The New York Rangers prospect pool is focused in the NCAA and Europe, but there are three youngsters playing north of the border in Canadian Junior hockey. It’s well past the quarter mark in their season so it’s time for an update.
The New York Rangers haven’t drafted many players out of the Canadian Juniors ranks recently. In the last three drafts, five were CHL products with 20 in the NCAA or Europe. In the preceding three years the number had been evenly split, ten from the CHL and ten from the NCAA and Europe.
Of the ten CHL products selected from 2014-2016, only Tim Gettinger has seen NHL action and two others are still prospects. Six of the ten European or NCAA players are still viable prospects.
It’s an example of how the talent pool has changed. It was too long ago when a vast majority of prospects drafted came from Canadian junior hockey team. Here’s a look at the three prospects currently playing in Canadian junior hockey.
Nico Gross, 2018 4th round, #101 overall
Nico Gross is a Swiss defenseman who was a mid-round pick in the 2018 draft. In his draft year he made the move from Switzerland to the Oshawa Generals in the Ontario Hockey League. Last season he finished with four goals and 14 points in 58 games and he played for Switzerland in the WJC as a regular blueliner. In his first two years in Oshawa he was a solid defenseman, but didn’t show much of an offensive upside.
That has all changed this season. Gross has gotten off to an excellent start for Oshawa and has exceeded all of his prior OHL statistics. In 23 games he has six goals and ten assists for 16 points and his an outstanding plus/minus of +9. He registered his first CHL hat trick against North Bay on October 4. Gross is Oshawa’s top scoring defenseman and is 17 defenseman overall in the OHL. Oshawa is in third place in the Eastern Division with a sterling 16-6-1 record.
Gross is 6’2″ and weighs in at 180 pounds and he turns 20 in January. The lefty shooter is expected to be an important part of the Swiss team at the WJC and the Blueshirts will be watching. The Rangers need to sign Gross to an entry level contract by June 1 of next year or he becomes a free agent. Before this year, that was not a guarantee, but his play this season has made it more likely that Gross will get a shot in the pros for New York.
Matthew Robertson, 2019 2nd round, #49 overall
Robertson got a long look in training camp before he was returned to the Edmonton Oil Kings of the WHL. He is currently the top scoring defenseman on the Oil Kings with six goals and 13 points. Edmonton is in second place in the Central Division with a 14-5-6 record.
The 18-year old Robertson has three goals and four assists in his last ten games. He got off to a slow start as we remained at Rangers training camp until the WHL season was about to start, but his game has started to heat up in November. He was named to the WHL Team of the Week on November 13 for the week of November 4-10.
Robertson told the Rangers website that he is intent on working on his defensive game, but so far this season his plus/minus is -9.
Robertson is 6’4″, 201 pounds and he is serving as an alternate captain. He is a lefthanded shot and could be a candidate for Team Canada at the WJC in December.
Hunter Skinner, 2019, 4th round, #112 overall
Skinner is in his first season with the London Knights of the OHL and his production has exceeded any expectations. In 21 games with London he has already on his way to topping his stats from any season of his fledgling career.
Skinner has three goals and 14 assists for 17 points, 16th among OHL defensemen. The Michigan native had originally committed to Western Michigan University, but decided to go the Canadian Juniors route.
Skinner is a righthanded shot who won’t turn 19 until next April. He’s playing on the second pair for London, currently in first place in the Midwest Division with a 14-5-2 record.
These three players are just another reason that the Rangers’ prospect pool is so deep on defense. While Robertson is living up to expectations, Skinner has been a pleasant surprise and the growth of Nico Gross as an offensive force is totally unexpected. The best news is that all three are important cogs of good teams in the CHL and that can only help their development.