Giants’ Sourdif isn’t at all concerned about where he sits in draft ranking
Winger ranked No. 23 North American, but ‘I’m avoiding any kind of that stuff’
Justin Sourdif seems to be neatly sidestepping any anxiety over the 2020 NHL Entry Draft.
“I got a text this morning about there being another list out and that was the first I had heard about it,” the Vancouver Giants forward said when asked Wednesday about being pencilled in at No. 23 among North American skaters on the Central Scouting final rankings.
“I’m avoiding any kind of that stuff. Whatever team drafts me in whichever round ... I’m just going to show up at their training camp and come as prepared as possible.”
You could argue that with the novel coronavirus pandemic there are so many other things to be concerned about these days, especially when we don’t know when and where the NHL draft will be and what format it might adopt.
You could also argue that with so much free time on our hands, now we all have extra hours to worry about the future, and that would include things like the pro hockey possibilities for an 18-year-old like Sourdif.
He had 26 goals, 54 points and a plus-30 rating in 57 regular-season games with Vancouver when the WHL first put its regular season on hold March 12. The remaining games were called off on March 18 and the playoffs and the Memorial Cup national tournament slated for Kelowna in May were scrapped on March 23.
Left-winger Alexis Lafreniere of the QMJHL’s Rimouski Oceanic was ranked No. 1 by Central on Wednesday, followed by centre Quinton Byfield of the OHL’s Sudbury Wolves and defenceman Jamie Drysdale of the OHL’s Erie Otters.
The top WHL player on the list was Prince Albert Raiders defenceman Kaiden Guhle, who came in at No 8. Kamloops Blazers centre Connor Zary was listed No. 15. Sourdif was also No. 23 among North American skaters in the midseason rankings.
“If a team likes you they’re going to take you with their pick,” Sourdif interjected. “That’s all that matters.”
It’s impossible to gauge Central Scouting’s batting average, particularly with the continued separation of North Americans and Europeans, and goaltenders and skaters. Its rankings work as a conversation starter and that’s probably the best way to look at them.
Central had Seth Jones as the No. 1 North America skater in 2013, with Hunter Shinkaruk coming in at No. 6 and Bo Horvat at No. 15.
Jones, a defenceman, wound up being picked No. 4 by the Nashville Predators. Horvat, a centre, was chosen No. 9 by the Vancouver Canucks and left-winger Shinkaruk went No. 24 to the Canucks.
Central had Olli Juolevi as the No. 5 North American in 2016. The defenceman was the third North American skater selected and the No. 5 choice overall in the draft by the Canucks. In 2018, Quinn Hughes was the No. 6 North American according to the Central rankings. He was the seventh overall choice by the Canucks.
In regard to Sourdif, the past three years’ final rankings, beginning with last summer, had these players as the No. 23 North American skaters: winger Vladislav Firstov (picked No. 42 by the Minnesota Wild), defenceman K’Andre Miller (picked No. 22 by the New York Rangers) and winger Kole Lind (picked No. 33 by the Canucks). “I’m sure it matches at the top end, but once you get three or four rounds in, I think teams are looking for certain players,” Kelowna Rockets general manager Bruce Hamilton said, pointing to clubs drafting for need.
Giants GM Barclay Parneta contends that Sourdif could fit in various teams’ needs come draft day. Sourdif, who’s a 5-11, 173-pound right-handed shot, has played largely right wing with the Giants, but is a natural centre and believes he’s comfortable in that post.
“Justin can play up and down the lineup. He can play any type of role for a team,” Parneta said.
J.D. Burke, editor-in-chief for eliteprospects.com, tags this draft overall as “one of the deeper ones in recent memory, with the potential for several franchise players to emerge.
“Where I suspect this draft will get especially interesting will be in
the second round, where a handful of players, including Sourdif, will be in wildly different board positions from one team to the next,” Burke said.
“There are lot of really talented kids in that spot who seemed to struggle relative to the expectations they carried into this season, and it’s going to be fascinating to see which of these kids earns a high spot in spite of that.”
The 2020 NHL draft originally was scheduled for June 26-27 in Montreal. The new location, timing and format will be announced when details are finalized.