Didier Verhault, Scouting Report

[FTK 49]

DIDIER VERHAULT

 

SCOUTING REPORT

 

NAME: Didier Emmanuel Verhault

AGE: 18

BIRTHDAY: June 20th

HOMETOWN: Anderlecht, Belgium

SHOOTS: Right

HEIGHT: 5'11''

WEIGHT: 185LBS

PREFERRED NUMBER: 20

POSITION: Defenseman

 

The first thing that jumps off of the paper for Didier Verhault to General Managers of the Victory Hockey League will be his physicality. Despite being a below-average sized Defenseman and player in general, Verhault is an extremely "toolsy" player, his top rated skill being his skating and overall quickness on the Ice. His well-rounded game and complete skating form have led to comparisons to Jaccob Slavin. Verhault is a beautifully complete player, being competent in every phase of the game. It is rare for Verhault to disappear from the play or seem out of place when it comes to high leverage situations. For his size, Verhault has impressive strength and puck retainability for a player of his size, and is often said to play above his size and age level. Another strength of Verhault is his passing. While this can translate into competent playmaking, he is mostly concerned with puck control and transporting the puck safely into the offensive zone, creating scoring opportunities for his team. While Verhault is no doubt competent at both ends of the ice, his main focus is his defense. While racking up points and stats is attractive to many, Verhault simply values team success and will happily play his two-way role to perfection for his draft team. In conclusion, Verhault is a very competent two-day defenseman with a slight preference to defensive zone play, but is able to translate his game into offense with his lightning skating and physical tools, creating threats in the offensive zone and safety in the defensive zone. 

 

With this being said, Verhault is not a perfect prospect by any means of the word. While he has astonishing physical tools, he is lacking in ice vision when it comes to both ends of the Ice. While in minor league play he can often make up for this with his speed and checking, it is a concern if he will be able to correct it when it comes to higher level of play, such as the VHL. Verhault is also known to be a relatively quiet person, and is not considered an overly positive locker room presence, despite being willing to play roles to secure team success. Another weakness of Verhault's is his shooting, having a sub-level slap shot and an almost inexistent wrist shot. Though like many other players, Verhault has a high work ethic and is willing to correct the mistakes in his game. 

 

Classically Verhault is viewed as a two-way defender, and an excellent prospect with top 4 potential to some teams in the Victory Hockey League.