When the Oilers announced they had chosen Alex Plante 15th overall in the 2007 draft, my first thought was "Oh no...".In my pre-draft rankings, I had forecasted Plante going mid-2nd round. I knew he was a solid, big-body presence on the Hitmen blueline who was supposed to be a future power play presence. He was being hailed as a potential shut-down defenseman, because of his impressive plus/minus (+18).
A lot of other draft predictors had him going anywhere between 25-40th overall, and I found that reasonable looking at HF's talent assessment:
"Moves the puck very well and has a rocket for a shot, a combination that allows him to be either the QB or the trigger on the power play.
Skates well but sideways mobility is an issue that smaller, shifty offensive opponents can take advantage of. "
But his defensive partner was the 5th overall draft pick, Karl Alzner of the Washington Capitals, one of the more solid 2-way prospects to come along in a while. I was leery of taking Plante's stats as indicative of his true potential, and I think last year went a long way in justifying my worries.
Plante DID have serious injury problems almost all year, but he did manage to play 38 games, and only put up 2 points, and a meagre +2 on an extremely strong Calgary team. Part of this is attributable to not getting to play with Alzner, and instead playing less prominent minutes. Although his play did pick up in the playoffs, Plante was still relegated to a bottom-pairing role with the Hitmen, his minutes being eaten up by guys like Paul Postma (Thrashers 7th round pick 2007) and Michael Stone (Flyers 3rd round pick 2008).
Guy Flaming (HockeyFutures) still sees a light at the end of the tunnel for Plante:
"Members of the Oilers organization, although clearly disappointed with the way things went for Plante this year, reminded HF that the player was seen as a project when he was drafted. In that sense, a one-year setback, although problematic, may not be something Plante cannot overcome with a great deal of offseason training. The Oilers expect Plante to greatly increase his leg strength, which will automatically help his skating, but will also improve his defensive play in the corners and in front of the net. The summer of 2008 may be pivotal for Plante’s future with the Oilers."
With Karl Alzner signing a contract with the Capitals, the Hitmen blueline now has a huge vacancy, one that is ready to be filled by a big-minute, 2-way defenseman. Plante has a legit chance of grabbing that spot. He's worked hard in the off-season recuperating from his leg injury and concussion, as well as training with weights to fill out his frame.
He has a great opportunity here to prove that the Oilers didn't make a mistake in drafting him. If he can show some advances in his footspeed and agility, he will be a lock for that top-pairing spot. He'll probably be paired up with Postma (a guy the Thrashers must be excited about), and get an opportunity to fine-tune his defensive game while also reviving his offensive game with the smooth-skating Postma.
After a tough season, Plante should get a nice bounce-back year here with the Hitmen. Coach Kelly Kisio, although frustrated with his injuries the year before, should give him all the opportunities in the world to get back up to the level of play that got him drafted in the first round.
1 comment:
"When the Oilers announced they had chosen Alex Plante 15th overall in the 2007 draft, my first thought was "Oh no..."."
Really? Because I jumped for joy so much I almost hit my roof.
The dude's freaking huge, and already has good speed for his size. Add that to the bomb-shot from the point and his above average passing ability and we have a prospect who plays like Pronger without the assault-and-battery charges.
He's going to be a long-term project but I think he'll work out just fine for the Oilers. His size is a plus for him as our organization (Petry aside) is pretty small on the blueline prospect-wise (Chorney, Wild, Bisallion, Hrabel, Peckham).
Injuries are a concern, but I don't see them being chronic. They're more like freak accidents than recurring nightmares if I've done my homework properly.
The real problem for Plante this season was he was trying to return to a very stacked line-up in Calgary, and there wasn't any room for movement. This was a seriously deep team who had established it's core group of players without Plante, and once he was able to return didn't see much time as a result. I agree with you that he should be in line for a huge promotion next year to top-line status, with ample powerplay time where it has been proven (check Lowetide's entry on Plante) he got most of his points.
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