Rookie Profile for Jacob Rogers [1/2]

[raghas 6]

ROOKIE PROFILE FOR JACOB ROGERS

 

VHLM Team: Mississauga Hounds

Height: 6’1”

Weight: 203lb.

Age: 20 years, 66 days

Hometown: Cleveland, OH

Scouted From: Miami Univ.

 

PROS

--- Passing --- This shouldn’t come as a surprise if you’ve managed to see his stat line from his final year at Miami (51 assists in 42 games). In regards to his soccer career, a lot of people remember this kid more for his actions than his skills (and trust me, we’ll get to that), but a big reason why Rogers went and put up those assist numbers is because of his experience playing soccer. He already had naturally great vision and senses in finding teammates on the pitch, and that only was amplified as he continued to play. The translation from soccer to hockey might seem a bit iffy, but watch him play and those doubts will quickly disappear. Expect his Mississauga teammates to be scoring a lot while he’s around.

--- Physicality --- He’s about average height comparatively to the typical professional hockey players, but that weight you see is a hell of a lot of muscle; it helps that his older brother Andrew Rogers is a personal trainer that’s had him on a rigid diet and exercise plan for the past three or so years. Jacob Rogers definitely isn’t afraid to throw his weight around, take a look at his stats again and you’ll actually see he was in the top 10 in amount of hits amongst NCAA forwards in both seasons. Take your eye off of him for even a second when heading his way and next thing you know you’ll be plastered on the ice.

--- Team Player --- They don’t call him “The Silent Protector” for nothing. Rogers has a very team-oriented mindset and has proven multiple times that he’ll put his neck out there for his teammates. Look back to December 2017 against Omaha if you need more convincing, pretty sure the other kid feels that well-deserved hit he received at the hands of Rogers every morning. Not convinced? Then allow me to refer back to that uncanny passing ability; he’s immensely focused on protecting his teammates AND making them look as good as they possibly can. If that doesn’t scream “team player”, I don’t know what does.

 

CONS

--- Discipline --- While he’s dedicated to protecting his teammates, Rogers can sometimes let that mindset go overboard. In his final soccer match, he ended up igniting a physical brawl after he overreacted to a dirty tackle that resulted in him getting kicked off the team and nearly expelled from the school entirely; and unfortunately, just like his vision, it seems that temper has had some carry-over into hockey. He led Miami in PIM his first year and while he reduced that number in his second year, he still came in third. As far as we know he hasn’t been officially diagnosed with any attitude problems, and maybe the soccer incident was just a flare, but he hasn’t made enough strides on the rink to abate these concerns.

--- Lack of Experience --- Let’s not forget, Rogers has only two seasons of experience TOTAL. He didn’t even start learning how to play until the winter of 2016, so he’s only been actually playing for THREE YEARS. No, none of those are typos, the kid is THAT raw. It’s astounding how quickly he’s managed to take on the game, but this is a red flag that GM’s shouldn’t just ignore. The biggest question for this kid is going to be if he can actually play on a professional level; this first season with Mississauga is going to be vital for him to show that he can actually hang around people that have been playing this sport for years with more competition around them.

--- Is he REALLY a Winger? --- Rogers’ 75 total assists over his two seasons with the RedHawks overshadow the fact that he only managed 13 goals in that same time span. Don’t get me wrong, it’s certainly not an awful number or anything, but the numbers he puts up are arguably more alike to defenders than wingers. If you take a look at some film of him, he definitely seems to have a defender’s mindset at times as well. Some circles I’ve heard from have mentioned that a transition to defense may help him to amplify that physical play style he brings to the table while not sacrificing much when it comes to his passing (don’t forget, he’s got 203lb. of almost all muscle). Will he make the switch, or, rather SHOULD he? It’s far too early to make a decision on that in my opinion, but keep a close eye on how he positions himself over the course of the season.

 

FUTURE OUTLOOK/DELIBERATION

Like I’ve said, keep an eye on Jacob Rogers over the course of this first season; in all honesty, it may be his most important one yet as he has a lot he needs to prove before we can really make a call on if/how he’ll be able to develop. That being said, I feel as though you can’t ignore the amount of potential that the kid seems to have. His cons are very alarming, but these are all issues that can be worked on in time if he can properly adapt and learn from his teammates. It’s going to be sink or swim for this kid now, let’s see if he’s ready to prove his potential.

 

PROSPECT GRADE: B- 

Lots of potential, but has yet to prove himself at a really high level for an extended period of time.

Edited May 2, 2019 by raghas
Added hometown

[chillzone 231]

Review: Solid stuff - I feel like this piece was very well balanced in terms of pros and cons. You went over his exciting potential and causes of concerns in a lot of detail. I like how you introduced skills he learned from soccer. It helps paint a picture of Jacob’s life outside hockey. Good work!

 

@raghas