Scouting Report: Patrick Wiercioch

Ottawa's 2nd round pick in the 2008 draft, Patrick Wiercioch, was originally scheduled to play another year in the USHL, where he was coming off a dominant showing in the USHL playoffs for the Omaha Lancers. He had verbally committed to the University of Wisconsin to begin playing in the fall of 2009, but with the unfortunate ending to David Carle's hockey career due to medical issues, he was able to jump on an opportunity to play at Denver University. Thus far, he's taken full advantage of it.

When Wiercioch was drafted, he was listed at 6'2", but over the summer added a couple of inches and is now listed at 6'4", and looks every bit of it. At only 185 pounds, it could be several years before he actually fills out. At the moment, he looks like a player who still doesn't know how to handle this growth spurt. For someone so big, his physical game is almost non-existent. This is something that could certainly develop over the years, once he learns how to play with this body.

Wiercioch's skating may be one of his weaknesses. Even before the draft his skating was criticized, and it doesn't look like this growth spurt has helped him a whole lot. He's got a long stride, but it's not very powerful. For a man his size, his skating could be considered average, but there is room for improvement and as long as he continues to get stronger, his skating should improve.

You only have to watch Wiercioch once to recognize how well he thinks the game in the offensive zone. As a teenager, he's running their first power play unit, and is excelling while doing so. The one thing you notice with Wiercioch on the power play is that he's never static. He's always moving around, which is a key to why he's been so successful. He's willing to roam all over the ice if he has to, something that perhaps the Ottawa Senators could use on their PP right now. His overall hockey IQ and offensive ability have been the biggest reasons why he's had no issues playing at the NCAA level.

At the same time, while he's a roamer in the offensive zone, he also has a tendency to roam in his own end. He plays in all situations, and has had no problem adjusting to them, but you will often notice him trying to leave the zone a bit early trying to lead an offensive rush. At this stage, it's nothing to worry about, as good coaching can certainly fix this (and DU has good coaching). And, as mentioned earlier, an improved physical game would add an entirely different dimension to his game. His added size really helps him on the PK, where his long reach makes him very effective.

Overall, his adjustment to the college level has been a tremendous surprise. While Ottawa GM Bryan Murray recently said he may be closer to the NHL level than 1st round pick Erik Karlsson, it looks as though a few more years at the college level would be very beneficial for him, so he can continue to develop his all-around game and gain strength. As long as he continues developing, he should have a good chance to make Team Canada in next years World Junior Championships, which would be great for someone like Wiercioch, who wasn't even on Team Canada's radar earlier this year.

DU will be televised on the NHL Network on February 6th (US Only) and February 20th (US and Canada) so Sens fans will have the chance to watch him on TV in the near future.