Today's Cupcakes feature Dougie Hamilton, Dougie is a big-ish defenseman at 6'4 and 193 pounds. He shoots right and was born in Toronto, Ontario on June 17th, 1993.
The Calgary Herald is heaping praise onto the kid named Dougie.
The Niagara IceDog blue-liner won this past season's Ontario Hockey League scholastic player of the year award - nailing down a 94 per cent average while taking calculus, biology, English, physics and chemistry.
He's also recognized for his smarts on the ice.
"There's really not much not to like about his game," offered up Central Scouting's Chris Edwards. "He's such a big guy, an excellent skater, great decision-maker. He has that ability to where he can start carrying the puck out and if he doesn't like what's there, he can lug it back. He can manage to skate it out of trouble."
One day folks may be considering the name ‘Dougie Hamilton’ as one of the best names we’ve seen in hockey, but it’s the on ice play of the rugged blueliner that has scouts pushing his name near the top of their lists.
When scouts think of Hamilton, they can’t help but draw comparisons to current Flames D-man, Jay Bouwmeester, for his excellent skating and big minute crunching play. A guy who can play in all situations, for long periods of time, and excel at it? Sign me up.
Hamilton, who is apparently now closer to 6’7" than 6’4" according to NHLCS, is an imposing figure with a talented skill-set. It is painfully obvious that he still needs to fill out his frame, but that’s really not a concern an NHL team will have for him on draft day. One of the first things that will strike you with Hamilton is his strong mobility for a player his size. He’s a powerful skater with a strong stride and good acceleration. I personally believe his technique is a little choppy and long, and his lateral ability also needs to improve in the future.
Mock Draft Mania takes him on as well.
Production: Hamilton provides top notch production for a defenseman.
Potential: Hamilton should start out on line 3 in the NHL, but he could move up to line 2 in two years, and be a all star line one defenseman in 5 years.
Cons
Deking: Hamilton struggles to deke and throw defenders off their game.
My NHL Draft has some good things to say.
He is a stellar talent who will be a good NHL'er for a longtime. He is one of those players that could play in the NHL next year depending on the team that drafts him. Most likely, he will be back with the Ice Dog's for one year, and than potentially spend a year in the AHL. Watch for Dougie Hamilton to be drafted anywhere from 4-10 in this year's draft.
Bruins 2011 Draft Watch also likes him, in fact they don't think he'll be around long.
Aggressive in the offensive zone; will jump on loose pucks and take them to the net; has become increasingly involved in the Niagara attack and is producing at nearly a point-per-game. Elevated his game in the playoffs, even though he struggled at times against Mississauga (as most every other player on Niagara did).Makes a pretty strong, crisp first pass and can help with the transition game. Good physical presence: will use his size to staple opponents to the boards.
The Team 1260, where A.J. did his interview, also has things to say about Dougie. Can I just say you guys thought I was an over-achiever? This guy had a 99.6 % average in school!!!
Projection: High End Two-Way D-ManInteresting Notes: His favourite superhero is The Flash. Take it for what it's worth. He also had a 99.6 percent average in school this year.Oilers Odds: Hamilton would be a great fit for the Oilers but he just doesn't fall in the #1 or #19 category and even if they move down or up slightly I still don't see him in the mix because he is a lock for 6-10.
The Star looks at his background.
Their athletic pedigree is also impeccable. Their parents were both Olympic athletes for Canada — Doug was a 1984 Olympic bronze medallist in rowing, while Lynn (nee Polson) was a playmaking guard on the women’s basketball team that finished fourth at those L.A. Games.
Former Maple Leaf defenceman Mike Van Ryn, an assistant coach with the IceDogs this season who also trains horses, can’t help but admire the bloodlines.
"It’s almost like they were breeding kids to make NHL players," said Van Ryn.