As the regular season ends and the playoffs begin, multiple layers of preparation are occurring within the organization. On top of the expansion draft and free agency, Los Angeles General Manager Rob Blake will be having more meetings with Mark Yannetti and the amateur scouting staff for the 2021 NHL Entry Draft.
As always, most of the talk and hype goes into the first pick the Kings will be making. A brief inventory of homegrown Kings roster players not drafted in the first round includes:
– Alex Iafallo (undrafted)
– Austin Wagner (fourth round)
– Blake Lizotte (undrafted)
– Jaret Anderson-Dolan (second round)
– Kurtis MacDermid (undrafted)
– Matt Luff (undrafted)
– Matt Roy (seventh round)
– Mikey Anderson (fourth round)
– Sean Walker (undrafted)
This doesn’t include players such as Grundstrom or Lemieux, who were acquired from other organizations.
Homegrown is the theme of today’s article. One would be hard pressed to find a player closer to southern California than the following prospect.
AIDAN HRESCHUK
Vitals
Date of Birth: February 19, 2003
Height: 5’11
Weight: 187 lbs
Shoots: Left
Position: Defenseman
2020-21 Season
Hreschuk played the entirety of the 2020-21 season for the US-National Team Development Program (USNTDP). He accumulated 37 points (6 G, 31 A) in 50 contests.
Apple of the organ-EYE-zation
Prior to joining the USNTDP, Hreschuk grew up in Long Beach, CA. He played for the Los Angeles Junior Kings from 2016-2019. In those years, he had coaches such as Jeff Turcotte (Alex Turcotte’s uncle) and Jamie Storr.
Of course, like other recent members and graduates of the United States program, he also experienced the tutelage of John Wroblewski, now Ontario Reign’s bench boss.
Eagle Eyes
Hreschuk has committed playing his NCAA career with the Boston College Eagles. The graduation of a few blueliners opened up several opportunities for him to step in right away.
Historical Shock
Hreschuk was part of Team USA’s blueline for the 2021 U-18 World Junior Championship. It’s typically one of the best international tournaments fo draft-eligible players to showcase their talents against peers. It was exemplified this year when COVID-19 caused the Hlinka Gretzky Tournament’s cancellation.
The red, white, and blue failed to medal for the U-18 WJC for the first time since 2003. Their only two losses came at the hands of the silver and bronze medalists, Russia and Sweden. Not making it into the top-three is historically rare – this was only the fifth time in the past 22 U-18 tournaments it happened.
Rankings by Independent Scouting Services
Ranked 84th by Future Considerations. In a February article outlining his performance in a game, the scout wrote, “A competent puck distributor, I like his poise and vision with passing ability. That passing ability comes from some really excellent habits with the puck, keeping it in his pocket and being able to open up his hips to really give him wide open angles for his passes. This also allows him to be slightly deceptive with his passes looking left, opening up his hips and making a smart pass to the right as an example. His smarts and poise make him a really solid two-way player and excellent on the backcheck. His skating and ability to open his hips wide allows him to be really mobile East and West and really kill the rush with an excellent poke check and a great gap. He’s also able to rub opponents out physically and makes it difficult to get to the dangerous areas of his defensive zone.”
Ranked 35th by Smaht Scouting. “The first thing many scouts would mention about Hreschuk is the fact he can be a weapon offensively. His skating ability and smooth, long strides are quite the sight to see, but we’ll dive into that later in this report. Hreschuk isn’t afraid to jump up into the rush and generate numerous scoring chances, nor is he shy at pinching down towards the half-wall and getting a puck on net. ”
Ranked 60th by Bob McKenzie’s Mid-Season Rankings.
See For Yourself
Here is a shift-by-shift video of Hreschuk playing against the USHL. He wears No. 17 in blue.
Final Comments
As mentioned, the draft is more than one round deep. Successful franchises require impactful prospects beyond the first 30 picks. The organization, while having depth in all positions, could be looking to make moves soon and would need to replenish any future capital spent.
Where Hreschuk fits in to the organization as well is the fact he’s part of the new age of defensemen – laterally mobile, net-attacking, and strong in two-way play. While not a comparison in natural ability, he brings to the team similarly to what Cale Makar brings to the Colorado Avalanche.
Playing in the NCAA would be a huge boon to the Long Beach native. Collegiate hockey almost only occurs on the weekends. On top of studies, athletes get a lot of opportunity to work out in the gym. Given the mobile blueliner’s slightly smaller height, physical strength would greatly benefit him.
Should the Kings opt to take Hreschuk, the development staff would be able to add a new weapon to their prospect arsenal, as there’s no player in the organization quite like him. He played on the top pairing alongside top 2021 prospect Luke Hughes, so he is familiar with defensive responsibility.
He’s a bit of a wildcard with where he’s ranked. He could very well be available with the Kings early second-round pick. If the Kings are looking to be more dynamic, particularly in the back end, Hreschuk could be among the next tier of skilled players available.
NOTE: David Hofreiter was the lead contributor in the gathering of information used in this article. You can find him on Twitter @Davidenkness to talk more hockey.
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