Welcome to OilersNation’s 2021 Draft Countdown, powered by FCHockey.
Over the next few weeks leading up to the draft, we’ll be rounding up scouting reports, quotes, and videos about the Top-100 prospects available. Here are aggregated profiles on Ayrton Martino, Sasha Pastujov, Oskar Olausson, Prokhor Poltapov, Aleksi and Heimosalmi.
No. 40: Ayrton Martino
Date of Birth: September 28, 2002
Nation: Canada
Position: Left Wing
Shoots: Left
Height: 5’10”
Weight: 168 lbs
“Creating multiple scoring chances at both 5-on-5 and on the man advantage, Martino played with an offense-first mindset all game. Off the rush, he looked to make passes to teammates entering late into the offensive zone. When he didn’t possess the puck while on offense, Martino had great timing with his line mates. Finding space behind defenders to create scoring chances. Along with his great timing, Martino was able to make plays in tight spaces. He would always be able to make a smart play to keep the offensive attack alive. During battles along the boards, he showed great compete. If he was away from a battle, his mindset seemed only concerned about how to create a scoring chance for, and in some cases Martino would heavily sacrifice his defensive positioning, often circling and looping in his own zone, rather than stopping in position. Martino will need to improve on some aspects of his defensive game, but his offensive skills, and ability to create scoring chances is already at a high level. I believe he will need to improve on his defensive game if he is going to play higher than a bottom-6 role at the next level.” – James Henry
No. 39: Sasha Pastujov
Date of Birth: July 15, 2003
Nation: United States
Position: Left Wing
Shoots: Left
Height: 6’0″
Weight: 175 lbs
“Pastujov has missed some time this season due to injury, but he’s often been the best and most noticeable player in the U18 NTDP program this season. He is a decent but not outstanding skater, showing good edgework and balance but lacking high-end power in his strides and displaying somewhat heavy feet. Pastujov struggles somewhat in defensive transition, as his acceleration leaves him behind the play more often than not. While he isn’t the most explosive skater on the rush, his vision and puckhandling skill allow him to dictate the pace of play and make defenders miss off the rush with a quick deke. He is a very creative and confident player with the puck, showing great patience and vision to open up passing lanes and create scoring chances. Pastujov has great offensive awareness, staying above the puck most times and showing an ability to draw pressure towards him before making a play to a nearby teammate. He has a knack for flashy passing and can thread small lanes through the slot when he’s given time to curl off the boards into open ice. He has a quick release on his wrister and is a threat on his off-wing, showing an accurate one-timer that makes him a threat on the rush or on the power play. His awareness makes him a reliable defensive player most of the time, getting some looks on the penalty kill and displaying decent body positioning when playing in his zone. Overall, a dual-threat offensive star whose stock is rising and could solidify himself as a first-round prospect throughout the rest of the season.” – Joseph Aleong
No. 38: Oskar Olausson
Date of Birth: November 10, 2002
Nation: Sweden
Position: Left Wing
Shoots: Left
Height: 6’1″
Weight: 177 lbs
“I’ve seen Olausson a few times now, and he just never seems to do it for me. I definitely do see the tools that other scouts see. He has a nice frame to work with, he moves around the ice easily and can create some separation with his higher gears, and he’s a very potent shooter when he has the puck in a dangerous area. Scored a nice goal in this one by finding a loose puck, dusting it off and burying it. That being said, though, he’s just not a player who leaves a positive impact on a shift-by-shift basis. His awareness and hockey sense are an issue to me, as there are some shifts where he totally losses sight of his defensive check or skates himself into bad places offensively. There are shifts in both ends where he’ll make a nice read or a creative play, but they need to happen more often. There are many times when he skates to where the puck is, not where it’s going. Seems to lack spatial awareness, getting caught up in bad traffic, and needs to shoulder check more often. He also floats a bit and doesn’t show a whole lot of urgency or play with a high pace. Does very little to win pucks from opponents. Doesn’t use the power elements to his game nearly as much as he should, and can get pushed around. Could be more balanced on his feet. Puck handling is good at times, worse at others. I think the best case with Olausson is that you can develop him up enough to be a sheltered second-line winger and power play supporter, but there’s a lot of work that would need to be done and there’s a good risk that the job never quite gets completed.” – Derek Neumeier
No. 37: Prokhor Poltapov
Date of Birth: February 1, 2003
Nation: Russia
Position: Right Wing
Shoots: Left
Height: 5’10”
Weight: 161 lbs
“Poltapov was truly electrifying in this match. It seemed like every time he touched the puck he was a serious threat to do something magical with it, and he finished with two goals and an assist to prove it. His ability to control the puck in traffic is among the best in this entire draft class, as he can easily and quickly swing it wide of his body or deftly maneuver it through sticks and skates. He has a true attacker’s mentality with the puck, willing to drive forward and push the pace. Really shines with his exits and entries on the power play when he has the extra space. Tracks the play well without the puck and has the stick precision to pickpocket it from opponents, though his short strides and so-so quickness make it a little difficult for him to get close enough to opponents at times. His wrist shot is really dangerous from the circles, with good accuracy, some power and a tricky release to read. His play on the defensive side of the puck isn’t notable, though I think that’s more for a lack of commitment than a lack of awareness, and he seems competitive enough that he’ll put in that work later at the higher levels when he realizes that he can’t skip it. Poltapov will need to add another gear to his skating in order to really succeed with his playing style, but if that happens he could be a really nice point-producing winger in the NHL.” – Derek Neumeier
No. 36: Aleksi Heimosalmi
Date of Birth: May 8, 2003
Nation: Finland
Position: Defence
Shoots: Right
Height: 5’11”
Weight: 154 lbs
“Heimosalmi has steadily risen up draft boards throughout the year and looks to be making a name for himself early in the U18s by flashing some offense and strong positional play against better competition than he saw in Finnish juniors. Heimosalmi is a very agile skater who shows good edgework and the ability to change directions quickly. While his stride is somewhat rigid and upright, limiting how much power he generates in his stride, he has solid escapability in his own zone and is adept at sensing forechecking pressure and moving the puck to open space with a quick turn or outlet pass. He possesses above-average puckhandling skill for a defender, showing some bursts of effectiveness carrying the puck in transition, but he’s still somewhat passive when jumping into the offense. Shows a great understanding of when to pinch in the offensive zone and when to defer to defense, so there might be more offensive production as he moves up the ladder. Heimosalmi already shows signs of being a quality one-on-one defender on the rush, timing when to close the gap well and showing a pesky active stick to break up moves to the inside. Isn’t overly aggressive or physical in his own zone but will stand his ground and use his stick in physical battles when needed. While he doesn’t seem to possess enough explosiveness in his stride or offensive upside to be a top-pairing player, he has all the tools necessary to be a supporting defender who can help out on both special teams.” – Joseph Aleong