Sunday Morning Rangers’ Prospects Update–CHL Review for October

November 1, 2009 | Posted by Leslie Treff

It’s November 1, a new month. So let’s go over how the non-professional Rangers’ prospects are performing. To make it simple, I am going to give a quick review and a letter rating for each player, covering the CHL prospects today, and the NCAA players and Euros over the course of this week. BTW, your thoughts are encouraged (there is a comments section below).

CHL Prospects

Later this month, I will be writing up a formal article for Hockey’s Future on the major junior prospects (which will include Rangers’ management quotes). Player performances can certainly change between now and then, but just on the first six weeks of CHL hockey, here is my evaluation of the nine players who are participating in the league. (I am doing this in order of HF’s Top 20 ranking and then alphabetically.)

Tomas Kundratek, D, Medicine Hat Tigers, Rating:B–Kundratek was given a long look professionally this fall, so he joined the Tigers late. The young blueliner has played in only 12 games, but has generally looked very solid. He has recorded nine assists, which is impressive, however, quite a few of them were on goals when the game was no longer a contest. Still learning and developing, it was an excellent decision for Kundratek to return to the WHL.

Ethan Werek, C, Kingston Fronts, Rating: A–After a fantastic rookie season on a terrible team, Werek is continuing to perform at a very high level on the same team that is now leading its division. Werek is a large part of the Fronts success, playing in all situations and coming through on a consistent basis. He was sidelined for several games with hip issues which has hindered his production, but he still is on more than a point per game pace, and developing very nicely.

Ryan Bourque, C, Quebec Remparts, Rating:B-–Currently tied for sixth among rookies in the QMJHL, Bourque has had a big week. An offensive wizard who was expected to charge into major junior play, he has had some adjustment issues to this level of play. After the first game of the season, in which he looked tremendous, his opponents made some adjustments and his production slowed down. He has been working on it, and this past week, especially in Thursday’s game against Moncton where he had four assists and was the game’s second star, he looks to have solved some of his difficulties producing offensively. No question, Bourque is a highly talented playmaker. He is still adjusting though. For a fun player profile of Bourque on the QMJHL website, take a look at http://www.lhjmq.qc.ca/lang_en/index.php?page=232&id_nouvelle=2244 (which is in English).

Chris Doyle, C/LW, PEI Rocket, Rating: D–Doyle is the reason I added “on and off the ice” to this month’s evaluations. Doyle’s problems with at least one referee and at least one woman accusing him of attacking her have not played well over the last month. This behavior has overshadowed his play on the ice, which has been very good. Playing on the wing for the Rocket, Doyle is on a point a game pace, and is second on the team in scoring. However, particularly in October, he was not the clutch player that he should be for the team.  This season has not been the best for Doyle, who, at 19 1/2 years old needs to keep his focus on his game and come up big for his team when the game is on the line.

Mitch Gaulton, D, Erie Otters, Rating: C–What the Rangers were hoping for when they drafted him was an excellent puck mover with a better than average shot, the young phenom who was a top prospect before his elbow injury. A lengthy recovery was expected and full return to his former status was not assured. Gaulton has honestly not totally regained his form after surgery yet, and has also lost close to two years of development. There are times when he definitely looks good, and others when its clear that he is behind, but he is not consistently moving forward. It is a sad story, but at this point it is doubtful that Gaulton will be an NHL player.

Roman Horak, C/LW, Chilliwack Bruins, Rating: A-–The Rangers weren’t quite sure what to expect before Horak participated in the Traverse City Rookie Tournament. But the young Czech made an excellent impression there, and he is making another very good impression in Chilliwack. A top scorer on the Bruins, Horak had been playing on the wing (although still more of a playmaker than a goal scorer). For the last couple of weeks, Horak has been a part of critical late game goals that have helped the Bruins win four of their last five contests.

Sam Klassen, D, Saskatoon Blades, Rating: B-/C+–When the Rangers signed Klassen this past summer, they were hoping that he was ready for professional play. But like Tysen Dowzak last year, Klassen was not ready right after signing. So, the blueliner is back in Saskatoon, which is not ideal for the soon to be 21-year-old. He is putting up quite a few points, but shouldn’t be in this league at all anymore.

Daniel Maggio, D, Sudbury Wolves, Rating: B–Like Gaulton, Maggio was a late round pick because of injury issues. Unlike Gaulton, Maggio seems to have recovered well and was back on the ice to start the next season. The Wolves, however, are not exactly the cream of the OHL, so Maggio has had his hands full along the blueline. He is the leading offensive producer among defensemen on the team, but more than half of those points were posted in the first five games of the season. Since the beginning of October, Maggio has been mediocre at best, both in his own zone and contributing to the offense.  There is time to develop consistency though, and the Rangers will certainly be looking for it in their late round high risk pick.

Scott Stajcer, G, Owen Sound Attack, Rating: B-–Although Stajcer has been inconsistent between the pipes this season, he is the victim of facing a whole lot of shots since September. He is facing an average of a little under 36 shots per game, compared to some of the top ranking netminders in the OHL, who are facing closer to 30. Stajcer can have two or three excellent games (like he had this weekend, giving up 3 goals on 75 shots), and then give up 12 on a hundred (like last weekend). Whether he can turn that around or not remains to be seen.

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