Projection: Top Line Scoring Forward
Projectable Skills: Rush Attack, Quick touch plays, Playmaking in motion
Development Opportunities: Strength, Defensive detail

Kayden is a bit of a projection because he’s still so early in his physical development. Despite all of that, he still has no issues collecting points and dominating the scoresheet consistently. He uses fakes and puck control off the half wall to shake coverage and spy passing lanes to the slot, pokes pucks loose consistently in the middle of the ice, and shows that swagger and confidence as a puck carrier so often in the Saskatchewan league. Even when he was in bigger tournaments against players who are currently playing at the same pace as him physically, he managed to find high danger scoring chances at a really high rate. If you simply look at his pacing at the moment, he’s behind a lot of the high-end CSSHL players but as he continues to grow and get stronger, his ability to score off the rush by using his reach and making defenders guess laterally will only improve. His shot is high-level accurate, his passing is incredibly well timed and his vision is very good. The biggest thing holding him back currently is just strength on the puck. If players get a hold of him on the half wall, they can out wrestle him for possession or finish checks heavily. I think due to his pacing, he might be outscored by some of the players I have ranked behind him in the first round in his first year, but this ranking suggests he has the ability to catch and surpass them as he gets stronger.

The confidence in Kayden Stroeder at this point is astronomically high. He’s someone who can end to end rush, pick apart defenses and shot lanes with precision, and find ways to use his incredible puck touch to pot rebounds. He’s got a huge ceiling for someone who was quite slight at the beginning of the year. The combination of puck control, timing, and elevation in tight make him slick and crafty. He’s not naturally what you think of when finding a goal scorer but he’s a top-end dual threat player in this draft. He finished the year second in draft eligible goals in the Sask U15 league with 58 goals in 27 games.

There is no player who did more for his draft stock in this tournament than Stroeder as he absolutely torched the opposition to the tune of 25 points in six games for Humboldt. He was a singular force from start to finish and even when opponents threw everything but the kitchen sink at him, he still managed to problem solve and create his way into goals. I truly believe that Stroeder has one of the highest ceilings available in the draft. His precision with the puck in seen in his effortless dangles through traffic, his pinpoint accuracy on his shot, and his soft touch on passes into space. He is such a balanced offensive threat with weapons for every scenario in the offensive zone. He plays with his head up, manipulating the puck to create passing lanes while also possessing the ability to unleash Bedard-like curl and drag shots in stride. He pushes the pace in open ice while also showing the patience to curl back and rag possession as the play develops. He can finesse his way through traffic with his hands or use his leverage to muscle to the net if he gains half a step. Stroeder’s approach on the ice also complements his elite skill perfectly. He plays with a desire and need to be front and centre, willing his team to victory. Humboldt is an extremely top-heavy team and the lower lines really struggled to keep the opposition off the scoresheet, but I never saw negative body language from Stroeder. He instead approached the next shift with increased urgency to create offence and claw back into the game. In back-to-back games in the middle of this tournament he posted 7-point and 6-point performances in 10-9 and 9-6 losses respectively for perspective. Stroeder’s team situation does generate some questions moving forward. He is not a particularly focused defender and I’m curious how he’d look on a team that demanded a more complete game out of him where he was less able to roam carte blanche. Additionally, playing in the Savoie division meant that he avoided some of the top defensive teams in the tournament, that would have provided a stiffer test. I’ll be paying close attention to how he performs at centralized Saskatchewan camps to see just how high I value him moving forward but this tournament was certainly an excellent baseline to compare.

Kayden Stroeder (Humboldt Broncos U15) “struggled a little” from what I was told from the Friday game. However, his play on the other days gave me little reason to question the range he is in on our draft boards. He was creating off the rush, attacking defenders one on one, giving extra effort in the corners, and showing off why his passing timing is one of the best in the draft. He’s currently ranked 12th on our boards and I could see him certainly moving higher potentially.

The high-IQ, puck controlled forward can sometimes be lost in the mix since he’s not a big and explosive presence at this moment. Either way, his balance and posture through his turns and crossovers is excellent, and any added power to his performances will only let him thrive offensively in greater amounts. With or without the puck on the attack, Kayden has a nice understanding of spacing and how to use his teammates to find prime scoring opportunities. When he’s found breakaways and rush chances, he’s been lights out.

I thought it was a good weekend for the skill of Kayden to see the light. From stickhandling off the rush through the defensive triangle to far side snipe wrist shots off the rush, Kayden was pivoting in and out of trouble in the offensive zone with high-end skill and awareness. He was going end to end off rushes, attracting all the eyes of the defensemen, and bursting laterally in tight spots to tuck backhanded goals in on the goaltender. He has the awareness, length of stride, hockey IQ at pace, and finesse to absolutely continue to explode with every bit of added size and strength. It is wild to talk about a player who is averaging over 4 ppg in the SAAHL U15 league as a player with so much untapped upside and potential. My favorite play of the weekend though was his burst into the offensive zone on a 1on4, only for him to find a perfect pass to a teammate just entering the zone for a heavy slot shot. His awareness as a playmaker is as good as it gets out of the province of Saskatchewan this year. I think he has a very bright future.

He’s another player who seemed like he got better as the games went along. His consistency to be in the mix, use lateral bursts and stickhandling to aggressively push into the interior, and throw in hesitations and pull moves simply worked to his advantage. Kayden even attempted a michigan in a good spot to do it as well. It shows his ability to adapt and not simply try to preplan every situation. I thought his decision making was sound, his creativity made him standout, and his persistence made him keep standing out from shift to shift. I really like the growth projection on his game due to the strength of his edges too.