Eemil Viro (4.25 Star Amateur Rating, NHL Grade — A-) Defense
(1) Brain – Eemil plays an aggressive physical style that is on the edge. He is as strong as a bull and he knows it. Some wonder if he will be able to play the style against men… We do not. We feel that with continued training and focus Eemil has the potential to be a top pairing defenseman who makes life absolutely miserable for the opponents top line. His high level anticipation allows him to have a very active stick that shuts down passing or shooting lanes very quickly. And if there is no play to break up, Eemil strategically places his stick into your kidneys. He does an excellent job of containing the cycle while eliminating the oppositions forwards with authority and the entire time he maintains defensive side positioning. He does not get beaten back to his net off the wall. Offensively, he understands what his role is (and will be) and makes quick outlet passes in transition and then joins the rush in a supportive role. He keeps it simple and stays out of trouble. His passes up the middle are tape to tape and he does not make “hope plays”. We feel that Eemil understands his game and is very comfortable playing to his strengths.
(2) Vision & Poise – He sees the entire ice well in all situations. We have seen times when he has been caught on long shifts and will continue to have his head on a swivel rather than becoming hyper focused on the puck. During transition he plays with his head up, finds the best outlet and moves the puck quickly. When he has the puck in the offensive zone Eemil shoots with the purpose of creating rebounds rather than foolishly firing pucks into the goalie’s chest or glove. He has the vision to “skip” men in controlled breakout situations, but does not do so just to move the puck to the weak or wide-side.
(3) Feet – He moves well in all directions and has a very explosive for step while skating backwards. This allows him to hold the offensive blue line longer than his peers during transition and maintain incredibly tight gaps when his forwards make a turnover at the offensive blue line. He has a very powerful first step when making body contact and drives through his opponents after initial contact. His wide base allows him to accelerate quickly while crossing over because his outside edge maintains contact with the ice for an extended period of time.
(4) Compete & Effort – Eemil wins battles and will make you pay if you get a step on him. High compete / effort / energy player without taking himself out of position.
(5) Contact or Physicality – It is part of his game and he seems to enjoy physical confrontations, finishing checks and battling in front of his net. He will do well playing in a North American environment.
(6) Release – He shoots the puck quickly and accurately, but it is not a rocket. This is a weakness that we feel will improve as he matures, but if you expect him to be firing bombs from the point then Eemil is probably not the defenseman you will be drafting in the first round.
(7) One Timer Ability – We saw him misfire a few from the high slot. They still hit the net and caused rebounds, but it is worth noting because it happened on more than one occasion and in different situations. But again, we feel Eemil’s shooting will be dramatically different when he is ready to be a National League regular and his draft stock should not fall because of a few misfires.
(8) Body Language – He carries himself like a leader who wants to & expects to win.
(9) Special Teams Potential – Eemil will be counted on to kill penalties in both 5 on 4 and 5 on 3 situations. He’s smart and has high anticipation. He gets his sticks on pucks and regularly knocks pucks out of the air. His willingness to stand in shooting lanes and eat pucks make him a natural killer. We do not feel Eemil will be a first power play guy, but he will get consistent looks on the second unit.
(10) Intangibles – He plays a North American styled game right now and we feel he will have an easy transition to professional hockey. Eemil is a player that we will be very excited to watch at the U18 World Championships in the Spring.