E-Mac's 2011 NHL Entry Draft Top 120: Jean-Gabriel Pageau #110

by Eldon MacDonald

Jean-Gabriel Pageau at 110 is the first in a series of postings of the top 120 prospects for the 2011 NHL draft. I am starting at 110 to leave room for any prospect that my do really well during the Memorial Cup that I don’t already have ranked.

These postings are the writings of one hockey fan for other hockey fans with the intention of making them memorable enough so that a casual reader has a chance of remembering the prospect’s name when it comes up at the draft in June. Some will be successful, some will not - however, I am hoping for a better success rate than the 19% chance the NHL teams currently have in selecting an NHL player in the fourth round.

In looking back at the 2003 to 2005 entry drafts, it is interesting to note the success rate for each of the rounds. By my calculations (players that are NHL regulars for the most part-your list could be slightly different), here are the figures:
01-15 – 82% (03-93%; 04-73%; 05-80%)
16-30 – 76% (03-93%; 04-67%; 05-67%)
31-45 – 33% (03-33%; 04- 7%; 05-60%)
46-60 – 24% (03-33%; 04-33%; 05- 7%)
61-90 - 24% (03-33%; 04-20%; 05-20%)
91-120 - 19% (03-10%; 04-30%; 05-17%)
120-150 - 11% (03-10%; 04-13%; 05-10%)
151-180 - 9% (03-13%; 04-13%; 05- 0%)
181-210 - 10% (03-17%; 04- 3%; 05-10%)
Over 210 - 12% (03-13%; 04-10%; 05-15%)
Overall - 23% (03-25%; 04-20%; 05-23%)

110. Jean-Gabriel Pageau - “M. Dragon Slayer” - C/RW - Canada
Vitals: Size - 5’9”, 164 lb.; Shoots right; Born 11-Nov-92 - Ottawa, ON
Team: Gatineau; QMJHL
2010-11 Stats: 67-32-47-79-22-(+23) + QMJHL playoffs - 23-13-15-28-20-(+9)

Rankings:
82 - Christopher Ralph's Top 210
110 - E-Mac's 2011 NHL Entry Draft Top 120
Unranked - NHL Central Scouting's Final Rankings
Draft result:
96 - Ottawa Senators

Please forgive me but I have been recalcitrant in becoming a Jean-Gabriel Pageau admirer. After all Jean Gabriel is only 5’9’’, 164 lb. and the QMJHL has too many sad stories of little guys who did well in the Q only to stumble when it came to the man’s world of professional hockey. However, maybe I can be forgiven a little because, after all, his own team took 6 teammates ahead of him in the Q draft and NHL Central Scouting did not even feel Jean-Gabriel was even worth evaluating. However, Jean-Gabriel beat the odds and started silencing the critics by not only making his hometown team but then moving up to 1st line center in 3 months of the 2009-10 season. Jean-Gabriel followed that up with a good but not wow draft year at 79 points. Then came the playoffs and a small, fast and furious like dragon slayer named Jean-Gabriel Pageau was one of the prime stars in saying good-bye to Rimouski, good-bye to higher-ranked Drummondville and 6’4 Sean Couturier, good-bye to higher-ranked Quebec and 6’4 Joël Champagne and providing No 1 ranked Saint John Sea Dogs (or Sea Wolves if you are Craig Button) with their only real playoff competition. At the end of the playoffs, Jean-Gabriel stood third in playoff scoring with 28 points in 23 games and a +9 when going against the league’s best. Maybe now you can start to see why even the recalcitrant are coming around.

So, if you are looking for a Claude Giroux like guy (without the irritability) who can play center or right wing and you want someone who always comes up big in critical situations you might give a thought to the petit dragon slayer, Jean-Gabriel Pageau..