In the early months of the season, Val-d’Or’s Julien Gauthier was the best draft prospect in the QMJHL. The power-forward was cruising to the front of the net, piling up the goals and even found himself on the Canadian world junior team. But as the season progressed, Pierre-Luc Dubois emerged as the top prospect after a dominating season. Dubois is essentially a lock as a top 10 pick while Gauthier should go later on in the first-round. Victoriaville’s Pascal Laberge and Gatineau’s Vitaly Abramov could sneak in to the bottom of the first-round but the second-round is more realistic. The defensive trio of Frédérick Allard, Luke Green and Samuel Girard all have upside but question marks as well.
Here are the top 10 NHL draft-eligible prospects from the QMJHL:
1. Pierre-Luc Dubois, LW, Cape Breton Screaming Eagles, 6-3, 202 lb.
Central Scouting Ranking: 1
The versatile Pierre-Luc Dubois was one of the final cuts from the Canadian world junior team early in December. In his first game back in the QMJHL, he scored a goal. The next game, another goal. In his third game back, Dubois had a five-point night including his first career hat-trick. The points kept coming and the skilled playmaker kept rising in the draft rankings. The second half of his season included a great showing at the CHL Top Prospects game and winning the CHL Top Draft Prospect Award.
Dubois finished the season third in ‘Q’ scoring with 42 goals and 99 points — also third in primary points with 83. Dubois more than doubled the 45 points he put up as a rookie a year earlier.
"He makes players around him better," says one NHL scout. "He’ll find you. He has the patience and poise to hold the puck."
The son of Rimouski Océanic assistant coach and former-pro Eric Dubois, Pierre-Luc plays a 200-foot game and is called on in all situations. Another scout points to the playmaker’s ability to protect the puck and extend plays as his biggest asset. He played left-wing and center this season but put up the best numbers while playing in the middle of Evgeny Svechnikov and Maxim Lazarev, forming arguably the most dangerous line in the league.
2. Julien Gauthier, RW, Val-d’Or Foruers, 6-4, 224 lb.
Central Scouting Ranking: 12
After coaching Julien Gauthier at Canada Russia Series, coach Dominique Ducharme accurately described the big winger.
"He’s a train, the way he skates," says Ducharme. "He’s not only big, he’s fast."
The train slowed down late in the season. After scoring 34 goals in 36 games, Gauthier potted seven in his final 15 games. The Val-d’Or Foreurs struggled down the stretch, getting knocked out in the first round by a Blainville-Boisbriand team that finished 40 points behind Val-d’Or in the standings. Despite cooling off, Gauthier finished his third season in the league seventh in goal-scoring.
Gauthier’s goals per game rose to 0.76 from 0.59 this year, which made up for his drastic decrease in assists (0.92 last year down to 0.23 this season). All in all his points per game remained similar (1.07 in 2014-15 and 1.05 in 2015-16).
"He’s a very good skater for his size," says an NHL scout. "He’s the type of guy who can score anywhere from the hashmarks in."
Via Prospect Stats
The heat map of where Gauthier scored from in the regular season shows he was most dangerous on the doorstep of the crease. A closer look at his goal locations and dangerous shots confirms Gauthier is at his best in front of the net.
Jumpman by Drake and Future should be Gauthier’s walk up song at the draft. He had the NHL combine’s best standing long jump at 120.0 inches, 1.5 inches more than the second-best, Jakob Chychrun of the Sarnia Sting. He also had the second highest vertical jump of 26.69 inches in the jump station-force plate drill.
3. Pascal Laberge, C, Victoriaville Tigres, 6-1, 173 lb.
Central Scouting Ranking: 28
Playing on a line with Pierre-Luc Dubois at the Top Prospects game, Laberge scored a pair of goals and added an assist for Team Orr and was named the player of the game.
"The key with him, he plays really well with skilled players around him," says an NHL scout.
The second overall pick of the 2014 QMJHL draft, Laberge was traded from Gatineau to Victoriaville at the trade deadline last year. In his first full season with the Tigres, Laberge led the squad in scoring with 68 points and 52 primary points, second-most on the team. After the Tigres were eliminated in the first round, Laberge played for Canada’s under-18 team where he had a pair of goals and assists.
He’ll need to add strength and fill out his frame to be more competitive during one-on-one battles. While he needs get stronger on the ice, Laberge showed considerable strength and perseverance off the ice this season. His father was diagnosed with prostate cancer and shortly after, his step-mother died of cancer. On top of that, his mother has multiple sclerosis. That’s a lot to deal with as a teenager.
4. Vitaly Abramov, RW, Gatineau Olympiques, 5-9, 170 lb.
Central Scouting Ranking: 29
The small and shifty Abramov shot up the draft rankings thanks to a 93-point season, fifth in the league and tops in rookie scoring. The Russian forward started his North American playing career in style with a two goal, two assist game. The streak continued with an eight-game point stretch where he piled up 16 points.
One scout says Abramov reminds him of Martin Réway, a small Slovakian forward who played for Gatineau from 2012-14 and was drafted 116th overall by the Montreal Canadiens in 2013. While both player are similar in size, are from Europe and played junior for Gatineau, Abramov has displayed more goal-scoring abilities. The QMJHL rookie of the year had 38 goals in the regular season and another seven in the playoffs. After a Central Scouting mid-term ranking of 56, Abramov finished 29th in the final ranks.
Abramov is dwarfed in size by the other top prospects in the ‘Q’, but it’s impossible to ignore his elusive speed, craftiness and skill.
5. Samuel Girard, D, Shawinigan Cataractes, 5-9, 165-lb.
Central Scouting Ranking: 38
Like Abramov, Girard is another undersized player who’ll be selected for offensive upside. In his sophomore season, Girard led the league d-man scoring with 74 points. More than half those points — 38, and 7 of 10 goals — came on the power play.
Girard’s numbers took a dip in January, when he only scored four points, as Shawinigan underperformed after loading up on firepower at the trade deadline. The dry spell resulted in a coaching change and Girard responded well with 21 points in 13 games under Claude Bouchard. Girard posted another 22 points in 21 playoff games as the Cataractes went on a deep playoff run.
"He’s an exceptional skater. At that size, you have to be good with the puck," says an NHL scout.
He’s a strong player, as shown at the NHL Combine where he was tops in the bench press drill with 15 reps.
Defenceman such as Calder trophy nominee Shayne Gostisbehere, Torey Krug and Ryan Ellis have shown undersized players can carve out a niche in the NHL. The small stature will scare off some teams, but the offensive abilities are too good to ignore completely.
6. Frédéric Allard, D, Chicoutimi Saguenéens, 6-1, 178 lb.
Central Scouting Ranking: 32
Allard flew under the radar for a number of reasons this season. First of all, Chicoutimi is a small-market team that’s easily overlooked. Unlike virtually all the top draft-eligible players, Allard didn’t play in the Canada-Russia series and didn’t receive an invite to the Top Prospects game in Vancouver.
"You get a consistent effort every shift and every game," says a scout who says Allard entered the season with potential. "He has to keep working on his quickness. It’s good, but it’ll need to be better for the next level."
Allard posted 59 points, tied for second in defencemen scoring. After a 23-point rookie season and 30-point sophomore campaign, Allard’s game improved under the tutelage of Chicoutimi head coach and general manager Yanick Jean (a general manager of the year nominee).
The two-way defenceman can play a shutdown role or jump into the rush and move the puck. With a late 1997 birthday, Allard’s three seasons give him a larger body of work than most draft prospects from the QMJHL who have only been in the league for one or two years.
7. Luke Green, D, Saint John Sea Dogs, 6-1, 186-lb.
Central Scouting Ranking: 40
From left, Team Orr’s Pascal Laberge, Jack Kopacka and Luke Green celebrate Laberge’s goal in the CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game in January. (Darryl Dyck/CP)
Drafted first overall in the 2014 QMJHL draft as an offensively dynamic defenceman, Luke Green spent his second year focused more on the defensive side. With NHL first-rounders Jakub Zboril and Thomas Chabot ahead of him on the Saint John depth chart, Green paired with veteran Matt Murphy to form a shutdown unit the second half of the season.
On one hand, it was good to see the defensive side of his game get batter. But on the other hand, he only scored 35 points this season, one fewer than his rookie season. Near the end of the regular season, Sea Dogs GM Darrel Young said he wanted Green to be more creative on the power play and use the offensive skills he has.
8. Vladimir Kuznetsov, RW, Acadie-Bathurst Titan, 6-2, 214-lb.
Central Scouting Ranking: 55
The first overall pick of the 2015 CHL Import draft, Vladimir Kuznetsov finished fourth in rookie scoring with 58 points for the Titan. He’s a big, skilled forward with good passing abilities. He uses his big frame to go to the tough areas and battle to score goals. He plays like a power-forward but was streaky in the goal-scoring department. He dropped from 44 at the mid-term to 55 in Central Scouting’s final rankings.
9. Evan Fitzpatrick, G, Sherbrooke Phoenix, 6-4, 206 lb.
Central Scouting Ranking: 1
The top ranked North American goalie, Fitzpatrick played on a Sherbrooke Phoenix team that looked like a contender on paper before the season but ended up sputtering to a 15th-place finish and first-round playoff exit. Playing for a bad team resulted in pedestrian numbers — a save percentage of 0.896 and 3.42 goals against average — to go along with and 18-34 win loss record.
Despite the disappointing season, Fitzpatrick was Canada’s starter at the under-18 championship. It was a forgettable tournament for the team, but Fitzpatrick had his moments, including a 38-save win over the Czech Republic.
Fitzpatrick has size and potential but requires patience as a development project.
10. Otto Somppi, C, Halifax Mooseheads, 6-1, 181 lb.
Central Scouting Ranking: 78
A strong showing on Finland’s gold medal-winning team at the under-18’s should help Somppi’s draft stock. His first season in North America with the Halifax Mooseheads wasn’t exactly a head-turning experience. His 46 points were second on a team that traded away all valuable assets as it entered a full-blown rebuild. Of Somppi’s 46 points, only 25 were primary points according to Prospect Stats. Most nights, teammate and fellow draft-eligible forward Max Fortier was more noticeable.
"He’s a smart player who distributes the puck. Maybe (he) looks to pass the puck a little too much," says a scout.