NHL Draft Prospect Profile: Samuel Dove-McFalls

Get to Know Samuel Dove-McFalls

Date of Birth: 4/10/97
Place of Birth: Montreal, QC, CAN
Ht: 6’2” Wt: 205 lbs
Shoots: Left
Position: Center/Left Wing
Team: Saint John Sea Dogs (QMJHL)

In 2011-12, Dove-McFalls played in Germany for the Eisbären Juniors Berlin U16 team. His experience there helped him develop his stickhandling and skating skills as the European style of play is more offensively-minded. He returned to North America to play in the QMEAA in 2012-13 and was then drafted by the Saint John Sea Dogs in 2013 in the third round. While his first season with the team saw few minutes and low scoring, his second season—in which he earned an A on his sweater—was much improved with 34 points (14g, 20a) in 66 games.

Dove-McFalls has had to fight for his place on his teams consistently, often being underrated after first joining the team. As the season wears on, however, he proves himself worthy of more responsibility and sees more time on the top-two lines.

Statistics

What Scouts See

Regrettably, Dove-McFalls hasn’t hit the radar of professional scouts.

What BSN Avalanche Sees

Dove-McFalls is not a flashy player, but he is reliable and has good hockey sense. He doesn’t make many egregious errors and has the ability to generate turnovers, odd-man rushes, and breakaways due to his vision and patience. Although he’s been playing wing for Saint John, he takes most face offs when he’s on the ice, and he’s excellent at them. He often wins them cleanly to give his team the chance to set up in the offensive zone or transition from defense. He works hard, takes hits, and passes well. Dove-McFalls is a staple on the Sea Dogs’s penalty kill.

Unfortunately, for every strong shift he has, there are two or three in which you don’t even notice him. While you can’t pinpoint significant weaknesses in his game, he doesn’t have that extra something that will make him NHL caliber.

Highlights

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NHL Potential

It’s doubtful that Dove-McFalls will log any NHL minutes. Given his size, reliability, and occasional big plays, however, he could certainly have a solid AHL career in front of him.

Expected Draft Position

Scouting on Dove-McFalls is all over the board. He’s ranked as high as 70th by Central Scouting, but he’s out of the top 100 on other lists. Realistically, he will probably be a 6th- or 7th-round selection, though he could end up undrafted.

How Samuel Dove-McFalls Fits in Avalanche Organization

While his size and compete level might cause a blip on the Avalanche screen, he’s neither big enough nor talented enough for the front office to seriously consider him. If they did take him, it would be a very late-round selection with the intent of using him in San Antonio. As the Rampage don’t need a player of his ilk, though, there really isn’t a place for Dove-McFalls in the Avalanche organization.