Your Team Should Consider Drafting Fischer in the 2nd Round

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Team: U.S. National U18 Team

Date of Birth: 04/15/1997

Place of Birth: Wayne, Illinois

Ht: 6’ 1″ Wt: 212 lbs

Position: C/RW

NHL Draft Eligibility: 2015

NHL CS final rankings: 37 NA skaters

 

Christian Fischer has been part of the United States National Team Development Program for the past two seasons. His 64 points in 66 games ranks him fifth in the team behind Jack Roslovic, Jeremy Bracco, Matt Tkachuk, and Auston Matthews. During the two years with the program he played in the World U-17 Challenge as well as the World U-18 Championships and put up good numbers in both tournaments.

Central Scouting has him ranked 37th which seems to be a valid projection given his power forward type of game and lack of high-end offensive skills. Nevertheless, his work ethic and strength are impressive enough to become a second round pick in this year’s draft. While his draft status is still uncertain, his nearer future is carved in stone as the Illinois native will join the University of Notre Dame to play for the Fighting Irish. Fischer chose this school because of the overall package: Location, education and hockey. If he continues to play as he did with the NTDP he will be a very important player for the Fighting Irish and if he should change his mind, his OHL rights are owned by the Windsor Spitfires.

Strengths:

Fischer is a power forward at its finest, who plays a simple but reliable game. He works very hard at both ends of the ice and is aware of his defensive responsibilities. He isn’t overly big, listed at 6’1”, but he uses all of his 212 lbs to drive the net with or without the puck. He is excellent in protecting the puck and is very effective in board battles. Fischer is one of the more NHL ready players in this year’s draft in terms of strength and is extremely hard to knock off the puck. He is an agile skater and has extremely powerful strides as well as good top speed. He is very balanced on his skates and uses all of those four components while successfully entering the zone. He possesses a powerful shot and decent stickhandling skills. His matured body gives him the chance to play an effective physical game without taking too many penalties. Fischer might not possess high end offensive skills but his tremendous work ethic is making him the player you want to have in your team. He is very coachable and is willing to do whatever it takes to help his team win.

Areas for improvement:

Fischer doesn’t show much evidence of high end offensive skills which makes it doubtful that he will be a top six forward at NHL level. He keeps the game simple and possesses decent puckhandling skills, but doesn’t show fancy moves to keep you on the edge of your seat. His skating is powerful but he could improve his foot-speed.

NHL potential:

He is a second or third line two way player but because of his lack of high end offensive skills he will probably rather be a third liner at NHL level.

2015 NHL Draft projection:

Because he lacks high end offensive skills he will most probably be overlooked in the first round. I have him ranked as a mid to late second round pick and would be surprised if he falls to the third round. His powerful play and work ethic is simply too good to be missed out. Furthermore, there are only a few players available in this year’s draft similar to the playing style of Fischer. Teams drafting around mid-second round should definitely consider to pick the 18-year-old freight train.

Future outlook:

Fischer is going to play an important role for his new team at the University of Notre Dame. He has the potential to be a great leader at NCAA level and could be captain material. His role in the NHL remains questionable because of his lack of high end offensive skills. As of now it looks like he would rather fit into a third line spot in the role of a responsible two-way power forward, but he definitely shows potential to captain a team one day.

NHL Player comparison:

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Statistics: