Justin Lion Prospect Scouting Report

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Justin Lion Scouting Report

               Justin Lion is a 6 foot 3, 210-pound goaltender from Las Vegas, Nevada, who after an excellent Junior Showcase Tournament, got drafted by the San Diego Marlins, Cologne Express and Malmo Nighthawks in the S86 drafts. This will not focus much on his time in the JST, though it did garner the most of his attention leading up to the drafts.

 

              Justin Lion began his VHLM career with the Mississauga Hounds, starting 33 games for them and losing all 33, despite some amazing efforts, such as making 60 saves out of 62 shots against the Mexico City Kings early on in season 85. He was big in net, but struggled to use that size to his advantage, and struggled to react to some challenging shots properly, which led to some games that got out of hand quickly. It was a slow development for him as he continued to face onslaught after onslaught of shots and losing that much in a row can be mentally draining for even the toughest players emotionally. Despite allowing over 5 goals per game and having a terribly tough time with so many shots faced, many went through, Lion still finished his time in Mississauga with saving over 9 out of 10 shots, having a .903 sv%. It was a grueling first entry into the VHLM for Justin Lion, but he eventually got what he hoped for around the trade deadline, a chance to win some games.

 

              Justin Lion ended his VHLM season with the Miami Marauders, where he got his first win, against his old squad, but looked a lot more mortal in the back-up role that he played. He was looking a bit slower, and still struggled with the use of size, but he had improved rebound control and was figuring out his style better for the VHLM, but with limited time to figure that out in more of a reserved role in the back half of the season, there was not a lot of time to demonstrate his developments. Since his short time with Miami, and off the back of a great individual improvement with the JST, he’s been drafted by the San Diego Marlins and he’s focused even greater on rebound control this offseason, as well as hand speed, rebound control, and agility. Coupled with an already good, soon to be improving reaction time, it's clear what his strengths are going to be entering this season as this is an offseason to remember for Justin Lion. What may have been early struggles could end up being strengths with the Marlins as he becomes a more defined goaltender in his style.

 

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