Detroit Red Wings Draft Pick: Joe Veleno

The Detroit Red Wings had two selections in the first round of the 2018 NHL draft. With their second pick, they took center Joe Veleno

The Detroit Red Wings need depth up the middle, and they got their man at the number 30 spot. Joe Veleno played most of his junior hockey for the Saint John Sea Dogs of the QMJHL. He was the first player ever granted exceptional status to enter the league at 15 years old rather than 16. Veleno was a solid contributor for their 2017 memorial cup appearance. He followed that with seven goals in five games at the Ivan Hlinka tournament, a prominent international under 18 hockey tournament.

In 31 games, with a depleted roster around him, Veleno put up a respectable 31 points in 31 games. The Sea Dogs went 14-43 overall during the 2017-18 season. They started their rebuild by dealing Veleno mid-season to the Drummondville Voltigeurs.  Veleno’s new squad, on the other hand, went 44-20 on the year and the addition of Veleno was a large part of why. With significantly more help on his wings, Veleno put up 48 points in the 33 games after the trade.

Veleno’s greatest asset is his skating. His speed and acceleration are among the best in this draft class. He is not a sniper, only 22 of his 79 points were goals, so his production is largely reliant on having wingers that can put the puck in the back of the net. His passes get through traffic, and they end up in a spot where the man on the receiving end can move the puck without having to handle it first.

His hockey sense looks pretty solid. You do not see a lot of instances where he’s passing the puck to open empty ice. A lot of playmakers have trouble playing with guys that don’t see the game as well as they do. Veleno gets the puck to where the man he’s playing with will be, not where a better player would go.

As with all high end forward prospects, the key to how quickly Veleno gets to Detroit helping out the big club will be how quickly he can become defensively responsible. For a junior hockey player, he is pretty solid defensively. He is a willing shot blocker, something that the more analytics-driven analysts hate, but coaches love.

I have seen him compared to Ryan Nugent-Hopkins of the Edmonton Oilers. Veleno is a bigger, faster, and stronger player than Nugent-Hopkins, but stylistically they share traits. Veleno will likely be a top-six forward in the NHL in relatively quick order. I could see him on the big club to start the 2019 season for at least a few games.