Hello New York and everywhere else, welcome back to the Birdcage. Today, we're kinda lucky in that we're going to talk hockey with a behind the scenes feel to it. I don't know about you but I don't know much about the scouting process in the NHL. I mean, I understand about looking at players and making an evaluation.....but how is that done at the pro level and what do teams do with this info ? We were lucky enough to get a chance to talk to a scout, courtesy one of our message board members. So instead of doing that work you were just assigned, read about scouting for the NHL with Evan Jansen.

Bird:
Evan, thanks for taking the time to do this. With the draft coming up in a few days this is a great chance for us to get a feel for how the NHL scouts for talent. First, tell the Hockeybird readers how you discovered hockey and what about it got you hooked ?

Evan:
No problem, I am glad I could do this interview. I first discovered hockey when I was around 6 years old as my older brother played in some local leagues. As I got older and started to learn the tricks of the trade I loved playing the game. What really got me hooked to hockey was how the combination of skill & strength combine to make the player. Growing up I watched players score some pretty goals one play than just absolutely crush an opponent the next, which happened alot with Brad Park, although he didn't have great moves like a Bobby Orr he could get the job done on the offensive side.

Bird:
How did you first get interested in scouting hockey players ?

Evan:
I first got interested in scouting players when I discovered in High School that I wasn't going to have a career in the NHL. I thought about jobs that kept me close to the game but without the risk of embarrassing myself on the ice. Scouting was the logical choice since you could be watching the next big thing before he even made it to the big show, which is always nice to have that experience so you can tell the grandkids.

Bird:
Your specialty is looking at defensemen, what are the key elements you need to see in a player to become a pro prospect ?

Evan:
When scouting defenseman you really have to have a feel for the position, which is why a majority of defensive scouts have played the position with some experience. Defenseman have to have some leadership within them since they have to set the tone from the backend. But really it depends on what the team is looking for, either a stay-at-home defenseman (Scott Stevens) or a offensive defenseman(Brian Leetch). So in short a defenseman that really wants to make it big has to have leadership, heart and a ton of skill to go with it if you wanna hang with the big boys in the NHL. But there is also this "thing" that surrounds certain players that let you know he will be special, almost like the way that player carries himself.

Bird:
How long is a young player followed before he's eligible for the draft ? I mean, how young is a kid first getting looked at ?

Evan:
It depends on when a team gets a heads up from someone letting them know that a specific player may interest them. But extensive scouting of a player begins when they are about 15 years old. Most general managers have good relationships with veteran junior coaches so they can get an "advance" scoop on a player.

Bird:
Over the years you've seen a ton of hockey games, live and on tape, who are some of the players in the NHL today that you saw and evaluated ?

Evan:
You know there were a lot of players that I evaluated so I can't remember them all, but I do remember the ones that went on and made it to the NHL and are having a solid career, some of these players include Eric Brewer, Bryan McCabe, Rob Blake, Willie Mitchell, Chris Phillips and Wade Redden, Ken Daneyko, Glen Wesley and Brendan Witt. I don't want to bore everyone to death with the lesser known guys.

Bird:
Trust me....this is NOT boring. Have any players that didn't look good to you, getting a poor evaluation go on to play in the NHL anyway ? If so, who ?

Evan:
Yes, this happens to scouts more than people think. Most guys who get a bad report get a chance to play in the NHL when the injury bug bites a team and they are the depth defenseman, but for guys who made a name for themselves, lets see.... I thought Jeff Buekaboom's game was raw and unpolished so I gave him a label of career minor-leaguer or 6th defenseman. There was Adrian Aucoin, Karel Rachunek, Filip Kuba and Sergei Zubov (Sergei wasn't involved in the defensive end on most plays but he grew out of that)

Bird:
How much work does an NHL team do to prepare for the draft ? Some clubs seem better at this than others, care to share why that happens ?

Long Island's Michael Komisarek

Evan:
Teams over-prepare for the draft sometimes by scouting a player so much that they see flaws in that players game that can be fixed as they mature, teams are so worried about making the perfect pick that they pass on that player, one mans trash is another's treasure. Most scouting departments prepare for drafts 2 years in advance. So right now most organizations are planning for the '05 draft. The teams that are usually better at drafting are the teams that go on their first choice instead of doubting themselves. Always follow your first instincts as a scout or GM. Usually a team will send out their entire scouting department to look at almost every draft ready player. Those scouts make a list and bring it back to the general manager who cuts down the list to the top 290 players worldwide. They then send out their more trusted scouts to take notes on the players attitude and tendencies and give it to the general manager. After reading all the scouting reports for weeks the GM makes a list of the players they would take round by round according to draft position. (the Rangers draft 12th, they would probably make a list of the top 20 1st round talent and take the highest remaining player, this usually goes on round by round.) When a scout really makes a living is when the general manager makes his picks in the later rounds of the draft to fill needs, if he busts your out of a job if he makes it to the NHL and is serviceable or even a star then that scout is the toast of the team.

Bird:
Which NHL clubs do you feel have the strongest farm system and why ?

Evan:
Pittsburgh, Chicago, Montreal, Washington and Florida have the strongest systems with Edmonton and Ottawa not far behind. Pittsburgh has some excellent defensive prospects coming up in Ryan Whitney and Brooks Orpik. Ross Lupaschuk is a solid defenseman. Up front they have Michael Sivek, Colby Armstrong and recently acquired Ramzi Abid. Chicago will have plenty of offense once Tuomo Ruutu and Pavel Vorobiev make the squad. On defense they have Anton Babchuk who will be a top pair defenseman and several solid prospects on defense in Olli Malmivaara and Alex Barkunov. Montreal has Michael Hainsey and Michael Komisarek to go along with Andrei Markov to form one of the top defenses in hockey very soon, and on offense they have Marcel Hossa and Chris Higgins with both players having the ability to score goals at the NHL level. Washington is a little surprise considering they traded 3 top prospects in their system for Jagr, but with Steve Eminger, Nolan Yonkman and Jakub Cutta they are set at defense for years. Eminger will be a top defenseman in the league with Yonkman and Eminger rounding out a nice defensive crew for the Caps. One word of advice for opposing goalies when Alexander Semin makes it to the NHL: watch out, this kid is electric. Oh yeah, I wouldn't forget about Maxime Ouellet in goal, I'm sure the Flyers don't. Florida has Jay Boutmeester on defense to go with Lukas Krajicek and Filip Novak to have a nasty 1-2-3 punch of offensive defenseman. The Panthers are also stacked at leftwing with a few 2nd line talents.

Bird:
Who should we be aware of in this years draft ?

Richard Stehlik

Evan:
Well in this years draft you have the usual top 4 (Staal, Fleury,Zherdev and Horton) with just the order debatable. After that is where it gets interesting. Since you ladies and gents are Rangers fans, the defenseman the Rangers are looking at with the 12th pick are in order: Dion Phaneuf (hard hitting and as a good touch on offense as close as they come to Rob Blake), Ryan Suter (think Tom Poti but with a nasty attitude on defense), Braydon Coburn (stay-at-home guy with little punch on offense and needs to turn his nastiness up a notch), Brent Seabrooke (nice 4th defenseman that can lead the rush) and Mark Stuart (doesn't do anything spectacular but gets the job done). Considering the Rangers need depth just about everywhere in their system I would think they are looking at some forwards as well. My sleeper defenseman of the draft is Richard Stehlik, if he works on his skating and gets his shot straight he will be a very solid 3rd defenseman for years.

Bird:
Can you comment on any of the young defensemen in the Rangers system ?

Evan:
Well the very little defenseman with a future in the Rangers system are very solid guys. You all know about Fedor Tyutin who will be in a Rangers sweater for years if Glen Sather doesn't trade him. I project Tyutin to be a Wade Redden type defenseman. Bryce Lampman is a solid defenseman who has a future in the NHL as a great 5th defenseman or a good 4th defenseman. He is a leader in the locker-room. The newest arrivals in the Rangers system, Jake Taylor and Nate Guenin, are two great pickups by Sather. Taylor loves the rough stuff and sticks up for his teammates. I see him as a character 5th defenseman who can fill a spot above him if an injury occurs. Nate Guenin is well, nasty. He hits like a 18 wheeler and he makes tape to tape passes to get the rush started. Besides Tyutin, he is your best defensive prospect and I see him as a solid # 4 guy maybe even top 3.

Bird:
What have you heard regarding possible big deals between clubs as we head into this years draft ?

Evan:
Well there are hundreds of trade talks that happen before and during draft day so you will start to hear a lot of them once the Stanley Cup ends. Some deals that I have heard being discussed is the Kings trading two 1st round picks (13th and 26th overall) a 2nd round pick and Eric belanger to Carolina for the 2nd overall pick for LA could draft either Fleury or Zherdev. Also the Rangers are trying hard to get into the top 6 but the asking price starts with Lundmark and Sather is hesitant to trade Jamie. I could see Philly making a splash at draft day with Bobby Clarke holding two 1st round picks and willing to trade Simon Gagne. But that's everything I heard that's seriously being discussed.

Bird:
How does a players personality effect an evaluation and how is it measured ? I guess I want to know how much interest an NHL team has in a kids head as well as his skill.

Evan:
Each team carries a certain awareness of a players personality when making their draft selections. It depends on the player though, if you have enough skill most teams wont care what type of attitude the player has as long as he produces (Eric Lindros). There are a few players like that in this years draft, Patrick O' Sullivan, Danny Fritsche and Konstatin Glazachev. Out of those 3, I would look past Sullivan's attitude if any of his scouting reports are correct. Looks like a complete player.

Bird:
What current trend do you see in an NHL teams desired prototype defenseman ? Is there a bigger market for the scoring/skill guys or a demand for the big punishing D-man ?

Evan:
Like I said earlier it really depends on the team. But since the NHL is turning into a 1-0 snore-fest most teams are leaning towards defensive defenseman

Bird:
Do certain teams ask scouts for certain types of players ?

Evan:
Yes, if a team feels it is set with lets say offensive defenseman they will focus mainly on physical defenseman, but it varies team to team.

Bird:
What was your favorite NHL moment ?

Evan:
My favorite NHL moment as to be Ray Bourque winning the Stanley Cup. After watching him mature as a player into one of the all-time greats he finally got what he deserved even though it wasn't in a Bruins jersey. A close second is the penalty shot save Mike Richter made on Pavel Bure in the "94 Stanley Cup.

Bird:
For the heck of it, what do you think about this silly idea to make the nets bigger ? Did I give away my opinion on that ?

Evan:
Making the nets bigger wouldn't be my first choice to make goal scoring go up in the NHL. First of all some of the goalie equipment these guys were is just ridiculous. Cut down on that first and lets see what happens. I know for sure Garth Snow wouldn't be a very good number 1 goalie. Also, making the rink wider wouldn't help much either as trapping teams would just draft more speedy forwards to cover the ice while going with two mobile defenseman (Ottawa). It may create some more chances but maybe a few more a game. I don't think it is worth the investment each team would have to make.

Bird:
What is your opinion on the trap and how much of it do you see outside of the NHL ?

Evan:
Well to elaborate on the trap, as tough as it is to break through it if you are a head coach in the NHL you should be able to find a way to break it. The trap really isn't that bad if the trapping team actually takes the turnover and tries to score instead of just dumping it in and battling along the boards. The trap is used by international teams but it isn't quite as boring as the Devils or Ducks for that matter. Ottawa plays a good version of the trap. The biggest trapping teams in Europe are usually Germany and depending on the level some Russian Super League teams use some form of the trap.

Bird:
Have you ever touched the Cup ? Do you have any Cup Stories you can tell us ?

Evan:
I have seen the Stanley Cup 3 times in my life and each time it felt special knowing of all the history behind it. I first saw the Cup when the Devils won the Stanley Cup in 1995. Since I couldn't see the Rangers win it in person a year before I went for the next "best" thing and sat through a Devils game to finally see it. The second time I saw it was when The Avalanche won the Cup in 2001. I wanted to see Ray Bourque win the Stanley Cup in person and it was amazing. The third time was when they brought it to a shopping mall in New York City a few years ago so I brought my 5 year old son to see it, was the greatest thing in the world being able to stand next to and hold the Stanley Cup.

Bird:
Any special moments, personal or professional you'd like to leave us with ?

Evan:
One of my favorite moments in my life is seeing defenseman that I evaluated being drafted. The look on those players faces is just amazing.

Well, there you have it. I wish to thank Evan for taking the time to do this for us. I don't know about you but I sure learned a bunch. I get the feeling we'll tap Evan again sometime for some more great insight.

----}- Bird

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