Fansided

Top 5 center prospects in 2018 NHL Draft

By Nick McAdam

BUFFALO, NY - DECEMBER 26: Rasmus Kupari #34 of Finland during the second period against Canada during the 2018 IIHF World Junior Championship at KeyBank Center on December 26, 2017 in Buffalo, New York. (Photo by Kevin Hoffman/Getty Images)
BUFFALO, NY - DECEMBER 26: Rasmus Kupari #34 of Finland during the second period against Canada during the 2018 IIHF World Junior Championship at KeyBank Center on December 26, 2017 in Buffalo, New York. (Photo by Kevin Hoffman/Getty Images) /
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LONDON, ON – SEPT 30: Robert Thomas #27 of the London Knights takes a faceoff against Barrett Hayton #27 of the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds in an OHL game on Sept 30, 2016 at Budweiser Gardens in London, Ontario, Canada. The Greyhounds defeated the Knights 3-2 in an overtime shoot-out. (Photo by Claus Andersen/Getty Images)
LONDON, ON – SEPT 30: Robert Thomas #27 of the London Knights takes a faceoff against Barrett Hayton #27 of the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds in an OHL game on Sept 30, 2016 at Budweiser Gardens in London, Ontario, Canada. The Greyhounds defeated the Knights 3-2 in an overtime shoot-out. (Photo by Claus Andersen/Getty Images) /

2. Barrett Hayton

What really separates Hayton from most of the center prospects in this year’s draft class is his real focus to the small details that are required for the position. Face-offs, physical play topped by a ton of scoring have made Hayton a prospect to keep an eye on.

Hayton is good at draws in both zones. His size and awareness enable him to play virtually anywhere on the ice. Hayton shines in front of the net and in the low-slot area right next to the cage, especially on the power-play.

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This class is not seeing a lot of two-way centers, which is really helping the case for Hayton, as well. The 17-year-old is decent at back-checking and his play along the boards in puck battles is very good.

Hayton likes to start low near the defensemen when an attack starts to decide what a specific play will turn out to be. It really helps his vision when predicting plays which only helps his brilliance in the two-way game.

However, there are two question marks revolving around Hayton right now. First is his speed. It’s likely another reason why he plays back more often than not, so he doesn’t get caught out on counter attacks.

Great positional awareness gives him scoring chances, not plays where he is skating long-distances. Opposing defenders seem to keep up with Hayton which is something that will need to approve at the AHL and definitely the NHL level.

Upkeep of stats is another question, as the Canadian jumped from 27 points two seasons ago to a solid 60 points in this past campaign. Consistency is a huge benefit for these young players to have. Of course, Hayton could have been propelled to more playing time which enabled him to show his true potential.

At the same time, some general managers and scouts might see a break in stats from Hayton and start to have doubts. However, his stats do not always indicate what this player does on the ice. Hayton’s two-way game asks him to be more responsible defensively, so monster stats offensively aren’t always going to happen.

There’s small things to improve on from Hayton that can enable the prospect into becoming a real talent at the pro level.

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