The 1st Ohio Battery summer prospect series continues with our No. 6 best prospect in the Blue Jackets organization, forward Liam Foudy.
Reason for Ranking
All three of us working on the prospect rankings were all over the place on Foudy. Paul had him at No. 8, I had him at No. 5 and Dan had him at No. 4.
Just like when he was drafted, Foudy is a polarizing player and it is because his pedigree doesn't match his production. His potential is plentiful, but the ceiling might be lower than you'd hope for a first rounder.
NHL Projection
Middle six forward.
Personally, I project him to be a third liner with some speed. That is what frustrates so many with his selection. He is very likely to make the NHL, but his skillset is far behind others selected in the first round. He has a skill that is coveted in the NHL but putting it all together is what should trouble fans. The hands need to start matching the speed of the feet.
Best Case Scenario
The best you can hope for is a player that can put up around 40-50 points and a lot of it comes from an opportunistic player. That isn't a bad player, but it's still short of the moonshot that people strive for with first-round picks.
He needs to start putting up points and on a London Knights team that is always trying to win, he should be put in a place to succeed. He will be an outlier if he makes it to that level but given his athletic ability it has a legitimate chance of still happening. At his best think Michael Grabner or Carl Hagelin.
Strengths and Weaknesses
He is fast. He is damn fast. He is digestive tract after eating Skyline Chili fast. Everything about him is about developing his skills. That is a mighty big "if."
You have to like his environment and how he grew up. His nose for the net and his ability to score needs to improve. It is a home run pick yet it isn't immediately clear how good he will be until you see him as "the man" and in his post-draft year.
Follow 1st Ohio BatteryFacebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube
