Login

Mack · 09-22-2018, 03:34 PM

With the regular season over halfway done now I thought it would be fun to look at the top 10 scoring rookies. Rookies can be hard to judge as sometimes players have builds that don’t flow that well until 350 so just because they aren’t rocking it on this list yet doesn’t mean some other rookies out there won’t be kicking ass next season.
Also this league has a lot of send downs in it now so most rookies are playing very limited minutes. Unless you managed to get picked by Kelowna as it seems most of their team is rookies and they are playing some key minutes already. Kelowna has 6 of the top 10 scoring rookies and they are 2nd place overall in the league. They are showing that you can still win in this league with the right players and right lines even if they aren’t 350 capped.
Let’s get to the list!

1: Spazzy McFee – Kelowna Knights – 175 TPE - Winger
Drafted 4th Round – 31st Overall
26 Games Played
7 Goals, 12 Assists – 19 Points
18:47 TOI – 2nd Line LW and 50% Power Play Time

Spazzy McFee is a new player to the league. He says he found the site with Google and it appears he may be inactive now as he just has his original update done and hasn’t added anything to his update thread since then. He might just be saving up to do a big update later though.
McFee was a great late pickup by the Knights who have an amazing management team. They are coming off three straight cups in a row and looking for number 4!
He is getting lots of ice time for Kelowna on the 2nd line as a LW and he gets 50% Power Play time which is nice for some extra points.

[Image: thumb-2819.jpg?dateline=1535916712]

2: Scott Niedermayer Jr. – Kelowna Knights – 210 TPE - Defense
Drafted 2nd Round – 15th Overall
26 Games Played
5 Goals, 14 Assists – 19 Points
20:38 TOI – 2nd Pair Defenseman and 50% Power Play Time

Scott Niedermayer Jr. is a recreate from user greygoosevodka who made a stud SMJHL player last time around so I expect the same here. Niedermayer is already up to 210 TPE and is active with updates so he will just keep going up from here.
I think this was a great pick by Kelowna as greygoosevodka knows what he is doing and getting a top Dman late in the 2nd round is great.

As we see above Niedermayer Jr is already averaging over 20 minutes a game on one of the top teams in the league. The minutes at even strength and power play are really nice to see for a rookie and he should finish the year at or near the top of rookie scoring.

[Image: f413491acd23d1b59f65920c6f31b3e045cab5d0...1535080630]

3: Shouta Aizawa – Kelowna Knights – 199 TPE - Center
Drafted 2nd Round – 14th Overall
26 Games Played
4 Goals, 10 Assists – 14 Points
20:46 TOI – 1st Line Center and 50% Power Play Time

Shouta Aizawa is another recreate this time from user Andybj who is a long time veteran on the site. It seems like another slam dunk pick here for nour and the Knights. Getting their first line center late in the second round is great.
Aizawa must love it on the Knights, it’s rare to be playing on the top line for any rookie and he will only get better and should have that spot locked down for a few seasons before he heads to the SHL.

At already over 20 minutes a night for the 2nd place Knights he seems like he can handle whatever is thrown at him. Once he gets his TPE up a bit more he will probably be on the PK as well. The Knights have the first three players on the list and although number 1 overall is a bit of a surprise I think picks 14 and 15 were just great moves by Kelowna.

4: Willie Fisterbottom– Montreal Militia – 210 TPE – Defenseman
Drafted 4th Round – 27th Overall
28 Games Played
2 Goals, 12 Assists – 14 Points
15:30 TOI – 3rd Pair Defenseman, 0 Special Teams

Fisterbottom is a recreate from user Ragnar. He has been on the site since 2013 and really knows how to make a great player. I am really surprised to see him drafted all the way down in the 4th round. Maybe there’s more to the story with him but I think this was an amazing pick for Montreal this late in the draft. It seems to be a really strong SMJHL draft even though reddit wasn’t involved.

Fisterbottom is in a different situation then the three Knights above him on the list. He is getting the typical rookie treatment playing on the 3rd pair as a defenseman and getting zero special teams play. That makes what he is doing even better as he has just been a stud rookie at even strength for the Militia. Next season Montreal may lose some players to the SHL and Fisterbottom will rocket up the depth chart. Really great pick here by Montreal.

5: Gints Krumins – Kelowna Knights – 163 TPE – Center
Drafted 5th Round – 39th Overall
26 Games Played
5 Goals, 7 Assists – 12 Points
19:79 TOI – 2nd Line Center, 50% Power Play

This is another new player for the Knights who also says they found the site on Google just like Spazzy McFee. Also just like Spazzy McFee they seem to be inactive now. They just had their 1st update but haven’t had anything since. Maybe they will come back still as it’s early in their new career.

For such a low TPE Center to already be playing over 20 minutes a night is amazing. Kelowna is really doing amazing with the assets they have to be where they are in the league standings. Krumins is chugging along and the rest of the league just can’t seem to understand how the Knights are doing it!

6: Jean-Pierre G**– Colorado Raptors – 224 TPE – Defenseman
Drafted 1st Round – 4th Overall
22 Games Played
1 Goal, 11 Assists – 12 Points
16:47 TOI – 3rd Pair Defenseman, 50% Penalty Kill

Jean-Pierre G** was picked in the 1st round 4th overall so he is our first big name player to show up on the list. He was created by user JumpierPancakes who has been around for a long time on the site and works in management in the SHL so it’s clear he knows what he is doing.
He is the first player on our list that plays penalty kill minutes and it looks like his coaching staff really trusts him already. As his TPE rises I am sure he will end up on the Power Play as well. He is a sure bet to be a top player in the SMJHL until he heads up to the big show one day. Colorado picked a stud here that should get better and better as he trains.

7: Rasmus Rasmus - Kelowna Knights – 182 TPE – Defenseman
Undrafted Free Agent Signing
26 Games Played
1 Goal, 11 Assists – 12 Points
22:35 TOI – 1st Pair Defenseman, 50% Power Play

Rasmus Ramus created by user Ramrob is an inactive free agent signing by the Knights. He has only 182 TPE but is playing over 22 minutes a night for wizard nour and the Knights. He is getting minutes other players across the league dream off on one of the top teams. It’s getting boring talking about the Knights so much but they are just dominating this list. It would be one thing if they were playing all rookies who were scoring a bit while getting their butts kicked by the Knights just keep winning!

Maybe one day Rasmus Rasmus will return and start updating again once he sees how great his player and team are doing!

8: Tauras Karazija - Vancouver Whalers – 239 TPE – Defenseman
Drafted 1st Round – 5th Overall
27 Games Played
1 Goal, 11 Assists – 12 Points
21:49 TOI – 2nd Pair Defenseman, 50% Power Play and 50% Penalty Kill

Tauras Karazija has a cool name. He is a recreate from user ontanis. Another 1st round pick we have here and he was drafted right after Jean-Pierre G**. He seems active around on the forums and I think he will have an amazing career. Vancouver needed a stud defenseman early in the draft to play big minutes for them and they scored big with Karazija.

He is again averaging over 21 minutes a night like some of the other top defenseman on the list. But he is unique because he is the first player to play both Power Play and Penalty Kill on the list. Vancouver trusts this young player a lot and the sky is the limit for him with the opportunity he has with the Whalers. Expect to see his name high up in the SHL draft if he keeps doing what he’s doing!

9: Pavel Volkov - Kelowna Knights – 161 TPE – Center
Drafted 4th Round – 25th Overall
26 Games Played
5 Goals, 6 Assists – 11 Points
17:66 TOI – 3rd Line Center, 45% Penalty Kill

Pavel Volkov is the 3rd center on the list from the Kelowna Knights. He is an inactive new player who was made by user TeaKay who came from reddit. Unfortunately it looks like they are not updating anymore but again they might come back like some of the others!

Volkov is playing Penalty Kill minutes for the Knights and no Power Play. He seems to be a good all-around rookie that his coaching staff trust. Can the Knights keep winning like this or will the other teams more active players catch up as the season goes on?

10: Willy Mack - Montreal Militia – 214 TPE – Winger
Drafted 3rd Round – 19th Overall
28 Games Played
5 Goals, 5 Assists – 10 Points
13:19 TOI – 3rd Line RW, 50% Power Play (Playing Defense)

Willy Mack is my player and obviously being on the list he is one of the reasons I wrote the article. I am a recreate who has shown I can make top SMJHL players. My last player Daddy Mack won 3 straight cups with Kelowna and a few awards including playoff MVP in the most recent playoffs. I think Willy Mack will be a star.
Montreal has a lot of wingers with high TPE right now so Mack is playing very low minutes compared to the others on the list. Pretty normal for most rookies though. Next season I might get a chance to play in an increased roll but I am happy to already have some time on the power play! I think Montreal got a great player here in the 3rd round.

So that wraps up the top 10 rookies. As we can see defenseman really do score a few more points than forwards as rookies and can get more ice time. 5 defenseman make up the list with 3 centers and just 2 wingers. It will be interesting to look back at the end of the seasons and see if all these players can finish the season strong. Kelowna really looks to standout here as they have so many rookies performing really well for them. If the Knights can keep the momentum up they are going to be pushing for a 4th cup in a row which would be mind boggling.