Scouting Report
EVALUATED 11/05/2022
Brayden Olafson
Head of Eastern Canada Scouting
Player Type: Slippery winger with good finishing ability.
QMJHL Draft Projection: 1st to 2nd Round
Projected QMJHL Arrival: Spring 2023
Projectable Skills: Elusive lane selection & adaptation to phyiscal contact.
Development Opportunities: Puck retrieval is not a particularly strong element of his game. He'll either need to be paired with someone who can serve this role or develop a more engage presence in the corners.
Leroux is easily one of the best skating players in this class. The young Stanstead College Spartan is able to inject quickness and power while facing the play and moving almost sideways to keep his body open to the play. His speed and quickness in straight lines is nearly unbeatable, helping him to build momentum that he can cash-in to squeak past defenders along the boards - the colloquial term is that he’s very slippery. I think he could take this a step further by moving more aggressively laterally and using it to guarantee zone entry, but in general his straight line speed can be quite effective. When he distributes the puck in the offensive zone he immediately relocates to optimal locations - either open ice on the weak side of the puck to support as an outlet or straight to the front of the net for a screen. He's a trusted outlet from his teammates because they always know he's going to make contact with the puck even if it's not the perfect pass. He's not always the most physically engaged, but is able to remain effective in an offensive sense by rolling out of contact when he is otherwise subject to physicality. Leroux uses his speed to act defensively in the neutral zone as well. His pivots are clean and quick, enabling him to face opponents who have the puck and engage early. He has quite possibly more explosion in each of his strides than I've seen with any player. He is a very effective player
Skating
8Puck Skills
8.5Hockey IQ
7.5Playmaking
8Scoring
8Physicality
6.5Defense
7Overall
7.64Scouting Report
EVALUATED 02/10/2020
Puck Preps
Jeremy Leroux is a gifted offensive player, a johnny-on-the-spot type kid who can really put the puck in the net. He is the kind of player who flies under the radar then scores the game winning goal. Not huge in stature but he skates well, has a good skill level and is deadly on the powerplay as the trigger man and his nose for the net. He is a very streaky goal scorer and after scoring one can quickly run off a second and third thanks to a deadly accurate shot.
Skating
8.5Puck Skills
8.5Hockey IQ
9Playmaking
8Scoring
9Physicality
7.5Defense
7.5Overall
8.29Game Reports
EVALUATED
Christian B-Côté
Eastern Canada Scout
In this game, Leroux showed some strengths in his movement around the net in the offensive zone, along with a similar offensive effect on the 1st PP unit with Massé. Another nice flash was seeing him finish his check in the offensive zone to free the puck for an opponent.
Game Reports
EVALUATED Brayden Olafson
Head of Eastern Canada Scouting
Leroux was visible on a number of occasions in this game. His speed and skill are obvious strengths, however, in this game it seemed that there were many instances where he relied on them in transition. I was left thinking that his skills could be a bit isolated. He was often able to get to a certain point in transition, but what came as a result in the offensive zone seemed to be unfruitful. That said, his skill should not be discounted and I’m not at all prepared to give up on him as a potentially impactful player at the next level. I think his abundance of skill, if nothing else, is certainly worthy of a gamble. From a risk management perspective I’d have to consider how he can best impact the game when his offensive game is inevitably challenged.
Game Reports
EVALUATED Brayden Olafson
Head of Eastern Canada Scouting
As with most of Team Gray, it seemed to take Leroux a bit to get his legs in this game but by the middle of the second period he was off and running. Leroux certainly has one of the most impressive individual skill sets in this draft class and that became even more clear towards the end of this game. In addition to showing a good level of skill and composure to tuck a scrambly puck into a sliver of short-side net in the second period, Leroux made a number of powerful transitions throughout the rest of the game. He’s single handedly able to overcome several opponents in the span of a single rush and drive the puck in from the wall and towards the middle of the ice. The only trouble with this sort of a strategy is that eventually it becomes a game of odds. While Leroux undoubtedly has the skill and power to overcome almost any of his peers in a one-on-one battle, once his rush strategy has been identified, every one of his opponents is locked on. This meant that although he was often able to gain the zone and get to the middle, his rushes didn't always bear tangible results. Of course, I won’t hold this against him too much considering the chaos of a game like this and the certain desire for a player of his caliber to just try and make something happen.
Game Reports
EVALUATED Brayden Olafson
Head of Eastern Canada Scouting
I’m starting to get the sense that there are going to be a lot of advocates for Leroux as the top player in the draft, and they all have well founded arguments. In my experience scouting players at this level, and prior to that, even watching them casually, there aren’t any players I can think of who were capable of exploding off of the line the way that Leroux is. Saying that he’s fast is an understatement. Chicoutimi’s Will Allen, who played for OHA last season was the player who probably came closest in recent memory, but even his speed and power didn’t eclipse Leroux’s. Breaking it down in a bit more detail, Leroux, a winger, has shown the ability to beat opposing defensemen to the puck even when their centerman wins a faceoff cleanly. His launch from the starting position is instantaneously fluid and fully extended, showing no loss of power from a clunky kick, or inefficiency in pushing vertically. The Spartans forward uses that speed in a variety of ways, most notably retrieving and transitioning pucks, but also in pivoting and posturing himself as a neutral zone blockade. While he’s an incredibly effective winger, I think there could be some interest from teams in converting him to a centerman to see how things work out, considering what tendencies and skills he seems to possess. It’s probable that he’ll make a jump in our next rankings release, however, we’ll be watching for how he improves making himself available to teammates for safe breakout passes to determine how much of a jump it will be.
Player Card
- All Data is derived via 5v5 per 60 minutes rate displayed in percentile format.
- Data Courtesy of In Slat.
SIGNED:
Chicoutimi Saguenéens
01/09/2022
LEAGUE PREDICTION
-
CHL
Confirmed
100%
TEAM PREDICTION
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Chicoutimi Sagueneens
Confirmed
100%
TIMELINE
- 2022
01/09/2022
Chicoutimi Sagueneens sign Jeremy Leroux
- 2022
04/07/2022
Drafted by the Chicoutimi Sagueneens in the QMJHL Draft
- 2022
02/05/2022
Chicago Steel select Jérémy Leroux at the 2022 USHL Entry Draft
