The Player
Name: Colin White
Position: Center
2014-2015 Team: US NTDP U18
2014-2015 Stats: 54 games played, 23 goals, 31 assists, 54 points
Final NHL Central Scouting Rank: 29th among North American skaters
What are his strengths and weaknesses?
White is a very intelligent two-way centerman that is able to bring a little bit of everything to the game. He has a strong, powerful skating stride, but more importantly, understands how to use that speed to get himself to the right areas of the ice at the right time.
Offensively, White is more of a pass-first player. He relies on his vision and positioning to make plays rather than exceptional natural scoring ability. It's a minor quibble, but that lack of explosive scoring upside is enough to keep him out of the top 10 in a strong draft year. White also barely reaches 6'0" tall and at 183 lbs., he's not really undersized, but there isn't much of a physical element to his game.
Is he trending up or down in his draft year?
White started the year in the discussion as a potential top 10, possibly even top 5 draft pick. But he spent the better part of the season battling mono which really slowed him down and hampered his play. He finished the year very strong with a good World U18 Tournament, but by that point, the damage to his draft stock had been done, with most people ranking him 20-30 range of the draft.
Where is he projected to go in the draft?
This is a tougher one to predict because a team will have to decide how much of White's struggles this year were because of the mono, and how much was a plateau in development. Ignore those bad games in the early part of the season, and White likely belongs in the 10th-15th range of the draft. But with so much importance placed on a how a player performs in their draft year, there is the possibility that White could slip into the latter stages of the first round of the draft. Most current projections seem to split the difference, ranking White right around #20 in the first round.
How does he project as a pro?
The ceiling for White is as a play-making first line center in the NHL, though much more likely that he tops at as a very solid second line centerman that is comfortable being used in any situation.
Where will he go next?
White is scheduled to enroll at Boston College next season where it is expected that he'll step in immediately and be a contributor on offense. He'll likely play two to three years for the Eagles before signing with the team that drafted him with the best case scenario being a short stint in the minors before being ready to compete for a roster spot at the NHL level.