| Duncan Ramsay | Kimball Union | NE Prep | L | D | 6’4″ | 201 | Vermont | 2023 | Halifax, NS | 2004 | 2021-2022: C+ |
Flood Marr Tournament, December 31, 2021: Ramsay is a former fourth round pick by Saint John in the QMJHL who showed a lot of promise at Mount Academy in Charlottetown, PEI before coming south to KUA. He has impressive size, strength and athleticism but he’s more than just a physical specimen; he’s a tough, physical, shutdown defenseman who is just beginning his trajectory. He moves very well for his size, appears to have fluid hips and can transition, pivot, maintain tight coverage on skill and speedy forwards and gap up and play physically on bigger, stronger power forwards. His physical game separated him from the rest of the defenders here as he can grind forwards down below the dots, he can angle and ride guys off the puck and he has excellent timing and spacing and made several big open ice hits. He showed natural instincts knowing when to pinch and throw the body, when to use his reach and defend with his stick or pick off passes and knew when to back off and play positional and use his angles. Ramsay surprises opposing forwards with his transitions and ability to close quick on puck carriers. Aside from his physical attributes and defensive prowess, he’s durable, reliable and can play a lot of minutes in a variety of roles. He killed penalties using his reach, body positioning and instincts to break up plays and would bare down and ice the puck and could patrol the offensive blue line on the power play and distribute pucks and let his heavy slap shot go. He’s simple with the puck but his head is always up and he can zip it and get it through traffic and on the tape. A well rounded prospect who can play up and down the roster, has a translatable game and will only get better and better as he grows into his frame and adds some polish. He’s listed as a late round NHL Draft prospect which is fair but wouldn’t be surprised if he goes higher than he’s projected given his rawness and high long term potential. Grade: A
NE Prep: Kimball Union vs New Hampton, October 18, 2020: Ramsay was the top defenseman in this game and he may have been the best player we saw in this game. He’s easy to spot, checking in at a robust 6’4 200 and we wrote three main attributes in our notes: tall, strong, smooth. He is fun to watch because he makes the routine look easy, especially given his skating stride. He is fluid in all four directions and his backward stride might be even cleaner than his forward stride. He has a lot of offensive upside to tap into and he looked strong here on the power play where he earned big minutes. He makes good decisions and opens up his body to receive the pass and he is able to do it in-motion. He has very good vision as he surveys the zone with the puck and if he decides on taking a shot he is great at getting it through a series of bodies to hit the net. He engaged in some physical play, but he can be even more imposing as he gets stronger, and that’s a scary proposition. As one of the younger players in this game, going up against opponents three years his senior and still dominating? That’s how you know you have a good one. Grade: A+
2004s: Ville de Saguenay CCM Midget AAA Challenge, February 2020: Ramsay is a big, smart, mobile defenseman. Very strong on his skates, confident with the puck and not afraid to use backhand passes on the breakouts. Ramsay displayed a willingness to carry the puck on the powerplay and has the ability to make hard, accurate passes from all over the ice. Has a very good upside both has a defenseman with his skating ability, tight gaps and clever stick play as well as offensively with his puck carrying and passing ability. Versatile skill set which will make him coveted come draft time as he can fill multiple roles. Grade B+
Photo Credit: Dan Hickling/Hickling Images
Stats provided by InStat