Scout’s Notebook: Denton Mateychuk, Kevin Korchinski, Pavel Mintyukov, and development theory

Teams value different things. Different philosophies lead to varying ideas of what constitutes the best player available.

Similarly, the results of drafting aren’t solely dependent on the effectiveness of a team’s scouting staff. The scouting staff’s philosophy should clearly align with the organization’s development and coaching. When they don’t, every department pays the price.

For example, a draft table that doesn’t weigh skating heavily will continually be undermined by a development staff that can’t (or won’t) help players with their skating. An NHL coaching staff that doesn’t encourage defencemen activating in the play will undermine the efforts of a scouting staff that emphasizes that skill.

To illustrate this, here are three potential top-15 prospects for the upcoming draft, highlighting their different skill sets and the ideal structure and development paths for each.