Gone are the days of one or two major public opinions guiding the masses ahead of the NHL Draft. Nowadays, the sheer volume of the public scouting world means that fans are exposed to a smorgasbord of information, opinions, and rankings. That means there will be extreme differences in opinions. It’s inevitable, but also offers a window into how wild the projection a player can have depending on what an individual evaluator values. 

It’s not just the public scouting world that falls prey to this phenomenon. It’s scouting in general. Two experienced, team-side talent evaluators can sit and watch the same game and come away with differing opinions on players. One may value intelligence over everything. Another may prefer physical tools. Concerned about size? Worried about character? There are