NHL Central Scouting released preliminary ‘Players to Watch’ list for 2021 draft

 

By @StefanKubus – 

The 2020 NHL Draft was held just a few weeks ago, and we can already look ahead to the 2021 draft.

On Tuesday, NHL Central Scouting released its preliminary Players to Watch list for the 2021 NHL Draft.

Among the A-rated skaters are: U.S. NTDP Under-18 Team defenseman Luke Hughes (a Michigan commit and Little Caesars alum) and Northville’s Sasha Pastujov, who is also with the U.S. NTDP Under-18 Team and played his AAA hockey locally.

Also among the top A-rated skaters are a trio of incoming Wolverines: 6-foot-6 defenseman Owen Power, forward and U.S. NTDP alum Matthew Beniers and forward Kent Johnson.

“He can put up points, and is very mobile for how big he is,” NHL Central Scouting senior manager David Gregory said of Power. “He runs the power play, has elite hockey sense and is going to be a highly sought-after player.”

Beniers, meanwhile, was a point-per-game player as a member of the U.S. NTDP Under-18 Team in Plymouth last season. Director of NHL Central Scouting Dan Marr pointed out what makes him an appealing player.

“He’s a kid that’s been on the radar for a couple of years now with the program,” Marr said. “He has the skills and the smarts, but it’s his intangibles with his compete and how he gets things done and makes things happen that make him so appealing.”

 

Here’s a list of the Michigan connections that were named to the list:

A-rated players

Matthew Beniers – University of Michigan

Luke Hughes – U.S. NTDP Under-18 Team

Kent Johnson – University of Michigan

Chaz Lucius – U.S. NTDP Under-18 Team

Sasha Pastujov – U.S. NTDP Under-18 Team (Northville)

Owen Power – University of Michigan

Roman Schmidt – U.S. NTDP Under-18 Team

 

B-rated players

Sean Behrens – U.S. NTDP Under-18 Team

Tyler Boucher – U.S. NTDP Under-18 Team

Dylan Duke – U.S. NTDP Under-18 Team

Justin Janicke – U.S. NTDP Under-18 Team

Tristan Lennox – Saginaw Spirit

Brennan Othmann – Flint Firebirds

 

C-rated players

Caden Brown – U.S. NTDP Under-18 Team

Ty Gallagher – U.S. NTDP Under-18 Team

Andre Gasseau – U.S. NTDP Under-18 Team

Liam Gilmartin – U.S. NTDP Under-18 Team

Aiden Hreschuk – U.S. NTDP Under-18 Team

Braeden Kressler – Flint Firebirds

Jacob Martin – U.S. NTDP Under-18 Team

Austen May – Youngstown Phantoms (Woodhaven)

Kaidan Mbereko – U.S. NTDP Under-18 Team

Ty Murchison – U.S. NTDP Under-18 Team

Red Savage – U.S. NTDP Under-18 Team

Thomas Sinclair – Muskegon Lumberjacks

Ryan St. Louis – U.S. NTDP Under-18 Team

Ethan Straky – U.S. NTDP Under-18 Team

Jeremy Wilmer – U.S. NTDP Under-18 Team