Top prospects are tested and interviewed prior to next month's draft


Tuesday, 05.25.2010 / 12:39 PM / Features
By Adam Kimelman - NHL.com

The 2010 Entry Draft is shaping up to be one of the deepest selection pools of recent memory. With so little separating the number of talented youngsters that will be available when the teams convene in Los Angeles for the June 25-26 selection process, the NHL Scouting Combine taken on a greater level of importance.

The 100 best draft-eligible players from North America and Europe will spend May 24-29 in Toronto, going through a vigorous round of physical, medical and psychological tests that could determine where they are chosen.

"A kid who a team might say, 'What the heck? Let's interview them,' all of a sudden he impresses in the interview," Director of NHL Central Scouting E.J. McGuire told NHL.com. "Some of them coming into the Combine might be on a team's list, but work their way off for some reason, or vice versa."

Two of the more sought-after interviews likely will be with Plymouth Whalers center Tyler Seguin and Windsor Spitfires left wing Taylor Hall. Central Scouting's top-rated players all season have been closer than peanut butter and jelly for the entire hockey season, and nothing since Central Scouting's final list was released last month -- which had Seguin first and Hall second -- has changed.

"I think they're equal, still," McGuire said.

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