The Ottawa Senators and their faithful will be waiting with baited breath to see what happens before general manager Pierre Dorion steps to the microphone to make the club’s top pick.
Everybody knows Alexis Lafreniere of the Rimouski Oceanic will go No. 1 overall to the New York Rangers, but after that happens it’s anybody’s guess which way the Los Angeles Kings are leaning. Talk to one scout and they’ll tell you it will be Quinton Byfield of the Sudbury Wolves. Pick up the phone, call another, and they’re convinced the Kings are going to take Tim Stuetzle of Mannheim in the Deutsch Elite League.
The bottom line is whether it’s Byfield or Stuetzle, the Senators are going to get a great prospect.
No, they don’t play the same style, but both are highly-regarded.
A 6-foot-4 centre, Byfield had 32 goals and 82 points with Sudbury in 45 games last season and he was ranked No. 2 among North American skaters by the Central Scouting Bureau in the end of season rankings.
“He’s got all the tools and he plays the game the right way,” said Dan Marr, head of the CSB, in an interview with Postmedia Thursday. “For me, he’s this generation’s Jean Beliveau and I’ve said that many times. He’s got the size, strength, speed, hockey smarts, skills, determination and compete. He’s got everything you need to be successful and be successful on a team scale.
“This kid, the two years we’ve watched him, he’s done it game in and game out. When he came back from the world juniors, he fought through and didn’t miss games, and by the time the prospect game came around he looked like he was ready to play in three seven-game playoff series. He battled through it, he kept his production up and he continued to lead. He checks every box for a team looking for an NHL star.”
As for Stuetzle, his reviews are just as good. He had seven goals and 34 points as a winger playing in a men’s league last season with Mannheim.
“He’s very grounded and level-headed. He played in a men’s league, he had success at that level and he went on the world junior team as a younger player and he was a leader there,” Marr said. “He’s been throw into these situations and it’s just the way he’s handled himself. He’s got all the skill. He’s a guy that go out and create scoring chances when he has the puck on his stick, he can control the game.
“He has everything going for him. He just needs to continue to get stronger and he’ll gain more experience. He’s already got a pro approach to his game because he’s played pro. His learning curve to adapt, he’s already steps ahead of the players who haven’t had the opportunity to play at the level he’s playing at.”
Twitter: @sungarrioch
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