Just two days after being named the RBC Financial Group's Canadian Junior A Player of the Year, Burnaby Express Forward Kyle Turris is the top ranked North American skater in the Central Scouting Bureau's final season ranking release today by the NHL. Turris leads a group of 6 BCHL players ranked in the list of 210 players.
Riley Nash of the Salmon Arm Silverbacks is listed at 64th, while Casey Pierro-Zabotel is ranked 75th. Silverback Benn Winnett is listed at 90th, Victoria's Jamie Benn is 107th, and Justin Courtnall of the Burnaby Express is ranked 181.
A full list of the North American Ranking is available at the end of this article.
The following is reprinted from nhl.com…
TORONTO — Center Kyle Turris of the Burnaby Express of the British Columbia Hockey League is the top-ranked North American skater for the 2007 NHL Entry Draft, according to NHL Central Scouting Bureau's final rankings released today. The final ranking features the top 210 skaters and 30 goaltenders in North America and top 175 skaters and 16 goaltenders from Europe.
Turris, a native of New Westminster, British Columbia, becomes the first Canadian Provincial Junior Hockey League player ever to be ranked first by Central Scouting. The 6'1″, 170-pound centerman scored 50 goals in 39 games in 2006-07.
Joining Turris among the top North American skaters are a pair of American wingers: #2 ranked Patrick Kane (Buffalo, NY) of the London Knights and #3 ranked James Van Riemsdyk (Middleton, NJ) of the U.S. National Development Team Program. Kane led all scorers in the Canadian Hockey League in 2006-07 with 145 points (62-83-145), while Van Riemsdyk led his U.S. National Under-18 team to a silver medal this past weekend at the Under-18 World Championships and was named the top forward in the tournament.
The top three rated players are closely followed by two stand-out Western Hockey League defensemen: #4 ranked Keaton Ellerby from the Kamloops Blazers (Okotoks, Alberta) and #5 ranked Karl Alzner (Burnaby, B.C.) from the Calgary Hitmen.
Jeremy Smith (Brownston, MI.) of the Plymouth Whalers of the Ontario Hockey League is the top-rated North American goaltender, while right wing Alexei Cherepanov (Omsk, Russia), fresh off of a gold medal at the Under-18 World Championships with Russia, is the top ranked European skater.
Cherapanov set a new record for most goals by a rookie in the Russian Super League this season with 18, surpassing former NHL great Pavel Bure?s mark (17) set in 1988-89.
?This year?s Draft is very even at the top, with no clear-cut number one,? said NHL Director of Central Scouting E.J. McGuire. ?A lot will depend on the position and needs of the particular team. There are many different options available at the top end on draft day for NHL teams. There are dynamic offensive players in Kyle Turris and Alexei Cherapanov; a great playmaking forward in Patrick Kane; a power forward in James Van Riemsdyk; an offensive, hard-hitting defenseman in Keaton Ellerby and a stay-at-home playmaking defenseman in Karl Alzner.”
In its 31st year of operation, the NHL Central Scouting Service provides scouting and evaluation of draft-eligible players to NHL member clubs. Headed by Director of Central Scouting E.J. McGuire, NHL Central Scouting employs nine full-time and six part-time scouts throughout North America and works with Goran Stubb of the European Scouting Service and his staff of five full-time scouts to cover prospects playing throughout Europe. Combined, the NHL Central Scouting and European Scouting Service will have seen in excess of 3,000 games this season.
