American Hockey Draft Report: Judging Jordan Schroeder

Over the past three NHL drafts, three different players have gone in the top 10 of the first round of the draft after playing in the NCAA during their draft year--Jonathan Toews, 3rd overall in 2006, Phil Kessel, 6th overall in 2006, and Colin Wilson, 7th ovearll in 2008. This year, Minnesota's Jordan Schroeder seems poised to make it four in four years.So how is Schroeder's season comparing to the freshman seasons of these other top draft picks? Here's a comparison based on a variety of different factors.

Points (Through first 14 games)

Toews: 6 goals, 3 assists, 9 points (Finished with 42 games played, 22-17-39)

Kessel: 8 goals, 13 assists, 21 points (Finished with 39 games played, 18-33-51)

Wilson: 4 goals, 5 assists, 9 points (Finished with 37 games played, 12-23-35)

Schroeder: 7 goals, 12 assists, 19 points

Comparison: Toews and Wilson seemed to get off to a slower starts. Schroeder didn't come with the same hype Kessel did, but his production out of the gate is just as impressive.

Games without Points (Through first 14 games)

A little bit more of a measure of consistency than just raw points.

Toews: 7 games (16 total)

Kessel: 4 games (11 total)

Wilson: 8 games (15 total)

Schroeder: 3 games

Comparison: Schroeder has been more consistent--minus one scoreless weekend at Wisconsin--han his peers. It's interesting to note that the other seemed to pick things up later in the season, while the curve may not be as steep for Schroeder.

Linemates

Toews: T.J. Oshie and Chris Porter

Kessel: Blake Wheeler and Ben Gordon(For the second half of the season, the first half was a melange of Ryan Stoa, Danny Irmen, Mike Howe, and a few others)

Wilson: Nick Bonino and Brandon Yip

Schroeder: Ryan Stoa and Jay Barriball

Comparison: In terms of raw talent, Schroeder may have less to work with than Toews and Kessel did, but Schroeder is playing with two veterans, whereas the other two were playing with talented youngsters. That may be a reason Schroeder got off to such a fast start.

Playing Styles

Toews: A gifted and creative player in the offensive zone that also plays good defense and shows great leadership abilities

Kessel: A pure scorer.

Wilson: A very strong, smart power forward that plays well on both ends of the ice.

Schroeder: An incredibly "hockey smart" player that sees the ice well and always finds a way to put up points

Comparison: Defensive play was a huge asset for Wilson and Toews. That's not a weak area to Schroeder's game, but is definitely an area where his size could come into play.

World Juniors Performance

Toews: Not among top 10 scorers

Kessel: 7 games, 1 goal, 10 assists, 11 points Led tournament in scoring

Wilson: 5 games played, 6 goals, 1 assist, 7 points Tied for 8th in tournament scoring

Schroeder: TBD

What Does it Mean?

It's hard to make serious comparisons over draft years, because you have to account for the talent in each draft year, but Schroeder compares very favorably to these other top 10 picks, and should go in the top 10 of this year's draft. A great performance at the World Juniors this year could even push him into the top five. It also means that Minnesota fans should enjoy and appreciate Schroeder now, because it's unlikely that he'll be around for long. I'd be very surprised if Schroeder played more than two years of college hockey.

December's Top Ten American Prospects

(Players I haven't seen are listed in parenthesis, with evaluation coming from outside sources)

1. Jordan Schroeder
2. Jeremy Morin
3. Nick Leddy
4. Drew Shore
5. (John Moore)
6. Kyle Palmieri
7. Danny Mattson
8. Seth Helgeson
9. Zach Budish
10. Brian Dumoulin

Player to Watch: Nick Leddy, Eden Prairie HS

Similar to Jake Gardiner at this point last season, Nick Leddy is receiving virtually no hype for this year's draft, but once more experts start weighing in, expect to hear a lot more about the smooth-skating defenseman. Leddy is due for a big season in the Minnesota high school ranks, and should rise into the first round of the draft.