare part, with the org currently have 5 left-d not including Kleven).
Jorian Donovan, 04/04, 5-136/22, 6’2, DL
23-24 OHL 66-13-33-46
22-23 OHL 55-12-33-45
His numbers dropped after being traded to a stacked Saginaw team, which is no big deal. He’s been very productive in the CHL and it will be interesting to see how that transitions to the AHL-level (on a roster desperate for talent). As things stands he’d be third on the left side.
Nicholas Van Tassell, 04/04, 7-215/23, 6’4, CR
23-24 NCAA 24-1-1-2
22-23 USHL 62-19-18-37
The big center didn’t accomplish much as a freshmen, which is worrying, but he gets one more season to demonstrate something before we cast him aside.
Kevin Reidler, 09/04, 5-151/22, 6’6, GL
23-24 USHL .902 2.86 27-5-2
22-23 J20 .911 2.89 14-16-0
Starting ‘tender had an excellent playoff. There’s always a reason to be patient with goaltenders, so the org should continue to take its time with him.
Vladimir Nikitin, 01/05, 7-207/23, 6’4, GL
23-24 BCHL .898 2.76 15-6-3
22-23 Kazak Jr .921 2.07 18-6-0
He’s going back to the MHL (the AHL of the KHL), which is an interesting decision (as opposed to heading to the NCAA, USHL, or CHL). The Sens can take plenty of time with him, so we’ll have to see how things go, but as an off-the-wall pick expectations are low.
Hoyt Stanley, 02/05, 4-108/23, 6’3, DR
23-24 NCAA 35-2-8-10
22-23 BCHL 53-4-34-38
These are solid numbers as a freshmen, so if he can continue to improve on them there’s potential. I like offensively gifted defensemen, so he was a worthwhile risk as a pick.
Owen Beckner, 02/05, 7-204/23, 6’2, CL
23-24 USHL 61-14-31-45
22-23 BCHL 53-17-33-50
By points-per-game he was fourth in scoring on his team, well behind Vegas pick Trevor Connelly. There’s plenty of time for him to develop, so we’ll see how things go in the NCAA, but I would say his USHL numbers lower than what you’d want.
Matthew Andonovski, 03/05, 5-140/23, 6’2, DL
23-24 OHL 65-7-25-32
22-23 OHL 67-0-16-16
Second in scoring among blueliners and a nice jump in production from last year–this is the kind of growth you want to see. How far that takes him remains to be seen, although it was enough for the Sens to sign him to an ELC.
No one above looks like a game breaker. These are all support prospects whose top side is filling out the bottom of the lineup. It would be nice if the group featured more talent, but it’s one obviously talented player (Halliday) graduated out of this class before the end of the season.
This article was written by Peter Levi
eyeonthesens 