Final Rankings

Central Scouting Services Final 1981 Entry Draft Player Rankings *Note: The Central Scouting Rankings are based purely on the interpretation of statistics in the NJFHL, interpretation of real life history, and personal opinion. In no way has the writer seen the ratings of the players or should the comments be interpreted to necessarily be accurate interpretations of the ratings the junior players have or will have. Final Rank Mid-Season Rank Player 1 1 Adam Oates - Shawinigan Cataractes While he didn't keep up the incredible pace he had set, Oates did nothing to disprove his #1 ranking. He didn't win the scoring title, he tied with Kamloops' Norm Leveille but had one fewer goal, but he showed he could do it all in any situation. He played in every game, stayed out of the penalty box, and created offense no matter what was going on. On the power play? He scored 9 times. Short handed? He scored 3 times. Clutch? He led draft eligible players with 3 game winning goals and brought his team to within a game of the Memorial Cup. He even averaged better than a hit per game and had almost 200 shots during the regular season and improved on that during the playoffs. He is a complete player and there is no reason he won't go #1 this year. If he doesn't, whoever nabs him will get a steal. 2 21 Dale Hawerchuk - Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds The best pure sniper in the draft, Hawerchuk's draft status is significantly affected by his post season play. After finishing the year 2nd with 39 goals, Hawerchuk responded with 15 more in 20 playoff games in leading his Greyhounds to the Memorial Cup title. He finished on top of the heap in playoff scoring, technically tied with Oates but with more goals, and continued his solid work in his own end and lethal ability with the man advantage. He only finished 12th among draft eligible forwards in scoring, but around the net, there is no one better. He needs to work on distributing the puck to become a little more well-rounded. He also needs someone to set him up, at least until he develops his game further. He won't create offense like Oates, but he will finish off plays with the best of them. 3 16 Al MacInnis - Kamloops Blazers MacInnis finally put most of his talents together and has become the top ranked defenseman in the draft. He always fired the puck a lot and that didn't change as he led defensemen in shots and had 30 more than the next closest. As a result, he also led blue liners in goals, assists, and points, as well as recording a fantastic +32 ratings. He is also intense and likes getting involved in the physical side of the play. The Blazers bombed out of the playoffs, but MacInnis still recorded a point per game and even showcased his defensive acumen with a short handed goal. He needs to learn to harness his shot better to be a bigger threat on the power play. He has a cannon, but to get only 2 PP goals seems almost wasteful. However, he did score 14 overall in the regular season. If he can learn to control the blast, he will become a dominating power play quarterback. 4 26 Mike Vernon - Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds Vernon's numbers improved dramatically over the course of the season and he kept that going right to a Memorial Cup championship. Vernon didn't appear in as many games as others, though only Grant Fuhr actually played more minutes, but he was clearly the best goalie all year as he led draft eligible goalies in wins and was the top starting goalie in goals against average and save percentage. Then he proceeded to post similar numbers in the post season. Vernon has gone from #57 in the pre season to #26 in mid- season, to a top 5 pick in the end. Some critics will suggest it is a result of it being a draft year. While it is possible, Vernon has the technique, if not the size, that will make him successful. And you can't argue with his success in the pressure-packed NJFHL playoffs. He will probably battle Fuhr as the top goalie pick (though Fuhr has dropped out of the top ten). Vernon, though, for now, has the inside track on beign the first picked and look for it to happen in the top 5. 5 17 Normand Leveille - Kamloops Blazers Leveille was the top scorer in the NJFHL this year, beating out Oates for the title by scoring one more goal over the season. However, where he couldn't best Oates was during the post season, where Leveille's top ranked Blazers fizzled in the first round. Leveille, like MacInnis, performed reasonably well, scoring 3 goals and 5 points in the 5 games he played, but that isn't enough to be a top pick. He simply couldn't lead his team like Oates did. Leveille remains a force on the power play, scoring 12 with the man advantage and he shoots more than anyone, finishing with a league-best 196 shots. Leveille has also picked up his defensive play and recorded a stellar +23 this season. All in all, Leveille has given no reason to think he won't be a top 5 pick. 6 31 Ilya Byakin - Sudbury Wolves There are other defensemen who can do things better than Byakin. However, there are very few who can do everything offensively as well as he can. Byakin put up numbers in every situation. He recorded 50 points overall, 3rd best among blue liners, including 9 goals. Of those 9 goals, he scored two each on the power play and short handed, as well as2 game winning tallies. He's not shrinking violet, either, as he eclipsed 100 hits and shots, one of only 6 blue liners to accomplish that feat this season. Even though his 3rd seed Wolves lost a tough 7-game series in the opening round, Byakin was terrific in recording 2 goals and 7 assists. His defensive play has also improved to the point that he wasn't a negative player, despite his team giving up 21 more goals than scoring. He isn't the offensive force like MacInnis is, but for a team picking later in the top 10, he would be a very comparable pick up. 7 3 Mike Ridley - Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds Ridley is a case of how a poor playoff performance can hurt you. Despite finishing 3rd in the league in scoring during the regular season and being the only player to hit the 40-goal barrier, Ridley was extremely disappointing in the playoffs, despite the Greyhounds actually winning the Memorial Cup. Part of it can be exlpained by the emergence of Dale Hawerchuk as the go-to guy on the team, but even still, 5 goals and 5 assists over 20 games is a marked drop off in production and only barely put him in the top ten on his own team. In addition, he sported a team worst -9 rating. But, there is no way you can ignore how productive he has been during the regular season all year. Ranked in the top 3 until now, Ridley has the best shot other than Hawerchuk among forwards. A better playoffs would have ensured a top five position, but now, along with suspect defensive play, Ridley looks like he will drop into a later Round 10 pick. 8 35 Evgeny Shtepa - Kamloops Blazers Shtepa really blossomed in the last half of the season and has put himself as a sure-fire first round pick. Only Oates and Leveille had more assists than Shtepa and he eclipsed 30 goals after going into the mid-point of the season with 12. Almost half of his goals came on the special teams as he notched 10 power play goals and 3 short handed. Unlike Ridley, Shtepa isn't being penalized for a disastrous post season. The top ranked Blazers were upset in 6 games in the opening round, and Shtepa only managed 2 assists in the series. That will surely cause some scouts to question his status. He will need to work on his intensity and willingness to battle, what the playoffs are all about. But he is defensively sound and has developed into a very good offensive weapon. 9 63 Darrell May - Shawinigan Catactes May could have had one of the biggest ranking jumps ever. And he deserves it after the season he just had that came within a game of winning the big prize. May jumped from 3rd round pick status to a potential top ten pick after becoming one of just two draft eligible goalies to win 30 games, the nwinning 11 more in the playoffs. May's regular season GAA of 3.12 and save percentage of .887 were second among starters to only Vernon, though he did best Vernon by getting one shut out. His playoff numbers were similar, actually increasing his shut out total to 2 games. Scouts do question if he really can succeed at the top level against the best shooters in the world. He is very good on his skates and gets around the crease quickly, but his technique needs work and he has the tendency to give up big rebounds. He also doesn't have the name that Grant Fuhr has, so although he clearly outplayed Fuhr this season, lingering questions may see him drop out of the top ten.

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