Trust me, I was a little bit shocked when I read the article over on Forbes that said Kailer Yamamoto was one of their six candidates to watch in the 2018/19 rookie-of-the-year race. The Oilers now 20-year-old 2nd-line right winger was lumped into a group that included the following players:
- Rasmus Dahlin (D) – Buffalo Sabres – No doubt!
- Ryan Donato (C) – Boston Bruins – Could be…
- Jesperi Kotkaniemi (C) – Montreal Canadiens – Hmmm. Maybe…
- Elias Pettersson (C) – Vancouver Canucks – Absolutely!
- Mathieu Joseph (RW) – Tampa Bay Lightning – Who’s this guy?
Now I’m not going to say that Kailer Yamamoto shouldn’t be considered for the Calder trophy this season but it really comes down to who he’s playing with, right? I mean, he’s had ZERO chemistry with Leon Draisaitl and Milan Lucic during pre-season and the only way he’s playing with Connor McDavid is either on the PP, the PK, or if Ty Rattie or RNH get hurt and if he’s going to be in the Calder conversation, he’s going to need to be putting up points.
Can he do that on the 3rd or 4th line? I highly doubt it and if he’s down there playing, wouldn’t he be better off playing top-6 in Bakersfield?
But should Yammo be the only player being considered in the ROY race? What about Evan Bouchard or Ethan Bear?
Both defenders are more inclined to put up the numbers required to be included in the voting for the final three Calder candidates than not.
Let’s not forget, Ethan Bear was the WHL defender of the year in 2016/17 as he posted 70pts in 67 games for the Seattle Thunderbirds. We’ve been witness to his quick playmaking and thunderous slapshot at the NHL level already and I think out of him or Bouchard it’ll be Bear that plays more games at the NHL level this season. He’s already had a season of pro hockey under his belt and I feel he’s that much more prepared than Evan Bouchard.
As for Evan Bouchard, there are influencers in the media already saying that he’s the best passing defender on the team and that he’s got the best shot. At 19 years old mind you! So does that say more about the player or the defence on hand?…
Look, if Bouchard is ready, he’s ready. He nearly posted 90pts as a defender in the OHL last season and you can’t hold him back from playing in the NHL if he can handle to stresses and rigours of the league. Simple as that.
What a race it would be for the Calder if Dahlin, Heiskanen, and Bouchard were going head-to-head though.
But it also won’t hurt him to go back to London and guide them to a Memorial Cup championship as well as help Team Canada at the World Juniors to a gold medal. He’s still got some work to do with regards to the defensive aspects of his game and what better place to do that than in the OHL, arguably the toughest junior hockey league in the world.
I’ll have my predictions blog out soon but for me, the Calder race is going to come down to three players,
- Rasmus Dahlin (BUF)
- Andrei Svechnikov (CAR)
- Elias Pettersson (VAN)
This year’s crop of rookies is going to be outstanding though with the likes of Kotkaniemi (MTL), Tkachuk (OTT), Heiskanen (DAL), Hart (PHI), Thomas (STL), Mittelstadt (BUF), Chytil (NYR), Donato (BOS), Greenway (MIN), Zadina (DET), Merkley (ARI), Necas (CAR), Borgstrom (FLA), Steel (ANH), as well as the boys I mentioned above all vying to make an immediate impact for their NHL team.
I love rookies and get very excited when the new crop rolls in every year.
Who do you think will win the Calder this year and do you think the Oilers who are eligible have a snowball’s chance in hell of winning the rookie race?
