Noah Hanifan —
Winnipeg Hockey Talk’s evaluations of the 2015 NHL Entry Draft top prospects continue today with our featured prospect Noah Hanifan.
League: NCAA Team: Boston College
Position: LD Shoots: Left
DOB: Oct. 17, 1996 Birthplace: Norwood, MA
Height: 6’3 Weight: 205
2014-15 NCAA Stats: Regular season
Games: 37 G: 5 A: 18 Pts: 23 PIM: 16 Plus/Minus: +12
Noah Hanifan played this past season in the NCAA for Boston College Eagles.
Achievements:
1. Represented Team USA and won Gold Medals in the U17 and U18 WJC in 2013-14.
2. Named to the 2014-15 NCAA Hockey East “All Rookie Team”.
3. Named to the 2014-15 NCAA Hockey East “second All-Star Team”.
Offensive Buzzwords
Noah Hanifan is a smooth skating defenceman with better than average offensive skills from the back-end. He can pass the puck, he has a very good shot and he can skate. He is poised with the puck and he is a very good puck handler that sees the ice very well. Hanifan is quick at transitioning from defence to offence, he makes an excellent first pass on the breakout and can/will skate the puck out of his own end.
Skating
Noah Hanifan is a very good skater with good acceleration, agility and balance.
#7 Noah Hanifan: video – 2:15 seconds
Defensive Buzzwords
Noah Hanifan is very solid in his own end. He competes hard, he can dominate puck battles in the corners and he is very strong in front of his own net. Hanifan is positionally sound in all three zones. He doesn’t have many defensive holes in his game.
Comparison
Ryan Suter – Minnesota Wild
Prospect Analysis
Noah Hanifan is a big, strong, two-way defenceman that can skate, create offence, and defend. Hanifan has a high hockey IQ, uses his size and competes in all three zones. I see Noah Hanifan projecting as a top pairing defenceman that in time will be able to quarterback a team’s PP as well as play in all defensive situations. I think Hanifan has the potential to eat up big minutes at the pro-level. I’ve seen him ranked as high as #3 and as low as #15 but I like him in the 5-8 range but I wouldn’t be shocked to see the Coyotes take him at #3.
Projected: #5 – #8
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