By the time the first round of the 2019 National Hockey League draft concludes, two New England natives who spent the past two seasons in the USA Hockey National Team Development Program are expected to have heard their names called.
And when this year’s draft, which will be held June 21-22 at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, is over, a total of four locals out of the NTDP likely will have been selected by NHL organizations.
Left wing Matthew Boldy and goaltender Spencer Knight are the first two predicted to be plucked.
Boldy, a native of Millis, Mass., is coming off a season with the Under-18 team in which he recorded 81 points (33-48-81) in 64 games. In addition to having one of the best shots of all draft-eligible players, he’s excellent down low in the offensive zone and is intense in one-on-one battles. He’s also efficient with his stick.
Explained Under-18 coach John Wroblewski: “Matt is the most complete winger I’ve ever coached — and that includes a player like (Ottawa Senators left wing) Brady Tkachuk — because of Matt’s ability to scale up and down your lineup, much like Brady. Matt has the ability to play in the trenches and be around the net-front and be that pest, and also be an outside threat. He’s a truly unique commodity in that he’s going to
play the 200-foot game and be able to do something dynamic at both ends of the ice, whether it’s a stick lift in the defensive zone that you marvel at or a toe drag and a shot that goes bar down from the top of the circle.”
Wroblewski added that Boldy’s offensive-zone prowess is “off the charts.”
“He’ll throw alley-oop passes to himself in the offensive zone, flipping pucks over the tops of players and self-passing,” the bench boss said. “His creativity is truly remarkable to watch. He’s kind of ad-libbing out there.”
What also makes Boldy, who’s committed to Boston College, a dominant player is when he wants to play a power game, he uses his 6-foot-2, 192-pound frame to get the job done.
“You’re dealing with a complete hockey player akin to the likes of Marian Hossa,” Wroblewski said. “I know that’s rarefied air to put a guy in, but he’s that special.”
Another special player is the 6-3, 192-pound Knight. The Darien, Conn., native tied the single-season NTDP record with 32 wins in 39 contests this past campaign with the Under-18 club and set the program record with 59 wins in 78 games over the past two seasons with the Under-17 and Under-18 teams.
Knight reminds many scouts of Montreal Canadiens ace goalie Carey Price because of his relaxed demeanor in the crease and his uncanny ability to nearly always be in the right position.
And although netminders are rarely selected in the opening round of the NHL draft, the Boston College commit is expected be an exception, and rightfully so.
“You hate to label goaltenders too early,” Wroblewski said. “They are the longest-term projects in regard to prospects, but I haven’t been around a better one in regard to his ability to navigate his crease, his athleticism and his ability to play the puck. His vision is absolutely outstanding; it shows that he’s a student of the game. He’s calm, cool and composed back there. The team that ends up drafting him is going to be very fortunate. There’s plenty of evidence out there that a goalie shouldn’t go in the first round, but with this guy, I’m expecting it.”
While Boldy and Knight likely will be wearing NHL jerseys after the first night of the draft, the other two locals who honed their craft with the NTDP the past two years — defenseman Henry Thrun and right wing Patrick Moynihan — almost definitely will be doing so after the latter day comes to an end.
Thrun, 6-2, 190 pounds, notched 37 points (8-29-37) in 64 games this past season with the Under-18 team. His top attribute is his versatility, and like Knight, what stands about his persona is how serene he is at and away from the rink.
“He’s cool off the ice, cool on the ice,” Wroblewski said of the Southboro, Mass., native. “And his ability to play the left side and the right side as a defenseman is a unique attribute that he’ll be able to carry with him for a long time. He was asked to do that quite a bit over the last two years, which probably cost him numbers. It is unfamiliar territory for him playing on the right side. There are different blind spots and things like that. But his ability to play the right side is unique and will only impress people.”
Another aspect of Thrun’s skill-set is his ability to be the central figure on the power play.
“We put him in the middle spot on the power play on the 1-3-1, and he knows where to be, has great hand-eye, and can finish from those spots,” Wroblewski noted. “He’s a unique talent and a character kid who’s going to be a consummate pro.”
Thrun is Harvard bound this fall, and one player he’ll likely oppose at some point at the college hockey level is Moynihan, a 5-11, 183-pounder from Millis, Mass., who’s committed to Providence. Moynihan totaled 46 points (19-27-46) in 64 matches with the Under-18 squad this past season, a 14-point upgrade from what he recorded the previous campaign with the Under-17 club in 61 contests.
When asked what he thought about Moynihan, Wroblewski emphatically replied, “Love him.”
Elaborated the bench boss: “He’s a steal in this draft. The team that takes him is going to be a team with a scout who really sticks his neck out for this guy, and with good reason. Patrick has an excellent chance at playing in the NHL long term. First off, because of what he’ll do to gain a coach’s trust. He knows how to go to the net. He’ll play physical. Right away, he’ll be able to impress on coaches. And then an understated part of his game is his skill level, and you saw it in bunches in the second half of the season. As far as second-half productivity is concerned, Patrick was one of our most prolific scorers, and he did it in a number of ways. He has a great shot. He’s smart. He’s got versatility to his game. We thought the world of him as a coaching staff.”
There’s no doubt that the Friars coaching staff will think the same of him when he heads to college this fall.
There’s also no doubt that the NTDP was just another step in a long and successful journey for Moynihan and his three 2019 NHL draft-eligible New England native teammates in Boldy, Knight and Thrun.
