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New York Rangers: Bob McKenzie’s final 2020 draft rankings

By Will Wright

HAMILTON, ON - JANUARY 16: Alexis Lafreniere #11 of Team White and Quinton Byfield #55 of Team Red following the final whistle of the 2020 CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game at FirstOntario Centre on January 16, 2020 in Hamilton, Canada. (Photo by Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images)
HAMILTON, ON - JANUARY 16: Alexis Lafreniere #11 of Team White and Quinton Byfield #55 of Team Red following the final whistle of the 2020 CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game at FirstOntario Centre on January 16, 2020 in Hamilton, Canada. (Photo by Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images) /
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Jake Neighbours #21 of the Edmonton Oil Kings (Photo by Marissa Baecker/Getty Images) /

First round surprises and snubs 

Ridly Greig (#24) and Jake Neighbours (#31) were two players who made it into the first round and may raise some eyebrows. Greig was on the first-round bubble when McKenzie released his January rankings but has clearly solidified his position as a first-rounder, slotting in at 24.  Neighbors is making his first appearance in the top-31, climbing seven spots from his previous ranking to 31.

Brendan Brisson (#30) is another new face in McKenzie’s top-31. Brisson, the son of hockey super-agent Pat Brisson, played his draft season with the USHL’s Chicago Steel. While the team was likely the most dominant non-NTDP team in USHL history, Brisson was their first-line center and second-leading scorer.

Barrie Colts sniper Tyson Foerster (#29) finally makes his way into the top-31, and if he improves his foot-speed, he could be a steal in that range.

There were a few players expected to be consensus first-rounders who didn’t make McKenzie’s cut. The most notable snub is Czech center Jan Myšák (#34), who finished his season in the OHL playing for the Hamilton Bulldogs. While Myšák rose almost twenty places from his 53rd rank in January, he was surely being undervalued at that point and his non-inclusion as a first-round talent is somewhat shocking. For context, Myšák scored 15 goals in his 22 games with the Bulldogs, which is a 46 goal pace over a full 68 game OHL season. 22 games is not a huge sample size, but even when you account for variation, it is clear that he is one of the better goal-scoring talents in the draft class.

Another notable first-round omission is Swedish forward Zion Nybeck (#73). Nybeck is very undersized, and his draft-stock was definitely affected by spending most of his season in Sweden’s junior league. He would have benefited from playing in the U18 Tournament in April that was canceled. But he is an incredibly gifted player and set the scoring record for a U18 player in the SuperElit (Swedish Junior League). I have him as a first-rounder, and while I understand the exposure issue, he should be ranked much higher than 73.

Finally, fan-favorite Marat Khusnutdinov (#35), a creative and dynamic Russian center, narrowly missed out on a spot in the top-31 after rising 23 spots to become McKenzie’s 35th ranked player.

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