Two more picks are in - Alex Jefferies, a LW commit to Merrimack College, and William Dufour, a RW power forward for Drummondville Voltigeurs of the QMJHL.
Jefferies scored 33 goals and 69 points (nice) in 32 games for The Gunnery. He’s been praised as an excellent skater and sees himself as a “goalscoring winger.”
Solid pick by the Isles by grabbing Framingham's Alex Jefferies at 121. Big winger with dual-threat capability. Believe he's Merrimack bound pic.twitter.com/9q9uSDMwEP
— Steve Kournianos (@TheDraftAnalyst) October 7, 2020
Alex Jefferies just spoke with the #Isles media. Described himself as a "goal scoring winger." Says he has a good shot and can see the ice well. Also prides himself on his play in defensive end as well. pic.twitter.com/uO2zDOzKMt
— Christian Arnold (@C_Arnold01) October 7, 2020
He also seems to be a responsible two-way player, at least at the high school level, and EliteProspects says of him,
“Jefferies’ frequency of strides and pace of his feet allows him to burn around the ice and create opportunities. He uses his cross overs to generate power as he weaves through the neutral zone. He shows excellent vision and passing ability. He can complete high difficulty passes through layers of defenders, creating dangerous chances for his teammates.”
The real test will be to see what he does at the collegiate level, but players who can put up points and skate really well are always a positive.
Fifth-rounder William Dufour is also an interesting player. Dufour was a former high first-round pick in the QMJHL draft, but has bounced around a bit, landing at Drummondville, his third team, where he finally took off. With Chicoutimi, he only put up 22 points in 31 games, but on Drummondville he put up 18 goals and 33 points in 28 games, and built a reputation as a solid power winger. He’s also got 3 assists in 2 games this season in the Q.
Pick 151 | #Isles #NHLDraft
— Ryan CADDY (@C_A_D_D_Y) October 7, 2020
William Dufour | RW | QMJHL
Fell a bit after being a riser mid-season. Great numbers compared to what you expect from most players you'd draft around this range. pic.twitter.com/8epvuVQKKa
Islanders at 152 take winger William Dufour -- a good playmaker for a bigger forward. pic.twitter.com/tKtWNb7R6D
— Steve Kournianos (@TheDraftAnalyst) October 7, 2020
Both these guys look intriguing enough, and provide different skillsets from third round pick Alexander Ljungkrantz. I’m surprised Lou is going for all these wingers given the Isles have Wahlstrom and Holmstrom in the system already, and could use some options at center (who could potentially become wingers anyway.) But not too many complaints about taking an excellent skater who likes to score goals and a power forward with rising stock at this point in the draft.