Sudbury GM:
"Pyatt Has Star Potential"
By Kerry Gwydir
(July 27) Sudbury Wolves GM Blaine Smith is a realist when he talks about Taylor Pyatt, the hulking power forward prospect whom the Islanders chose eighth overall in last month's entry draft.
You see, the OHL exec loves to speak enthusiastically about Pyatt, who played all season long on the Wolves' top line with teammates Norm Milley and Mike Fisher. The trio produced a whopping 283 points between them during the 1998-99 season. However, Smith wouldn't be shocked if Pyatt ends up wearing the Blue and Orange of the Islanders rather than return to the Wolves this fall.
"It wouldn't surprise me if he made the jump [to the Islanders] this season," Smith told NYI.com. "Taylor has star potential because he is such a unique package. Rarely do you find a player with that size (6-4, 220 pounds) who can skate as well as he does and handle the puck."
Smith also pointed out Pyatt's late birthdate (Taylor turns 18 on Aug. 19). "He was our most improved player last season," he said. "This was a kid who as an underage junior was able to get 35 points [in 1997-98]. That's quite an accomplishment. The Kings invited him last summer to a skating camp in Thunder Bay, Ont. with players that were four years or older than Taylor. The director told me that Taylor had no problem keeping up with everyone else. He also won the fastest skater contest in the Top Prospects Game in Calgary last winter."
An outsider would question Pyatt's credentials as a pure power forward because he only had 95 penalty minutes last season -- a total some say would not befit a player who was supposed to play like a freight train and act with the demeanor of a pitbull. Smith said that total is reflective of the respect Pyatt has gained around the league as one of the most feared scrappers in the OHL.
"He doesn't rack up a lot because people don't want to fight him," said Smith. "Taylor fought more often the season before and word spread. And he's playing on the first line. The last thing you want him to do is end up in the box for five minutes a game.
"Like most good power forwards he has the uncanny ability to stand in front of the other team's net, take the punishment and be able to roof a puck under the crossbar or chip a puck over a goaltender. That's a skill that is almost impossible to teach and Taylor does it regularly."
If Pyatt successfully makes the jump this year or, more realistically, the season after, Smith believes there will be an adjustment period when Pyatt will find the power in the NHL is much different than what he experienced in the OHL. Yet, since he was playing with 20-year olds when he was 16, the difference won't be as much a shock to the Islander first-rounder as it is to other youngsters.
"Taylor is a character player and a solid citizen both on and off the ice," said Smith. "When he first gets into the NHL, he may not immediately score like he did [in Sudbury]. But he's going to do other things like take the body and crash the net. He's going to break out and be a very productive player in the NHL. Taylor is going to need to adapt to the NHL game just like all power forwards. He has the size and offensive instincts of the best of them, though.
"I'd be sad if we don't have Taylor back next year. But Taylor has had pro written all over him since day the Wolves drafted him."