Prospect Deep Dive: Lucy Leitner

[LucyXpher 554]

        Tonight is the night when rubber meets the road— or more accurately, when a new class of VHLM rookies will take to the ice hoping to make strong first impressions.  

 

The importance of this season cannot be overstated as players will be looking to impress not only their current clubs and GMs, but also VHL scouts and managers who will, no doubt, be looking for breakout talent in the next VHL draft.  Starting strong is important, but showing consistency and commitment to development will also be key for these young players as they take the next steps towards hearing their name called by a VHL franchise.

 

In this article, we’ll be doing a deep dive into one prospect who, despite being a late free agent signing, has impressed throughout training camp for the Houston Bulls.  

 

Lucy Leitner fits the mould of the modern puck moving defenseman.  Though some scouts insist that size is still a heavy determining factor in a player’s ultimate draft position, there is a school of thought that gives more importance to skills that help defenders move the puck up ice with purpose and confidence.  Scouts who consider Leitner for the upcoming draft will have to confront these differences in philosophy and decide what kind of player they’re looking for. 

 

At 5’8” and 155 pounds, Leitner is not exactly tipping the scales, and coming off a serious injury that held her out of all but three games in her final year of junior, there are valid questions about her long term durability— questions that will need to be answered in this upcoming season. 

 

And while size, strength, and physicality may not be the sharpest tools in her kit, she is one of the more gifted skaters joining the VHLM this season.  Watching her throughout her junior career and through a shortened training camp, she regularly made forecheckers look silly with smooth skating transitions from defence to offence, using her edges to create space and separation to move the puck north.  

 

In her last full season, she led all AJHL defenders in controlled exits and controlled entries per 60, consistently demonstrating an ability to carry the puck out of the D-zone and across the opposing blue line.  If those skills can translate to the minor and pro ranks, she will have a much better chance of becoming an everyday VHLer. 

 

On top of an elite skating foundation, Leitner has good offensive vision. Playing for Black Diamond of the AJHL, she quarterbacked the top power play unit, demonstrating an ability to find teammates with deceptive passes, using her skating to walk the blue line and survey the offensive zone before zipping a pass onto the tape of a teammate for a quality scoring chance.  

 

In her age 16 season with the Blades she racked up 58 assists through 57 games, and was off to a flying start the next season with 7 helpers through 3 games before a season ending neck injury derailed her hot start. Don’t be surprised to see her start to show some of those skills in the VHLM as she figures to be a solid addition to the Bulls’ power play and will likely have plenty of ice time and opportunity to adjust to the higher level of competition. 

 

Leitner’s shot is an area that may leave something to be desired as she is often looking primarily for a pass option, or sometimes shooting just to funnel pucks to the net, perhaps without the killer instinct to actually score.  When I spoke to her earlier this week, however, she did say that this was an area that she recognized could use improvement, and that she was actively working with skills coaches to develop both her release and velocity.  If she can round out this side of her offensive game, she may have the necessary skills to eat up top power play minutes on a nightly basis.

 

Lucy Leitner is not merely an offensive threat from the back end, but has consistently shown commitment and ability to defend in her own end.  Again, using her stand-out skating ability to manage gaps in transition, she is capable of shutting down opposing forwards, closing in on them as they run out of space.  Leitner also demonstrates restraint around her own net, playing responsible positional hockey when the situation requires it, waiting for the right moment to nab the puck and start the breakout.  These skills may be most transferable to the higher levels of play as her commitment to defending will help her earn the trust of her coaches and managers going forward.  

 

Leitner thrives on creating turnovers and, despite her lack of size and physicality, she has a tenacity for puck retrieval, always wanting to be the first player back.  This is a player who loves having the puck on her stick and that confidence bodes well for her chances of remaining effective as the level of competition increases.  

 

Finally, Leitner demonstrates a strength of character as a teammate, displaying a sincere love of the game and an earnest desire to improve, both on and off the ice.  Former coaches have described her as an ideal student of the game and she embodies this through her commitment to training and practices.  Frequently the first player on the ice and the last player off, Leitner shows a willingness to receive feedback, and the discipline to work through her mistakes.  All told, the sky is the limit for a player who knows the value of practice, all that’s left is to see if she can reach it.

 

 

Lauren Lambert for VHL.com

Edited January 10 by LucyXpher