HW 2011 Prospects: Brandon Saad

Hockey Wilderness has decided to rank their 30 favorite prospects in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft and will analyze each and every one of them. So on draft day, you'll have a good sense of who's who.

With each post, you will get to understand what type of player he is, and how he can help the Wild. You'll understand his strengths, flaws and get to understand what type of player he'll develop into.

The HW's Rank - The average rank of several of our favorite available rankings, weighted appropriately.

Summary Scout Notes - A broken down version of comments offered by each service. To read the whole explanations, click on the source site and search.

Now, introducing Saginaw Spirit left wing Brandon Saad:

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Don't forget to check out the Hockey Wilderness 2011 Draft Page as well. Just click on the picture.

History And Accomplishments

2008-09 NAHL All-North Division Team

2008-09 NAHL All-Rookie First Team

2008-09 NAHL First All-Star Team

2008-09 NAHL Rookie of the Year

2009 USHL Entry Draft - 70th Overall, 6th Round

2009-10 WJC U18 Gold Medal

2009-10 USDP (U18) Most Points

HW's Take:

Originally thought to be a top five pick this year, Brandon Saad's stock has dropped quite a bit.

Saad is blessed with physical talents but doesn't use them to the fullest. He is a good 6-1, 208lbs but shies away from physical contact.

However, he still is a very good skater with the ability to move into open areas. He also has good hands and has a well-rounded offensive package.

But for me, I am skeptical about a prospect who doesn't use the attributes he has been blessed with: speed and a big body. However, if he improves his consistency using his large frame, he could very well become a very good player.

HW's Projection

Top six winger

Summary Scouts Notes

For full explanations, click on the links:

NHL Central Scouting’s Chris Edwards (via NHL.com)

"Brandon has very good speed and agility and that makes him dangerous, he’s solid on his skates and fights through checks very well. He plays a solid two-way game and is very responsible defensively."

Carolina Hurricane's Staff (via NHL.com)

"Saad has very good size and top-two line skills. While he wasn’t as good as expected this year, he still put up solid offensive numbers. He has a very hard shot and quick release. He improved his two-way game and became a more complete player this year. He has very good upside."

The Scouting Report

"Suffice to say, TSR’s thoughts on Saad have plummeted as the 2010/2011 season progressed. We had very high expectations for Saad this year; his first in the OHL, but have never seen the type of game that warrants the pre-season hype. Saad is a big winger with good speed, a hard shot, and a fairly good head for the game, but he lacks the drive you need to be a top line player at the next level. Saad shies away from contact despite being a big player and never really uses his body to his advantage. He doesn’t drive the front of the net enough and just isn’t willing to pay the price. All is not lost with Saad, as he does have goal scoring talent, but he needs to show a lot more if he wants to have that opportunity in the NHL."

Video Evidence

2011 prospect: Brandon Saad Compilation (via nhldraftvideo)

Where Does He Fit With The Wild?

Saad does have skill, speed and size, and all that is very nice. The Wild could use an impressive package like that, even in the near future when Mikael Granlund comes over.

Good Choice At #10?

As you can tell from the above paragraph, I am not a big fan of Saad.

He has an interesting toolset but the fact that he doesn't make the most out of them makes me question how he will develop at the pro level.

How Does He Look As A Wild?

Comment away!

Special thanks to Brock Otten, Kirk Luedek, Scott Campbell, and Dan Shrader