Which 2025 NHL Draft prospects have the best skills? Ranking 6 different tools and traits

Today, we present a different type of 2025 NHL Draft list, where we rank players based on how they slot in different traits. You will see a lot of familiar names, and some unfamiliar ones. We are ranking prospects in the draft class by skating, puck handling, hockey IQ, shooting, competitiveness and athleticism.
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1. L.J. Mooney, C, U.S. NTDP
2. Cameron Schmidt, RW, Vancouver
3. Cullen Potter, C, Arizona State
4. Lukas Sawchyn, RW, Edmonton
5. Matthew Schaefer, LHD, Erie
6. Sascha Boumedienne, LHD, Boston University
7. Ilyas Magomedsultanov, LHD, Lokomotiv
8. Michael Misa, C, Saginaw
9. Lirim Amidovski, RW, North Bay
10. Lasse Boelius, LHD, Assat
Most scouts would peg Schaefer as the best skater in the draft, and when I think about how well he skates for a 6-2 defender, he's absolutely a freakishly good skater for his size. There are several small forwards, though, in Mooney, Schmidt and Potter who can absolutely fly. They have high-end speed, the first few steps and edge work. They all have offensive talent, though, but you're talking about two 5-foot-7 forwards and a 5-10 forward and none of them had outstanding offensive years for their size.
1. James Hagens, C, Boston College
2. Porter Martone, RW, Brampton
3. Roger McQueen, C, Brandon
4. Jake O'Brien, C, Brantford
5. Justin Carbonneau, RW, Blainville-Boisbriand
6. Matthew Schaefer, LHD, Erie
7. Michael Misa, C, Saginaw
8. Jack Nesbitt, C, Windsor
9. Jackson Smith, LHD, Tri-City
10. Anton Frondell, C, Djurgarden
This is a highly familiar group. Usually, you tend to see the very best forwards in this category as they are the ones with the most pure offensive talent. Hagens and Martone are a tier above the rest as well. Martone's skill for a player his size is rather special.
1. James Hagens, C, Boston College
2. Matthew Schaefer, LHD, Erie
3. Michael Misa, C, Saginaw
4. Jake O'Brien, C, Brantford
5. Caleb Desnoyers, C, Moncton
6. Cole Reschny, C, Victoria
7. Adam Benak, C, Youngstown
8. Luka Radivojevic, RHD, Muskegon
Hagens appears first in back-to-back categories. Despite the perception he's been beaten up in the pre-draft process, he is the most offensively talented player in this draft class. The questions for NHL teams are on his size and physicality in terms of how his offense will translate, but there's no debate he's a dynamic player who can break open a shift.
You again see most of the top prospects in this category, but we end it with Benak and Radivojevic. Both players have been highly impactful junior players for years, but they are good, not elite, small-guy skaters.
1. Anton Frondell, C, Djurgarden
2. Cameron Schmidt, RW, Vancouver
3. Justin Carbonneau, RW, Blainville-Boisbriand
4. Bryce Pickford, RHD, Medicine Hat
5. Lynden Lakovic, LW, Moose Jaw
6. Charlie Trethewey, RHD, U.S. NTDP
7. Emile Guite, LW, Chicoutimi
8. Brent Solomon, RW, Champlin Park
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Frondell and Schmidt both have shots that can break open a game. Their abilities to finish from range are clearly NHL quality, and if they hit, they project to a flank a power play at the top level.
1. Kashawn Aitcheson, LHD, Barrie
2. Brady Martin, C, Sault Ste. Marie
3. Victor Eklund, RW, Djurgarden
4. Milton Gastrin, C, MODO
5. Eddie Genborg, LW, Linkoping
6. Malcolm Spence, LW, Erie
7. Tomas Pobezal, C, Nitra
8. Daniil Prokhorov, RW, Dynamo St. Petersburg
9. Carter Klippenstein, C, Brandon
10. Ethan Czata, C, Niagara
11. Assanali Sarkenov, LW, Spokane
12. Malte Vass, LHD, Farjestad
You could place Aitcheson, Eklund and Martin in any order. They are three special competitors who have legit talent as well, and it's why it is expected they will go very early on draft day.
1. Rio Kaiser, LHD, Peterborough
2. Radim Mrtka, RHD, Seattle
3. Mason West, C, Edina
4. Roger McQueen, C, Brandon
5. Max Psenicka, RHD, Portland
6. Peyton Kettles, RHD Swift Current
7. Carter Amico, RHD, U.S. NTDP
8. Blake Fiddler, RHD, Edmonton
9. Vaclav Nestrasil, RW, Muskegon
10. Matthew Gard, C, Red Deer
11. Daniil Prokhorov, RW, Dynamo St. Petersburg
12. Evan Passmore, RHD, Barrie
13. Roman Bausov, RHD, Dynamo St. Petersburg
14. Joshua Ravensbergen, G, Prince George
15. Simon Wang, LHD, Oshawa
The No. 1 player on this list may lead to a lot of 'who?' among readers, but Kaiser was highly touted in Germany years ago due to how athletic and mobile he was for a tall (now 6-foot-7) defenseman. His puck play is very limited, but I would wager someone is going to roll the dice on him. West is a very interesting player given that he's a two-sport player who is a solid football prospect, although he's a better hockey prospect. This category is full of huge players who can move. They may not all have gaudy point totals, but they have projectable traits to the NHL level.
(Photo of James Hagens: Minas Panagiotakis / Getty Images)

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New York Times

41 minutes ago

• New York Times

Are Canadiens buying or selling? Plus, ranking the defence and Kirby Dach's future: Mailbag

It's been a very long time since I've done one of these, and there was a flood of questions in the mailbag as a result. So, I'll break this into two parts and address some more questions later this week. This is a big week for the Montreal Canadiens, with the NHL Draft on Friday night and Saturday and the expectation that there could be some movement, even if those expectations don't appear to be rooted in reality right now. Advertisement The trade market is challenging for Montreal because many other teams are seeking exactly what they are looking for, and because the teams that might be willing to move players are looking for NHL players in return, rather than magic beans. But one thing is certain: Jeff Gorton and Kent Hughes are working hard in this less-than-ideal market. The Canadiens' decision-makers are leaving no stone unturned and are aggressively trying to work this market, a league source said. But there's a difference between being aggressive and being stupid, and the Canadiens are not willing to be stupid. So, we'll see what happens this week. But while we wait, let's get to the first batch of your questions. With the recent trend of teams all trying to get better at the same time, how much do you think HuGo are taking this broader picture into account? Should the Canadiens stay put this year, sell future UFAs this summer and aim for another high pick? Lots of championship teams had bumps on the road while rebuilding, and all those teams trending up is an opportunity to bank on? – Carl P. This is not a bad way of looking at it, Carl. Zigging when everyone else is zagging, yes? Especially with the potential prize of Gavin McKenna staring you right in the face if you can put together one more terrible season. But my sense is the Canadiens are not thinking in these terms. They don't want to take a step back right now, much like almost the entire rest of the NHL. In terms of future UFAs they could sell, you're only really looking at Patrik Laine and Mike Matheson. I have no doubt they would listen if a team wanted to take a run at Laine, but Matheson is more complicated. Matheson is an important part of the team's defence right now. He plays on both special teams and logs a ton of difficult minutes. Trading Matheson would change the short-term dynamic on the blue line drastically, and I'm not sure the Canadiens would entertain that thought. Advertisement As Marc Antoine Godin reported, there was a long meeting between Matheson, Gorton and Hughes in Buffalo at the NHL scouting combine, and I believe both sides are at least starting to consider a contract extension, what that might look like and what both sides would be comfortable with. So, no, I don't think the Canadiens will go into sell mode to take advantage of this seller's market, largely because the players other teams would be interested in buying are largely not for sale. However, there is also a bit of a longer game that might be in play this year, and McKenna has something to do with it. If some teams get off to a bad start, the idea of an impromptu tank becomes that much more appealing with a potentially franchise-altering talent such as McKenna available. So, it's at least possible that some teams could pull the plug on the season a little earlier than usual, and teams that conserve cap space and trade assets could pounce at that time and add talent that will suddenly be available for trade that's not necessarily available right now. I don't know if Montreal will do this, but it's something I could see several teams monitoring. It serves as some incentive to be patient and not jump into a stagnant market too hastily this offseason. How would you rank the Habs defencemen in terms of how untouchable they are? Prospects included. With some of the buzz surrounding the Habs interest in Nic Hague, it got me thinking about how they view some of the depth they have on the blue line. Curious to see how you view their core on defence moving forward and which players you might think the team views as expendable. – Zachary C. Let's make one thing clear: Zachary is asking for my opinion and not necessarily how the Canadiens view things. Which is a good thing, because I have no idea how the Canadiens view it. Advertisement But what's obvious to me, and probably the Canadiens as well, is they have a surplus of young defencemen and a shortage of forwards. So, the question is extremely valid. If the Canadiens do make a trade for some immediate help in the top six (again, a very unlikely turn of events but one they are actively pursuing), it would likely mean there would be a young defenceman or two heading out. As far as I'm concerned, I would not trade Lane Hutson, barring some sort of exceptionally talented return coming back. He is my most untouchable Canadiens defenceman because the possibilities are so great and we have no real idea what his ceiling can be. But if his rookie season set his floor, that's a keeper for me. One rung (slightly) lower, I'd put Kaiden Guhle and David Reinbacher because they are the types of defencemen teams win with. In Reinbacher's case, of course, we still have no idea what he can be in the NHL, but he's here because of everything he's done in Laval, despite awful luck with injuries since being taken with the No. 5 pick in the 2023 draft. The unknown and the potential make him so appealing. Guhle, on the other hand, has already shown what he can become in the NHL. The only question that remains with him is whether he can stay healthy. In both cases, it would take a lot for me to even consider moving them. Alexandre Carrier is in a tier of his own because he is extremely valuable to the Canadiens and has another year left on his contract. He's pretty far from untouchable, but Carrier being traded for a forward would leave a hole that would be near impossible to fill on the blue line, perhaps even more impossible than the hole Matheson would leave behind in a hypothetical trade for a forward. The next tier is Matheson because of his contract and his relative potential value on the trade market. A lot of teams would love to add his skating and versatility, even if it comes with some brain cramps. Everyone else in the organization, to me at least, is very tradeable. Now, would I jump into an Arber Xhekaj trade for the sake of it? Absolutely not. I think he is part of the Canadiens' future, and I think that's how they see him. But he is a rare commodity, and that makes his trade value perhaps higher than his actual value. Jayden Struble, Logan Mailloux, Adam Engström — these are guys who could just as easily represent a part of the future in Montreal or elsewhere because it is difficult to see a future with all these guys playing together for the Canadiens, especially with Guhle, Hutson and Reinbacher seemingly around for the long-term. How's Kirby Dach's rehab and preparation going? I see him as the ultimate bird in the hand at 2C. In this playoff we've seen Sam Bennett, Sam Reinhart and Pierre-Luc Dubois all being celebrated as reclamation projects. Bennett's PPG in his first six seasons was .35. Kirby's is .45. Why wouldn't the Habs platoon Dach and Alex Newhook next year at 2C until at least the trade deadline? – Andrew G. Arpon, everyone seems convinced that Kirby Dach can't be the No. 2 centre for the Canadiens. I agree his injury problems and disappointing start to the season last year put that in question. However, it would seem wise to me to not overspend in free agency, or in a trade, to fill that need until he has another chance to play a full season. Don't you think that between Newhook, Oliver Kapanen, Jake Evans, and potentially Owen Beck, the team has enough contingency to give him one more legitimate shot at it? Or, is it a matter of trying to take some pressure off him while he tries to reestablish himself? – Eric B. Do you think there's a parallel between the 'development' of Kirby Dach and that of Dylan Strome? – Gabriel Charlebois-Plante This, again, for a second consecutive offseason, is a critical question for the Canadiens. Advertisement The positive for the Canadiens is that, unlike several of the other teams looking for a No. 2 centre, they have a decent backup plan, as uncertain as that backup plan might be. I was told Dach's rehab is going very well. He is doing monthly health checkups with the team, and some of his conditioning metrics are at an all-time high. So, that's good news. The way Gorton and Hughes both talked about Dach at their end-of-season news conference appeared to put the onus on Dach to do everything he can to arrive at training camp ready to attack the upcoming season and put his best foot forward much earlier than he did last season. Some people behind the scenes questioned his conditioning early on last season, so hearing that he's doing his part early in this offseason should be encouraging. This is the last year of Dach's contract, and as Hughes said at the end of the season, there is still some belief in the organization that he will realize his enormous potential. But that potential will need to be realized, at least to some extent, by the end of this season for this relationship to continue. I liked Gabriel's question on Dylan Strome because I had a chance to talk about his journey and the success he's found with the Washington Capitals. 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The Canadiens need a top-six centre. They hope to surround that top-six centre with strong talent that starts with Ivan Demidov playing his rookie season and perhaps another acquisition on the wing to significantly change the dynamic Dach played between this season. The Canadiens probably don't feel all that comfortable going into next season with Dach pencilled into the 2C slot. But it's not the disastrous situation a lot of fans probably look at it as. There is still a lot of potential in Dach, he should play with urgency because his contract expires at the end of next season, and Demidov's arrival could be a serious game-changer for how that second line works. We've seen what Dach looks like when he's at his best. It was brief, and it was a long time ago, but that version of Dach over the second half of the 2022-23 season showed enormous potential. Perhaps the confluence of urgent career circumstances next season will pull that version of Dach out of him. Advertisement And, as mentioned before, if it doesn't, there could be another trade window that opens up if some teams decide the 2025-26 season is not worth further investment and other options at centre suddenly become available. See you for Part 2 of this mailbag soon. (Photo of Kirby Dach: Minas Panagiotakis / Getty Images)

Associated Press

42 minutes ago

• Associated Press

This Date in Baseball - Yankees tie 2002 Rangers record by homering in their 27th straight game

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