By Steve Fitzsimmons / November 19, 2009 /
For Plymouth Whalers sophomore centre Tyler Seguin, the season couldn’t have started much better. Coming off winning a gold medal with Team Canada at the Ivan Hlinka tournament, he has sizzled, with 19 goals and 36 points in 18 games, putting him fourth in OHL scoring, and first in points per game average.
For Seguin, a strong start was something he was focused on doing.
“I knew this summer that coming in, I wanted to have a lot of points this year and have good team success and it was a goal of mine to come out with a strong start and right now I just want to keep it going.”
The 6-1, 186-pound Brampton-native was originally thinking about going to a U.S. College, as his dad played hockey at the University of Vermont, including being roommates with former NHL player John Leclair.
“Growing up, my dad always wanted me to go the college route because he was captain of the University of Vermont and had that experience; but right before the OHL Draft, I sat down with (OHL Commissioner) David Branch and learned about the OHL and the schooling package and how it was a quicker route to the NHL and I decided that was what was best for me,” said Seguin.
Scouting services universally have Seguin ranked anywhere from first to third overall for the 2010 NHL Draft. NHL Central Scouting recently named Seguin the No. 1 OHL prospect for the upcoming Draft.
David Burstyn, the director of scouting for McKeen’s Hockey, feels Seguin has shown significant improvement.
“It’s uncanny to think how quickly he has developed. He has put on 22 pounds of muscle and grown three inches since being OHL-drafted. He is playing with much more confidence as a result.
He was easily the best player for Canada at the Ivan Hlinka tournament. He is respected by teammates and feared by the league. Seguin is a cross between Ales Hemsky and Mike Modano,” Burstyn remarked.
Mark Edwards, founder of www.hockeyprospects.com also thinks Seguin is a very gifted player.
“He is one of my favourite players in this year’s draft. I heard some scouts question his point totals last year because of his linemates (Matt Caria and Chris Terry) but he has proven them wrong this year. He is a huge talent and is, in my opinion, a “can’t miss” prospect. Throw in top-end coaching from (Plymouth head coach) Mike Vellucci and presto.”
Seguin says he models his game after his childhood idol, Detroit Red Wings legend Steve Yzerman.
“Growing up, he was always my favourite player. Just the way he played the game, being great defensively, as well as offensively and also being a leader for the Detroit Red Wings.”
With his strong play, Seguin may earn himself an invite to the Canadian World Juniors selection camp.
“As a little kid, you dream about making the NHL and also representing your country at the World Juniors. If I get an invite next month to the camp, that would be pretty cool, but I’m still waiting to hear.”
But for now, Seguin is focused on the job at hand of helping Plymouth win hockey games and helping the team in any way he can. |