Originally posted on Daily Faceoff
The Calgary Flames had one of the best drafts of any team in 2024, highlighted by the big pick of Zayne Parekh at No. 9 overall. But their fourth pick – Jacob Battaglia at No. 62 – is one of their more exciting selections.
The 18-year-old winger was productive with 31 goals and 65 points last year, and anywhere north of 85 this season was going to be seen as a big success. But right now, he’s tracking well north of 100 after putting up seven goals and 16 points in 10 games with the Kingston Frontenacs. He didn’t have a point in either of the two games this past weekend but otherwise has five multi-point efforts this season. And he’s doing it on a weak Kingston team with just three regulation victories, as well – it’s been a grind.
Battaglia isn’t a huge volume shooter, but he keeps finding dangerous scoring routes, and that led him to start the year with a six-game goal streak. The Flames need scoring depth in the pipeline, and Battaglia gives them that.
But he has to be more than just a point-producer to solicit an NHL roster spot. Last year, he often shied away from the physical game despite being quite strong. This year, he’s battling in the trenches more and making himself more difficult to win battles against along the boards. I do think Battaglia’s skating is still a work in progress, but his first few steps are quicker than they were to close out the 2023-24 season.
It’s all progress, and that’s all you’re asking for out of your second-round picks, right?
– Through nine games with Windsor this year, Los Angeles Kings draft pick Liam Greentree has more games with three or more points (five) than he doesn’t (four). It’s wild, but something many scouts expected from him this year. Greentree did so much on a weak Spitfires team last year, finishing with 90 points in 64 games. Now in his third OHL campaign, and with Windsor looking much stronger from an overall standpoint, Greentree has been able to put some insane numbers on the board with a league-leading 23 points in nine games. That’s a full-season output of 172 points, by the way. Now, the big question – how’d he only have one point in a 12-2 victory over Kitchener on opening weekend?
– His stats might not stand out on a page, but I’ve liked what I’ve seen from Evan Gardner on Saskatoon. He was exceptional in his first game of the season, stopping 43 of 46 shots from a Brandon Wheat Kings team that had no shortage of quality chances. The Columbus Blue Jackets prospect has allowed just five goals in his last four games, helping to build off what was a solid showing during the Blue Jackets’ rookie tournament in Buffalo.
– Tomas Lavoie is a bit deeper down Utah’s pipeline, but he’s having himself quite the season. The 6-foot-4, right-handed blueliner is known more for his defensive play, but he’s taking a bigger role in Cape Breton and it’s paying off. He has 12 points in eight games – half of his 65-game output from a year ago – to help put him on the map for Canada’s World Junior team this winter. He’s still playing his usual, aggressive style that made him intriguing last year, but he’s looking like a more rounded defender than most expected.
– How about Artur Akhtyamov? The Toronto Maple Leafs prospect has a perfect 3-0-0 record to start his time in North America and secured his first shutout with a 17-stop effort against Utica on Sunday. In fact, he has only allowed three goals so far, helping to shore up what’s looking to be a strong depth chart in Toronto. Akhtyamov has outplayed veteran Matt Murray early on and will look to steal starts from Dennis Hildeby once he’s sent back down to Coca-Cola Coliseum. It’s legitimately an exciting time for Leafs fans to keep a close eye on their crease situation.
– Two games, two 5-0 shutouts. Yaroslav Askarov has had plenty of support in front of him early on, but the fact he hasn’t allowed a goal through two games with the San Jose Barracuda is a good sign. The San Jose Sharks made a big splash by trading for him over the summer, but there was never a real chance of him playing full-time with the big club this year without one of their two other NHL options getting moved. For now, Askarov is making the most of his time with the Barracuda and remains a must-see prospect whenever he’s visiting your town.
– I’ve said before that Zachary L’Heureux is one of my favorite prospects in the game. He had a quiet opening weekend with just one assist through two games, but he looked energized this past weekend with a pair of two-point efforts against Rockford. The Nashville Predators are believers in the energetic, relentless winger who isn’t afraid to hit everyone in his sight – and he’s productive, too, having scored 19 goals and 48 points as an AHL rookie last year. I think he’ll get a call-up to the big club later this year and establish himself as a good middle-six NHLer by next season.
– Nikita Artamonov is ridiculous, man. He has 17 points in 17 games with Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod, just one point behind the KHL scoring lead. At this point, the Carolina Hurricanes prospect (who somehow fell to the second round) is set to smash the all-time U-20 scoring record set by Kirill Kaprizov when he put up 42 in 49 games with Salavat Yulaev Ufa back in 2016-17. I’ve been a big fan of Artamonov for a while – someone who I said had great underlying numbers last year and just needed a chance to prove it on a larger scale in the KHL. Keep a close, close eye on Artamonov because he might be ready for the NHL sooner than everyone expected.
– Aidan Thompson proved to be a valuable piece of Denver’s secondary scoring attack last year but he’s already busy challenging for the NCAA scoring lead this year. The Chicago Blackhawks took him in 2022 as an overager after he put up great numbers with the USHL’s Lincoln Stars, but he has remained productive ever since. Now a junior, Thompson has eight points in four games, including four in a 5-2 win over Northeastern on Saturday. He has points in every single game, and while he is viewed as more of a playmaker, he’s showing a bit more oomph with his shot, too.
– Hey, Edmonton Oilers fans: need a pick-me-up? How about Tomas Mazura? The Czech-born forward is one of the oldest players in the NCAA at 24 and might never come close to cracking the NHL. But he’s on a bit of a heater as of late, registering eight points in his last four games with the St. Lawrence Saints. He was especially productive with four assists in an 8-0 win against Ferris State on Saturday, marking the best game of his tournament. At 6-foot-4, I could see Mazura signing an AHL deal next year and being a decent power forward, hoping to earn an NHL deal at some point. At this point, who knows? At least a longshot prospect is looking good, right?
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Originally posted on Daily Faceoff
Published: 4 weeks ago
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