| David Spacek | Sherbrooke Phoenix | QMJHL | R | D | 6’0″ | 170 | Sherbrooke Phoenix | 2021 | Columbus, OH | 2003 | 2021-2022: B- |
We felt Spacek would have been a great late round pick last year and feel as though that idea is looking pretty good right now. Through 30 games in his rookie QMJHL year he has 27 points and has looked excellent averaging close to 23 minutes per-game. Offensively Spacek is not a dangler. He chooses to make high percentage plays and his passes are consistently hard flat and on the tape. We love his ability to move laterally along the offensive blue line while showing a clean stutter step that allows him to avoid shin-pads and create chaos below the goal line. Defensively he uses his feet to establish body position and arrive at the scoring areas before opposing forwards and he shows nice anticipation when jumping on loose pucks. As he continues to gain strength Spacek will need to improve on tying up opponents sticks in front of his net, but we feel he do this through repetition work in practice. Today’s professional game is built around two-way defenseman who can generate transition and there is little doubt that Spacek can provide this.
QMJHL: Sherbrooke Phoenix as of December 25, 2021 Season stats: Games played 30, Goals 5 Assists 22, Points 27, plus/minus 2, Penalty Minutes 22, Penalties Drawn 4, 2021 Game Averages: Time on ice per-game 22:53, Power play time 3:19, Short-handed time 02:49, Shots 6, %Shots on goal 37%, Puck battles 13, %Puck battles won 56%, Hits 0.77, Hits against 0.87
8 Underrated NHL Draft Prospects, July 15, 2021: Spacek is a well-rounded, all-purpose defenseman out of HC Plzen in the Czech U20 league. He earned a spot on the Czech U18 World Championships squad and despite only playing in 3 games showed well against some of the best teams including Canada where he never quit despite being down by a lot and stayed active and aggressive when many of his teammates backed off and tried not to get burned. He can cover a lot of ice because he’s strong on his edges and challenges opponents at the blue lines; he forces several dump-ins by standing up opponents in the neutral zone and has a hard and active stick to knock pucks away. He isn’t flashy offensively and likes to make low risk, high percentage puck plays with short, simple first passes and keeps shots low and hard from the point. He isn’t someone who jumps out at first but the more you watch, the more you appreciate because he’s stout defensively, he takes smart angles defending against the rush and in the corners, he’s strong and can push opponents off the puck and has good stick positioning to block passing and shooting lanes. He swallows up opponents on the walls, makes good pins and finishes checks, he uses his reach to disrupt and poke pucks away and also drive his shoulder into the opponent’s chest. He’s physical without chasing or getting sucked out of position. He’s on the outside looking in as far as a draft prospect but wouldn’t be shocked to hear his name called.
| Ivan Zhigalov | Sherbrooke Phoenix | QMJHL | R | G | 6’3″ | 161 | Sherbrooke Phoenix | 2021 | Minsk, BLR | 2003 | 2021-2022: C |
U20: 2022 NHL Draft Eligible Goalie Report, December 8, 2021: Last 5 game snapshot- This Belorussian goaltender has been the definition of inconsistent over his last five games. Basically trading back and forth losses and wins for a record of 2-3, he only had one game above a 90% save percentage. His best game in this segment did come as an impressive 3-1 win over Quebec where he stopped 22 of 23 shots. Zhigalov plays with a lot of energy in the crease and does a good job controlling his depth, taking a couple extra inches when he has time to challenge more. In general, he is a strong irst save goaltender who will stop the first shot when he can see it clearly. He Struggles on his rotations and quickness on his post save recoveries, especially if he puts a rebound on an opposing player’s stick in a hurry. He has had some major trouble dealing with point shots when there is traffic in front of him as of late, as many goals against have been because of this.
| Zachary Lessard | Sherbrooke Phoenix | QMJHL | R | D | 5’9″ | 165 | Sherbrooke Phoenix | 2020 | Châteauguay, QC | 2004 | Not yet rated |
Lessard is a quick skating undersized defender who plays a very simple yet effective game. In the defensive zone he uses his quickness and agility to hound opposing forwards into turnovers and mental mistakes. He has a very active stick that appears out of nowhere forcing poor puck decisions. Lessard maintains net side positioning through contact and demonstrates the game awareness and quick footwork to keep himself between the opponent and his net throughout the cycle. Offensively he moves the puck quickly without looking rushed or hurried. He walks the blue line with confidence and his point shots consistently hit the net to generate rebounds. While killing penalties Lessard maintains line-ups as well as anyone and we love how he sacrifices his body to block shots.
QMJHL: Sherbrooke Phoenix as of December 25, 2021 Season stats: Games played 29, Goals 2 Assists 6, Points 8, plus/minus 7, Penalty Minutes 8, Penalties Drawn 5, 2021 Game Averages: Time on ice per-game 19:13, Power play time 0:22, Short-handed time 03:22, Shots 2.2, %Shots on goal 59%, Puck battles 12, %Puck battles won 55%, Hits 0.31, Hits against 0.72
Quebec Midget AAA: Chateauguay Grenadiers VS Cantonniers de Magog, March 17, 2020: I have seen him several times throughout the season and I really like his game because of his competitive nature. His skating seems to have improved as the season has progressed as well as being quicker on loose pucks or retrieving pucks – this is a great sign for a young defenseman. He’s extremely active on the blue line- walks the line well and gets away from defensive zone coverage. When there’s a loose puck he’s hungry to get it and quickly transition to offense whether it’s leading the rush or joining the play after a quick pass. He has good feet where he transitions and pivots well allowing him to win battles in corners or in tight spaces. In this one although it seemed like he did not get much help in certain situations, he kept battling and always tried to make a difference. Game Grade B+
2004s: Ville de Saguenay CCM Midget AAA Challenge, February 10, 2020: Lessard is a small, shifty player who clearly thinks that game at an elite level. He shields well on the wall and has good puck skills to back his brain. He generated speed off of crossovers and showed a tendency to let a shot go from the point. He scored a nice, tricky shot in the slot in one of the games viewed. He also was noted for scoring another where he entered the zone, pulled up, and fired a shot through a screen short side. He has confidence with the puck and takes an extra second to make the right play. He likes to have the puck on his stick, he has vision, and he is a solid skater. He defends well, maintaining a tight gap and man focus, but is still a bit small at this point. Regardless of his size, he is a battler and was consistently on the right side of battles. Grade: B+
| William-Charles Bishop | Sherbrooke Phoenix | QMJHL | L | D | 5’11” | 201 | Sherbrooke Phoenix | 2020 | Baie d’Urfee, QC | 2004 | 2021-2022: C |
Bishop is wide based defender with excellent strength. After playing zero games last year he is adjusting quite well to the extended time off by bringing a hard nosed straight forward mentality to each game. Impressively he is averaging close to sixteen minutes of even strength ice time per game. As his game continues to adjust to major junior hockey we will be watching for Bishop to be comfortable making a good solid first pass and then join the rush as a secondary option because has the physical strength and mentality to be a very impactful player.
| Justin Gill | Sherbrooke Phoenix | QMJHL | L | C | 6’1″ | 192 | Charlottetown Islanders | 2019 | Saint Joseph du Lac, QC | 2003 | 2021-2022: C |
Gill is in his third full season the QMJHL and has already surpassed his career high in points. He is a hard playing competitive power forward who might not look all that graceful, but when he makes body contact his opponents tend to go flying. Gill is an inside edge skater who has a quick first three steps that allow him to take away time and space quickly, especially when hunting rebounds around either net. He has very strong hands which not only allows him to win 50/50 pucks along the walls, but also allows him to handle hard passes with just one hand on his stick. Gill can one touch passes with authority through tight lanes or has the soft touch to put pucks into space when needed. We love the dog on a bone mentality and physicality that Gill brings to a line-up, but feel he will need to continue developing his return leg mechanics and improving his glide to have the same type of impact on a professional game.
QMJHL: Sherbrooke Phoenix as of December 25, 2021 Season stats: Games played 29, Goals 11 Assists 7, Points 18, plus/minus Even, Penalty Minutes 28, Penalties Drawn 12, 2021 Game Averages: Time on ice per-game 15:48, Power play time 2:40, Short-handed time 0:53, Shots 3.4, %Shots on goal 55%, Face-off% 48%, Puck battles 11, %Puck battles won 51%, Hits 1.03, Hits against 0.66
Quebec Midget AAA Challenge, January 13, 2019: Physical player who protects the puck well to create his offensive chances. Used in front of the net on the power play where he is effective in screening the goalie. In rounding himself out as a high end power forward he will have to get quicker as his skating looks choppy at time. Working on his edgework and tight turning will allow him to take his game to another level and produce at an even higher rate.
| Israel Mianscum | Sherbrooke Phoenix | QMJHL | L | LW | 6’2″ | 194 | Sherbrooke Phoenix | 2019 | Mistissini, QC | 2003 | 2021-2022: C |
This kid is a shooter. Plain and simple, he’s looking to rip it and he rips it hard. National League teams are going to watching his pace and his defensive commitment away from the puck to see if they think he can develop into and NHLer, but there is going to be someone who likes his ability to release it in traffic. To me Mianscum would be an interesting late round pick because his skating and compete have gotten better every year, so you might have a kid in your system who ends up being a goal scorer for the cost of a seventh rounder.
QMJHL: Sherbrooke vs Blainville-Boisbriand, February 2021: Mianscum played with increased intensity and aggression. Right from the start he was hacking, whacking and generally much more difficult to play against than we have seen in the past. We liked his strong net front presence and his determination to stay there. He still maintains his shoot first mentality, but we saw more give and goes on line rushes which resulted in more pace to his game. Physically Mianscum looked quicker and stronger through contact.
QMJHL: Sherbrooke vs Val-d’Or, February 2020: Mianscum looked like he wanted to be a factor in this game and he was. He displayed his usual shoot first ask questions later mentality, but what we really noticed was his compete away from the puck. He used his speed to a Sherbrook asset at both ends of the ice. As the F1 on the forecheck he was very disruptive and really cut the ice in half so his linemates could take away all breakout options. We liked his effort while applying back pressure because his speed and puck pursuit allowed his defenders to keep a tight gap. He also backchecked to the house with his stick on the ice breaking up a back door pass in the third period. Mianscum played a much more abrasive in your face style tonight and he was very effective.
QMJHL: Sherbrooke vs Halifax, January 2020: It was a pretty quiet game for Mianscum. He came out of the gate firing everything he touched in the first period and looked like he was going to have a big night. He had multiple scoring opportunities from the strong side face-off dot early in the first, but from that point on he turned to more individual efforts and it looked like the Sherbrooke coaching staff decided to end his night a little early.
QMJHL: Sherbrooke vs Saint John, December 2019: Although Mianscum is a Quebec League rookie, he found the quiet area in the offensive zone high slot like a veteran. He has the elusiveness to slide away from his defender getting lost in the scoring area where he always had his stick ready to to fire bullets at the net. Plan and simple, he played like a shooter. His shot found its way through defender’s legs and although he did not score, he seemed to always get the goalie leaning away from where he was shooting. Mianscum showed good strength along the walls during loose puck battles and an explosive stride as a puck carrier through the neutral zone.
Quebec Midget AAA Challenge, January 2019: The physical abilities for Mianscum are evident when you watch him play as he looks like a man amongst boys. Has one of the hardest shots in the league where he can score from about anywhere in the offensive zone. He works hard in the offensive zone creating chances and is first on loose pucks giving him an edge on opposing defenseman. Mianscum needs to polish his game by focusing on his defensive zone play in order to make him a complete player. Can become a deadly scorer at the next level.
Drummondville Midget Espoir Tournament, December 2017: Mianscum chose to play for the bantam all stars despite being a regular on the Citadells in Midget Espoir. He had an ok tournament. He still remains a top prospect for next years draft. Grade: C
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