Avalanche Draft Profile: Nico Hischier

Get to Know Nico Hischier

Date of Birth: Jan. 1, 1999
Place of Birth: Naters, Switzerland
Ht: 6’0”  Wt: 179 lbs
Shoots: Left
Position: Center
Team (League): Halifax Mooseheads (QMJHL)

Statistics

What Scouts See

Nico Hischier, after a tremendous season in the QMJHL and an impressive run with Switzerland in World Juniors, has cemented himself at No. 2 on practically every scouts’ rankings behind Nolan Patrick,  He has continued to impress scouts throughout this season which is obviously why he’s ranked so high. Dan Marr, the Director of NHL Central Scouting, described the Swiss forward as, “It’s not often I use the word impressive, but this weekend he was awesome.. There’s very few players that you go around and say, ‘This guy is worth the price of admission.’ And he’s one.”

What BSN Avalanche sees

There’s a lot to like about Nico Hischier. He’s one of the most electrifying forwards on the draft. He came to North America this year to play in the QMJHL with the Mooseheads and in his rookie year he almost had 100 points. He uses his exceptional combination of speed and hands to create space for either himself or his teammates when he has the puck, he is an absolute nightmare to defend against.

He also takes of his duties on the defensive end. Mooseheads Head Coach Andre Tourigny, a former assistant for the Avalanche, described his defense like this:

“When you are that good defensively at that age….I’ve never seen that before. I’ve coached really good players at U-18’s and World Juniors, in the NHL The pride he has to play well defensively..I’ve never seen that. He studies so much defensively. We’re doing a drill with defencemen under pressure on a breakout, a drill where defencemen have to break out under hard pressure..and Nico asked me if he could go as a defenceman. I asked why, and he said sometimes during the game when I’m back with the puck I’m under pressure..I want to make sure I can break out with the puck from my own one. I said ‘oh my god.’ He wants to be a pro, he wants to be good defensively. Every time he’s here in my office the first thing he asks me about is his defence. He is special, he’s an awesome player. He sees the games sometimes where nobody can.”

Hischier is going to be a special player in the NHL and he’s going to make an NHL franchise very happy.

Highlights




NHL Potential

First line center with an All-Star ceiling.

How Prospect Fits in Avalanche Organization

If the Avalanche are lucky enough to draft him, Hischier has enough talent to immediately help out Colorado’s forward depth. He probably fits in somewhere as a Top-9 winger early and then will progress into a top-six contributor.