31 Teams in 31 Days - Washington Capitals

1. Connor McMichael - London Knights
Needless to say, it was a very strong year for McMichael as he established himself as one of the OHL's top forwards and cracked the 100 point barrier in his draft +1 year. This propelled him to a roster spot with Canada at the WJC's where his 5 goals were second on the gold medal winners. His hockey sense, without question, remains his best asset. This kid is an extremely intelligent hockey player who rarely makes a mistake with the puck and reads and reacts to the play at a level above his peers, which earns him so many good scoring chances. Of course, it also helps that his shot and release are both extremely good, so he's finishing on the majority of these chances that he's earning. The combination of these two skills is why London utilizes him on the point of the powerplay with Ryan Merkley so often. The thing is, McMichael scores in so many different ways. He creates his own chances with quick hands in traffic, finishing plays off with his shot. He redirects pucks in the slot and bangs home rebounds. He uses the one timer on the powerplay. He's not necessarily the flashiest player, as you shouldn't expect to see him going end to end, or through defenders. He's much more deliberate. Bottom line though, McMichael's 4.33 scoring chances per game (from InStat Hockey) put him tops in the OHL last season. In terms of the things I laid out for him to improve on at this time last year (working through traffic/the middle of the ice, becoming a more relentless and intense player away from the puck), I think there is still room for improvement there. I think he definitely found a way to be a better offensive player in traffic, no question. However, I do think that there is still room for growth in terms of being better in puck possession and doing a better job of engaging physically in the neutral zone and in his own end. This is supported by some of the advanced stats on InStat hockey too. Among NHL drafted players, McMichael's challenges won percentage (40%) and takeaways per game (2.8) were among the worst in the OHL cohort. Even though he has good positioning as a defensive player and is strong at the faceoff circle, I do still believe that his game could best suit the wing at the NHL level. What happens next year? That's a great question. It's obvious that Washington thinks highly of McMichael (including him in their playoff bubble) and I would be shocked if he does not earn at least a couple NHL games to start the year. That said, if it comes to playing in the NHL on the fourth line or returning to London for another year, the Capitals will send him back. There are still things for McMichael to work on and without a guy like Liam Foudy around, it would be interesting to see Connor take charge of zone entry (something he is not often responsible for on his line). If he's in the OHL, expect him to be a contender for the Red Tilson.

2. Martin Has - Guelph Storm
It was certainly a small sample size to evaluate Has, considering he only played 20 games for the Guelph Storm (not counting the North Bay game which was more of a formality so he could be traded) after coming over from Finland. Has was pretty much as advertised. Big, right shot defender who has some serious projectable qualities as a stay at home defender. He is pretty mobile for a 6'4 kid and defends in transition well with his reach and skating ability. However, in my limited viewings, I found him to be too passive in zone coverage. I certainly wanted him to play a little meaner and really assert himself down low. Additionally, I found him to be fairly passive with the puck, lacking the confidence to truly look to create. Instead, it's a lot of deferrals and chip outs. It's tough, because Has was barely given a chance to really get settled in before the pandemic shut everything down. I would be very curious to see how he looks next year in Guelph, starting the season with the team, becoming more confident within the structure of the coaching staff and the league.