New York Islanders Top 25 Under 25: Andrey Pedan, snarl and offense at #18

Andrey Pedan was drafted to be one mean, Lithuanian bastard, and we all know what we are obliged to be reminded of from such a description:

God I miss Kaspar. #isles lol pic.twitter.com/s4AiBDIxHc

— Andy Graziano ™ (@tazman19) June 8, 2014

Anyway, for the Top 25 Islanders Under 25 we are obliged to consider not lineage nor pimpage, but performance and potential on the ice. (And sometimes signability. But not in this instance.) For our poll taken in May, he finished at #18.

Pedan saw his first pro season and first year of his entry level contract disrupted by injuries, with a side jaunt to ECHL Stockton. There are two more (at least) years of evaluation to go, two years to stoke his offensive skills and two years I hope he will spend refining his defense and reducing his penalties.

He of course may not get to wear Travis Hamonic's number if/when he makes the show, but he does display every bit of Hamonic's snarl:

Here is how the panel ranked him:

And here is why:

Chris:

What do you know about Andrey Pedan? He's big? He's tough? Well he also is pretty skilled offensively.

And that has me thinking he may surpass a few of his fellow D-men in next year's ranking. Pedan's problem seems to be staying healthy. Two years in a row now he's missed considerable time due to injury.

But when a physical defenseman can manage to put up 5-7-12 in 36 AHL games, that's a guy you keep your eye on.

Mike B.:

Big guy, hits, looks like a useful crease-cleaner. Let's see.

Keith:

Went through an unfortunate rash of injuries in his first year as a pro. Given his reputation, he holds a lot of promise, but needs to stay healthy in his next stint. Willing to throw hands and defend teammates and otherwise dirty up the joint.

CIL:

Injuries have slowed his development, lowered his prospect ranking. Pedan was considered a potential sleeper pick by some scouts after finishing his junior career. He's an offensive D-man who can skate well for a 6'4 200 plus player. What garners Pedan the headlines though, is his nastiness and mean streak. He's physical, fights and loves to give the big hit.

Pedan started out well in the AHL, but injuries shelved him early. If he can stay healthy and get his development back on track, Pedan still has the potential to be a top 4 Dman with size and snarl.

Since I was (tied for) the low vote, I suppose I should elaborate more: It's not that I don't like his ceiling, just that the consistent penalty taking (beyond fights, I mean) has always had me worried, and I wonder if his offense and snarl is enough to have him forge ahead of other blueline prospects in the system.

It would be fantastic if he makes it as some offensive successor to the Kasparaitis lineagethough. (In fact, I'm probably penalizing him some as a way of tempering my own desire for him to succeed.)

He only got in 33 total games this season (including 5-5-10 in 28 games for AHL Bridgeport). What do you think?