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Wild’s top 10 prospects: 2007-08 edition

By Derek Felska | May 24th, 2007

A quick trip to the news stand (a good one at least) and one can find an issue of the Hockey News’ Future Watch issue to see who the top 10 prospects are for all of the NHL’s 30 teams. Admittedly I have a subscription to the Hockey News and find it to be a nice resource for hockey information most of the time; but I wasn’t too impressed by Michael Russo’s (who is the Wild’s beat writer over at the Minneapolis Star-Tribune) listing of the Wild’s top 10 prospects. It could’ve been good, if it was written LAST YEAR!

Almost the same things can be said of the website HockeysFuture.com; a source for hockey fans craving information on their team’s prospects. Yet, it was even worse than Russo’s top 10. AJ Thelen is our 7th best guy (a guy who the Wild have basically given up on?), puh-leeze! Roman Voloshenko’s 3rd? Has anyone over there seen this guy play? Certainly does not seem like it. Either way, with two “expert” publications fumbling and stumbling to achieve a true Top 10 listing of the Wild’s prospects I felt I need to chime in with my own. This way, Wild fans can see what prospects in our organization are true contenders to make the team and who are pretenders.

Apart from giving you the basic rundown on each player’s latest seasonal statistics, talents, progress and issues I will also give my two cents as to whether they have a chance to make the Wild’s roster next season. The Wild’s prospect pool is rather loaded full of forwards, with a small sprinkling of defenseman but virtually devoid of goaltenders. For guys like right wing Matt Foy and goaltender Josh Harding we’ve seen these guys enough with the Wild to know what they can and can’t bring to the table. Harding will likely be riding the bench as a backup to whichever starter the Wild will go with and as far as Foy goes, I think he’ll get a shot to test the free agency waters. With those two out of the “prospect pool” so to speak let’s begin.

#1. C - James Sheppard - Cape Breton Screaming Eagles (QMJHL)

Height: 6′1″ Weight: 210lbs Shoots: Left Stats: 56GP 33G 53A = 96pts 62 PIM’s

Talent Analysis: It was another strong year for the Wild’s 1st round selection. Despite being out of the lineup early on due to a back injury he sustained at the Wild’s training camp, Sheppard came on strong to have his best season yet with the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles. Anchoring the team’s 2nd line, Sheppard demonstrated excellent playmaking ability along with a knack for tallying clutch goals as he led his team to the QMJHL Semi-finals. The Sackville, Nova Scotia-native plays a solid two-way game but there are some areas he could stand to work on. His quickness is an area he must improve to make it in the new faster NHL, and at times the 6′1″ 210lbs centre was guilty of trying to do too much with the puck. Poise will come around with more experience, but the Wild have to have liked what they saw out of Sheppard and his future is clearly the brightest of the Wild’s crop of prospects. The player with the Size 15 skates is also a tireless worker who is not afraid to be physical and grit is a major need for the finesse driven Wild.

Could he make the 2007-08 Wild roster?: Last season, James Sheppard’s pre-season play with the Wild never really got off the ground because of the back injury I mentioned earlier, but the team kept him around so he could absorb as much as he could before sending him back to play with Cape Breton. While Wild General Manager Doug Risebrough seemed to downplay (as he does virtually every year) the chances of any prospects getting a shot straight out of camp this season. It should be noted, Sheppard impressed Wild coaches / management with the way he came in as an 18-year old and they definately believe he’s going to be an impact player. I would have to lean towards “no” for the youngster making the Wild for next season, and barring any injury I believe the team will give him a long look during the pre-season.

#2. LW - Benoit Pouliot - Houston Aeros (AHL)

Height: 6′3″ Weight: 195lbs Shoots: Left Stats: 67GP 19G 17A = 36pts 109 PIM’s

Talent Analysis: The word enigmatic is starting to be tossed around when discussing Benoit Pouliot’s game; and it is not a compliment. At times, Pouliot will demonstrate his great speed and smooth skating stride, as well as his arsenal of sick 1-on-1 moves to create a great scoring chance. The problem is, to be blunt, those are isolated incidents. Most of the time, his play in is uninspired and you even wonder if he really wants to be there. Initially Pouliot started out well last season for the Houston Aeros, the Wild’s AHL affiliate, and the team rewarded him with a early mid-season call up. After getting little ice time, he was shipped back to Houston after just 3 games and this seemed to put the winger in a foul mood. Pouliot has also carried over his tendency to take undisciplined retalation penalties; where he’ll often respond with a slash to being hit (even if it was clean); undiscliplined penalties would have the winger in Wild Head Coach Jacques Lemaire’s doghouse immediately, just ask Dominic Moore. The Alfred, Ontario-native did very little for the next two weeks before mildly coming back with a few “ok” games to finish the season with an extremely modest 37 points. For a player who was known as a creative and dynamic scorer his play since being drafted has been rather mundane, and it could even be argued he’s taken a step back since being the Wild’s 1st round pick in 2005. Its far far too early to give Pouliot the “bust” tag, but the team will definately be expecting him to turn it around this season.

Could he make the 2007-08 Wild roster?: Perhaps, but not very likely. Unless Pouliot pulls off an amazing turnaround in terms of his overall effort and general intensity (especially in the defensive zone) he’ll have another long stint in Houston. There is little question he possesses a high skill level, but demonstrating that on a consistant basis seems to be his biggest challenge. He will also need to demonstrate to the team that he can be disciplined as well if he wants to stick with the team as the Wild coaching staff has an extremely low tolerance for stupid (retaliation) penalties.

#3. LW - Danny Irmen - Houston Aeros (AHL)

Height: 6′0″ Weight: 190lbs Shoots: Right Stats: 80GP 17G 20A = 37pts 45 PIM’s

Talent Analysis: It was a fairly solid year for the gritty winger from North Dakota. While Irmen did not rack up the penalty minutes as one may expect he recieved solid reviews from now former Aeros Head Coach Rob Daum over his solid two-way play and tremendous work ethic. Irmen also has fairly decent hands to go along with his gritty style of game. One other area that was a partial concern going into his first pro season was how he could take the demand of playing 80 games versus a 40-game schedule he had in college, and the Minot, N.D-native handled it well. The only real knock on Irmen is that he does not really possess a lot of speed despite having an average sized frame.

Could he make the 2007-08 Wild roster?: Danny Irmen’s chances of making the Wild’s roster may be as high as 50%. The team has openly recognized it could use more grit in its lineup and Irmen is that type of player. A strong training camp and pre-season might have Irmen getting a shot with the club. A mediocre camp or an inability to give the lineup a bit more ’sandpaper’ and he’ll likely have a long stint in Houston.

#4. C - Morten Madsen - Victoriaville Tigres (QMJHL)

Height: 6′2″ Weight: 185lbs Shoots: Left Stats: 62GP 32G 68A = 100pts 86 PIM’s

Talent Analysis: This might be the closest the team has come to having a late-round steal. The Danish-born Madsen had a tremendous first season in North America by scoring a 100 points in 62 games for Victoriaville of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. Morten Madsen is a two-way centre with great playmaking skills as well nice scoring touch. While his skating is good, but not great he has enough speed to forecheck effectively. Madsen also demonstrated some good skills on the penalty kill as he had 9 shorthanded goals. It will be interesting to see if he can thrive at the next level the way he has in Canadian Junior.

Could he make the 2007-08 Wild roster?: It would be highly unlikely that Morten Madsen could make the Wild’s roster next season, but it is hoped to see the young Danish-centreman replicate or exceed his totals if he ends up playing in Victoriaville next season. Madsen is joining a growing list of players to come out of Denmark but it will probably be two more years before he gets his shot with the Wild.

#5. D - Shawn Belle - Houston Aeros (AHL)

Height: 6′1″ Weight: 235lbs Shoots: Left Stats: 57GP 4G 14A = 18pts 73 PIM’s

Talent Analysis: The smooth skating defenseman battled to learn the Wild’s system, but still leaves coaches / management happy with his potential. Belle is a solidly built defenseman who is a tremendous skater, but could stand to be more physically assertive. His thick frame and strong skating allow him to knock opposition players off the puck with relative ease. Belle labored to dedicate himself to refining his defensive game, but still has a considerable portion to learn about proper positioning. His excellent skating, and fairly decent puckhandling make him an able puckmover. The team would like to see more offense from him, but are happy with the progess he’s made thus far.

Could he make the 2007-08 Wild roster?: Out of all of the Wild’s prospects, Shawn Belle has probably the best chance to make the team. The fact he’s a defenseman with some size and ability to hit (and the team would like to see him more aggressive in this area) means he will get a very long look at training camp and the pre-season. In his few call ups with the Wild; he generated mixed reviews. At times he looked poised, solid and physical; but in others he looked a bit lost and often caught out of position. If anyone can teach a player proper positioning its Jacques Lemaire, Mike Ramsey and Mario Tremblay and they will no doubt work to get Belle ready to go, especially if the team decides not to re-sign Kurtis Foster (which is a distinct possibility). I think Belle has a 75-80% chance to make the team next year.

#6. RW - Cal Clutterbuck - Oshawa Generals (OHL)

Height: 5′10″ Weight: 196lbs Shoots: Right Stats: 65GP 35G 54A = 89pts 153 PIM’s

Talent Analysis: Fiesty is the word that is most often used to describe Cal Clutterbuck’s game. Clutterbuck is the smallest of the prospects in this top 10 list, but his heart may very well be the biggest as he plays a high-energy, high-impact type of hockey. Clutterbuck also has fairly decent hands, good quickness and speed, did I mention he seems fearless as well?

Could he make the 2007-08 Wild roster?: Most likely not. While the team is very happy by Clutterbuck’s progress, he is simply not ready to be on the Wild at this point. His fiestiness will probably garner him a long look at training camp but his most likely destination is either a return to Oshawa or to Houston.

#7. RW - Ryan Jones - University of Miami-Ohio Redhawks (CCHA)

Height: 6′2″ Weight: 200lbs Shoots: Left Stats: 42GP 29G 19A = 48pts 88 PIM’s

Talent Analysis: Jones completed his 4th year at the University of Miami-Ohio, and had a strong senior season tallying 29 goals and 48 points. Jones plays a power-forward style of game but has limited quickness and is not blessed with great acceleration. Yet, what Jones lacks in speed is made up for by his scoring touch around the net. His game is very much like that of Andrew Brunette, and Jones shares that Brunette-like strength down-low with the puck. Defensively he’s just average.

Could he make the 2007-08 Wild roster?: Not very likely, but Jones is a power-forward winger who has good scoring touch and those are traits he has that no other Wild prospect really possesses. Jones has the size and hands to be a successful power forward, but his lack of quickness and average skating might make coaches squeamish of going to him right away. Expect Jones to start the season in Houston and if he starts to light it up it might earn him ‘a cup of coffee’ (or longer) with the Wild.

#8. LW - Ondrej Fiala - Everett Silvertips (WHL)

Height: 6′2″ Weight: 190lbs Shoots: Left Stats: 51GP 21G 14A = 35pts 26 PIM’s

Talent Analysis: A deft puckhandler who looks to shoot more than he looks to pass is the best way to describe the way Ondrej Fiala plays. Fiala loves to dangle around a few defenders and move into the slot before firing a wrist shot. The Czech-born winger got off to a rough start with the Everett Silvertips this year when he battled a severe shoulder injury and missed a good portion of the 1st half of the season. Its hard to ignore that Fiala plays for one of the more talented teams in the WHL, so its hard to determine if he thrives because of his own talents or because the opposition has so many other weapons to worry about. His defensive game is ok, but could use some work.

Could he make the 2007-08 Wild roster?: Ondrej Fiala will not make the Wild in the 2007-08 season. He is not ready and really needs another good full season in the WHL more than anything else. Only a breakout pre-training camp prospect tournament performance in Traverse City, MI this summer could possibly earn him a call to attend the Wild’s training camp.

#9. D - Clayton Stoner - Houston Aeros (AHL)

Height: 6′3″ Weight: 205lbs Shoots: Left Stats: 65GP 1G 6A = 7pts 106 PIM’s

Talent Analysis: He is a big, physical stay at home defenseman which the team is hoping can turn into a reliable 2nd or 3rd pair defenseman for the Wild. The Port McNeill, B.C.-native plays a safe defensive-minded game, but his skating is what will limit his effectiveness in the NHL unless he improves in that area. Stoner does have a good shot but he will never produce big offensive numbers.

Could he make the 2007-08 Wild roster?: He might have a small chance, if injuries play a role during next season. I doubt he would make the team out of training camp. He is a big, physical defender which will make the team want to give him every chance to succeed but I think his skating will make the coaches fear he will become a liability in today’s high speed NHL.

#10. LW - Roman Voloshenko - Houston Aeros (AHL)

Height: 6′1″ Weight: 205lbs Shoots: Right Stats: 76GP 11G 19A = 30pts 22 PIM’s

Talent Analysis: This season was a disaster for the young Russian, who had half of the amount of points that he had back in 2005-06. Voloshenko is a winger with just average speed and quickness, and is at his best when he’s allowed to camp near the slot to be set up for one-timers but that is basically what he brings to the table. He is uninvolved defensively and seems to miss former linemates Kirby Law and Erik Westrum alot which demonstrates how he depends on others in order to be effective. He must make a dramatic turnaround if he wishes to remain an important prospect of the Minnesota Wild.

Could he make the 2007-08 Wild roster?: He will likely see some pre-season action and he must demonstrate a willingness to get involved defensively as well as take efforts to create more on his own offensively. Voloshenko does have some ability to finish, but good players find ways to create their own chances, not just post themselves to be set up by others.