| Grayden Siepmann | Calgary Hitmen | WHL | R | D | 5’10” | 185 | Calgary Hitmen | 2019 | Kamloops, BC | 2004 | 2022-2023: C+ 2021-2022: C+ |
WHL: Calgary vs Saskatoon, January 3, 2023: Siepmann totaled 24: 35 in ice time including 5:03 on the power play and 3:25 while shorthanded. The smooth skating right shot defender was counted on to do a bit of everything for the Hitmen including scoring the overtime winner. He finished the game -1, but was on the ice for two goals against. One was a short handed goal while on the power play that he had very little to do with as it was a mishandle between his goalie and teammate. The other came after a turnover near the defensive blueline when Siepmann over pursued the loose puck and got caught defending outside of the dot lane. He finished the game with a team high 5 shots including 4 grade “A” opportunities from him jumping up into the rush, or at certain times leading the rush. As an offensive minded defender he will need to continue working on his puck management skills as he had 10 giveaways and 3 takeaways, but we do feel he looks stronger than last year as he won 78% of his 9 puck battles.
Neutral Zone’s Ian Moran: In today’s professional hockey Siepmann will be viewed as a transition machine. He is poised with the puck, makes quick accurate passes and rarely forces pucks into poor decisions. As the weakside defenseman while in defensive zone coverage he scans the ice looking for opposing players slipping into the high slot or defensemen crashing backdoor. We love the awareness he shows when his partner is engaged in a corner scrum and Siepmann falls to a near soft chip so he can wheel the net for a clean breakout. Although he might not have pure speed when skating forwards we feel that he skates just as fast as a puck carrier and his edgework is excellent while evading hard charging forwards. We do not view him as a number 1 power play option in professional hockey, but he has the passing skills and first touch to run the top of the umbrella or be a back door option on power play number 2. We do feel that his attention to detail and anticipation will make him an excellent penalty killer.
Neutral Zone NHL Draft: Why a draft pick: He shows poise and confidence with the puck and an understanding of how to work to be an outlet for his defensive partner. He had three points in three games for Team Canada at the U18 WJC. He has the passing skills to be a true asset in today’s NHL game which thrives on transition. He has won 53.5% of his puck battles during his two seasons in the WHL. He averaged over 2:35 on both the power play and penalty kill during 2021/22. Why not a draft pic: Although physically strong and positionally sound he is listed at under 6’0″ and under 190 pounds. Will NHL general managers look for a bigger can player who can provide the same role in their organization? He has never been a points producer at any level. Is he offensively talented and creative enough to run a second power-play unit in the NHL? And can these traits be developed?
WHL: Calgary Hitmen as of December 27, 2021 Season stats: Games played 26, Goals 3 Assists 3, Points 6, plus/minus 7, Penalty Minutes 14, Penalties Drawn 6, 2021 Game Averages: Time on ice per-game 21:48, Power play time 2:06, Short-handed time 2:44, Shots 3.8, %Shots on goal 56%, Puck battles 13, %Puck battles won 53%, Hits 0.23, Hits against 0.85
WHL: Calgary Hitmen NHL Prospects, May 5, 2021: A young talented mobile defenseman, who brings a nice balance to the big, stout defense core that makes up the Calgary Hitmen. Grayden has quick feet and good acceleration. He shows real poise under pressure, and not only shows his ability to elude pressure with quick feet, but also with strong edge work and quick turns. He moves the puck well out of his own zone, skating confidently with the puck, and with good speed. He has solid hand skills, demonstrates good puck control, and nice crisp passing. Offensively he is still finding his confidence, but he does have a cannon of a shot from the point, even if it can be a bit wild in terms of accuracy. Defensively, Grayden plays strong positionally. A few times he did seem to get a little floaty in his zone, losing his positioning by following players away from the play, but for the most part, this undersized defenseman has a good understanding of angles, and how to take away options. He will need to continue to put on weight to be able to be a complete defender, but the athleticism Grayden has is abundant, and his future looks exciting to us. Grade: B-
WHL Calgary Hitmen NHL Prospects, April 1, 2021: Siepmann, like most first year WHL defenders found himself getting caught out of position by doing too much puck watching. He did look a little smaller on the back-end, however playing alongside Galloway, Prokop and Jackson Van De Leest, most would look undersized. His frame is solid and for a positive he didn’t get outmuscled in 1-on-1 battles. He understands how to position himself properly to give him the best advantage to contain forwards trying to get to the net out of the corner. His puck moving was fairly non-existent as a majority of his plays were glass-and-out.
CSSHL Midget Showcase, February 16 2020: Grayden is a smart, smooth-skating defenceman with strong puck-moving capabilities. He makes crisp first passes out of the defensive zone and he was quick to move the puck to his forwards in the offensive zone. He did well to choose when to shoot or pass based on traffic and he always keeps his head on a swivel. The ’04 has really good awareness in all three zones and he showed off good stick positioning in the defensive zone while on the penalty kill. We liked his ability to hold the offensive blueline. He was effective at stopping pucks shot off the boards or glass and he was quick to get the puck from his skates to his stick. Grayden has a strong hockey IQ to along with his strong skating abilities and we liked how he performed this weekend. Grade: A-
U16: WHL Cup (Calgary), November 10, 2019: Grayden is a very solid, very steady defensemen. He is a strong defender with his body, and while he isn’t an overtly physical player, he battles hard and wins those board battles consistently. In front of the net he does well to protect the goalie. His initial steps are very strong and allow him to cut down players quickly, but he doesn’t necessarily have the best agility on his edges without the puck, but when Grayden starts skating with the puck, we see a more athletic stride, more pop in his stride, and a defensemen who is more then capable of generating offense from the back end with strong passing. Sometimes Grayden will try to force the homerun play, but he seems to learn quickly from his mistakes and adjusts accordingly to what the opposition is giving him. Grade: B+
U15: Rocky Mountain Classic (Calgary), December 8, 2018: The all-around defense man played well for Yale through the weekend and was a reliable presence in his own end. Siepmann is a physical defender who plays a heads up game and makes smart reads in his end and defending off transition. Has a good active stick that he uses to break up passes In his own end. He showed good outlets coming out of his end and can stretch the ice out with his passing ability. He can escape pressure using his skating ability to free up space for himself. He has some skill in the offensive end, jumping into the high circle/slot area to see if he can open for a shot. On the line he uses lateral movement to try and find shooting lanes to get pucks on net. He can be prone to turning the puck over in the neutral zone with some sloppy passes that he could look to improve on as well as being more consistent through shifts as he can make errors with the puck at times. Grade: B
2004s: North American Hockey Classic (Winnipeg), June 27, 2018: Grayden plays with a lot of grit and physicality. He isn’t afraid to mix things up and doesn’t back down from anyone. He’s got a smooth stride and above average mobility. The 2004 makes quick decisions in his own end and played time on the PP. Grade: B