Let’s open up the Draft Profiles once again to talk about a player who shows plenty of promise…just from a very unusual source.
Analysis:
While people can and will lament the death of the goon, one thing that I do think it’s slow retirement from the game has changed for the better is the trajectory of kids like Dean Letourneau. 20 or 30 years ago, Dean Letourneau wouldn’t be putting up points like he’s done whatsoever, nor would he be able to skate like he can; if he shot up to the size he is now at some point between his 14-17 years back in 1998, he probably would be in a league with more eyeballs…just not with these highlights.
Letourneau doesn’t move like he’s 6’7. In a draft full of big guys who skate well, he’s definitely up there, but what’s given people pause to take a look at him is that he’s more than just a big body who crunches people, although he does do that and does that very well…he’s got some really good hands, and some dynamite speed.
Letourneau’s agility for a player his size is, frankly, preposterous. He can explode out of turns, get quick acceleration, and move laterally very well. Size and speed can grant him near automatic access to the net-front, but he only really occasionally needed it to create offense; his shot is predictably really strong for a guy his size, but his accuracy and
But of course…there’s the issues.
Letourneau is physical. We know that. The thing is…his physicality is very one note. He throws hits, and that’s mostly his entire concept of what physicality should be. As a result, his work on the forecheck can suffer as he tries to barrel towards the net unsubtly, and he’s not always trying to use that gigantic wingspan on the backend to try and shut down lanes, even if he’d probably be very good at it. His hands have also only recently unlocked, because he actually had to shift over to a smaller stick size in order to dig the puck out of his own skates, and according to him? he says it’s helped. That said, he still needs to find more creativity not just in his hits, but also in his
And then there’s the big one: Letourneau is playing hockey at the Canadian Prep School level; an otherwise complete unknown of competition, and he was far and away the best player at that level. There’s no shame in that, somebody has to be, but I can’t help but feel like if he was getting the same 90+ points at this level and was 5’11, I doubt he’d even be in the top 50 players eligible for this draft. The fact he can do this, skate like he does, and is 6’7 makes him tantalizing regardless…but is that going to hold up now that he’s going to BC? Is he going to keep that up in Hockey East which is much, much more effort heavy and the kids who go there are more willing to take a hit to make a play? Is he merely good? Or good for where he’s playing? I think Letourneau is the kind of player that stretches the phrase “You can’t teach size” to it’s ultimate limit, and the perfect player that fans could get whipped up in a frenzy over because of just how big he is and how much he commands attention…while perhaps not acknowledging that the NHL is more than just a hit count. Smaller NHL players generally don’t care that they get mulched. They get back up and keep whacking away at the taller players. The big question that you need to figure out with him is whether or not he can handle that and blossom into something more.
He keeps describing himself in terms that invoke Tage Thompson, which is a good player to emulate for what it’s worth…he just has to prove that at a level that isn’t a bunch of actual Canadian high schoolers instead of high schoolers who play Canadian Junior. The distinction between those two seems small, but is a canyon of difference.
Either way, if you’re looking for a player who could potentially scare you as a reach or be the gem of the draft…I think we’ve found your man.
Would you take a chance on him?
Rankings
- Ranked 32nd by EliteProspects
- Ranked 32nd by Bob McKenzie
- Ranked 69th by Craig Button
- Ranked 51st by THN/Ferrari
- Ranked 22nd by THN/Kennedy
- Ranked 44th by McKeen’s Hockey
- Ranked 32nd by FloHockey
- Ranked 135th by FC Hockey
- Ranked 29th by Daily Faceoff
- Ranked 41st Draft Prospects Hockey
- Ranked 30th by SportsNet’s Cosentino
- Ranked 87th by RecruitScouting
- Ranked 55th by DobberProspects
Stats, via EliteProspects.com