Avalanche Draft Profile: Owen Tippett

Get to Know Owen Tippett

Date of Birth: 2/16/1999
Place of Birth: Peterborough, ON, CAN
Ht: 6’0″ Wt: 200 lbs
Shoots: Right
Position: Right Wing
Team (League): Mississauga Steelheads (OHL)

Statistics

What Scouts See

Future Considerations:

A strongly built, scoring winger who possesses that natural scorer’s touch…he gets to the right areas of the ice both with and without the puck and has the pro-type shot and release to bury it…he is strong and shifty with the puck, protecting it well as he moves through traffic…gets around the ice well, showing quick jump acceleration to generate space and speed coming down the ice on the rush, and he shows agility and balance on his feet…has a good head for the game and identifies developing plays quickly…has a feel for when he should attack the play, when he should support his teammates and when he needs to wait in quiet ice for them to find him…works hard…not overly belligerent, but does play a physical game, with a chip on his shoulder…not afraid to take a bump to generate a chance…top-six NHL goal-scorer down the line.

Last Word on Sports:

Tippett has the potential to be a top-line power forward in the NHL. He has some aspects of his game to work on, but the size, skating, and shot mean that he has a very high ceiling. In terms of style, Tippett’s game is reminiscent of former NHLer Bill Guerin. This is not a talent comparison, but just one based on style.

Dobber Prospects:

 Arguably the best shot in the 2017 draft class, Tippett is a pure goal scorer. He has a lethal shot, it is quick, hard, and accurate and he is able to disguise his release very well. Besides taking a high volume of shots, Tippett is also a big player that uses his size, reach and strength to protect the puck, win board battles and provide a strong net presence. The other asset to his game is his above average skating, his breakaway speed and acceleration gives him separation ability and like all components of his game he uses all his skill to support his goal scoring tendency.

What BSN Avalanche sees

There’s not a lot of secret in Tippett’s game. He’s a powerful winger with an elite shot that is all about scoring goals. He’s a sniper first, second, and third. It’s not to say he lacks playmaking ability because he doesn’t but his priority is to get the puck on net and past the goaltender every time he touches the puck. Tippett is a gifted skater and while his initial burst leaves something to be desired his top speed is excellent and he’s a very balanced skater overall.

The defensive IQ and awareness is a legitimate question mark and his play away from the puck can be seen as flat out lazy sometimes. His effort improved as his season went on and he was a big reason Mississauga reached the OHL Finals this year. For a player his size, you’d like to see him use his size more frequently but he’s not shy about getting physical and profiles as a high-scoring power forward if he can shore up his issues away from the puck and his patience when he has it.

Highlights

NHL Potential

A top-flight goal scorer. If he rounds out his game, he has the potential to be one of the NHL’s better goal scoring threats from the wing. If his play away from the puck doesn’t improve, he could end up being the next Jack Skille.

How Prospect Fits in Avalanche Organization

The Avalanche don’t have anyone like Tippett in the organization at the moment. They haven’t drafted anyone like him in many years as their wing selections have been more bigger forwards with strong two-way games (Landeskog, Rantanen) and then a number of different centers (Duchene, O’Reilly, MacKinnon, Jost). Tippett would be the first pure goal-scoring wing for the Avalanche in a long time. He’s not likely to make the NHL right out of the gates but could see a promotion to an Avalanche sweater within a year or two, especially with their emphasis on youth and speed.