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