Anaheim Ducks Select Sam Colangelo 36th Overall
The Anaheim Ducks have selected Sam Colangelo with the 36th overall pick in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft.
The 6’2” 205 lb American right winger put up 58 points in 44 games last year in the USHL with the Chicago Steel.
Colangelo is committed to playing for Northeastern for the 20-21 season.
The big winger is a very smart player, especially with the puck on his stick, and has a knack for finding his teammates in space to allow them to create chances. Without the puck on his stick he is able to find soft spots in the defensive zone coverage to open himself up for passes. On top of all that, he utilizes his 6’2” frame in the way you want to see. He can play a physically dominant game, where opposing players cannot knock him off the puck or where he uses that size to engage in the defensive zone to win puck battles and transition the team to offense.
The main knock on Colangelo is his skating. Elite prospects states that if his skating was better, he would have been a first rounder, and I can’t disagree with that. His stride is a bit awkward and it leads to him not being able to keep up with the play always. He has made some improvements with his stride over the past year, which is encouraging, but those improvements need to continue for his skating to become ok at the NHL.
Overall this is a very solid pick, even though there is some risk associated with it. If Colangelo can improve his skating, the Ducks could be getting a winger that can play in all situations and do it very well.