By Russ Cohen
Every team in the league would love a 6’5” center. The recently turned 18-year-old has a lot of tools. Having a long reach is one of them. This helps him on both sides of the puck. His long skating stride is another gift. His speed will improve. There’s a lot to like here.
At the moment, He’s running at 44.9% on face-offs. He will get stronger and that will help him. Currently, he’s not drawing enough penalties and he’s committing a few more than you’d like. His hockey sense is good so I think that he will get this under control. This is a snapshot of the early part of his season.
McQueen will go to the net, and he fights off the opposition. He makes big hits in the offensive zone. That’s good.
InStat has him winning just 44% of his puck battles. That is a current weakness that will get better over time as he gets stronger. He’s averaging 5.8 shots per game, has a few game-winning goals and he’s averaging more than a point per game.
I think he’s going to be a top five pick. It’s early but that’s where I currently see him. McQueen is poised to have a big season in his draft year and that’s something that will make the Brandon Wheat Kings a team that will be heavily scouted this season.
