Alex Letang - Prospect Report

[Spartan 4,408]

 

Alex Letang - D

Las Vegas Aces - S71-72 - 26th OA

6'0 - 180 lbs

 

Overview

 

Alex Letang, in the most humble way possible, may have been the steal of the S71 VHLM Dispersal Draft. The fleet-footed defenseman quietly played over 22 minutes per game, which ratcheted up to over 25 or 26 minutes per game after the hiring of offensive minded GM @Proto. The slim defenseman isn't much of a physical presence, but isn't afraid to play aggressively when asked to. Letang racked up a modest 39 hits, but also blocked 77 shots while posting a +44, showcasing his ability to be solid in all aspects of the game. Offensively, Letang left the grunt of the work to the stars on the S71 LVA team, posting 10 goals and 46 assists in the regular season, adding another 5 goals and 5 assists in 12 games in the playoffs. Letang has flashed his potential towards the end of last season, garnering the attention of the VHL and the VHLM for S72. As the stars on LVA have mostly departed to the VHL, it'll be largely on Letang's shoulders to showcase his leadership ability, as well as to prove whether he can be a #1 defenseman for a team.

 

Strengths

 

Skating: Alex Letang has always been known for his skating prowess. His agility and speed helps him stick to forwards in the defensive zone, while also leading rushes out of the zone. He has also used his speed frequently to avoid breakaways and two-on-ones, further contributing to his strong defensive play. His ability to be strong on his skates bolsters the team's ability to withdraw pucks out of their own zone, and begin the transition into the neutral and offensive zones.

 

Defensive Awareness: As has been made aware and highly touted, Letang has been a key part of LVA's defense, playing on both the power play and penalty kill lines as well. As a part of the formidable defensive group last year, Las Vegas suppressed shots like one of the best teams in the VHLM, and a large part goes to Letang's penchant for getting into shot lanes and his stick work. His stick lifts in front of the net and his ability to poke check even the best of forwards helped Las Vegas allow the least shots against in the league, making life easy for rookie goalie Nils @Biggreen10 Friedriksen.

 

Puck Control/Passing: Letang has also strongly improved on his puck handling and passing skills over the course of the season, and his passing may have been the best among the defensive group on the team. Letang greatly reduced his turnovers, contributing it to a fresh focus on expanding his passing skills. Letang worked with the forwards over the past season to hone his skills, including breakout passes and slap passes to generate more offense while on the ice. Passing is easily one of the strongest parts of Letang's game, but he has even more room to improve.

 

Weaknesses

 

Strength: It's quite clear that Letang's frame isn't built to deliver hits or outmuscle a power forward at the net. He lacks the muscle mass to effectively tie a player up in front of the net, but makes up for that with his sly use of crosschecks and stick tie-ups. He remains disciplined in this aspect, only gathering 22 penalty minutes in 72 games. However, Letang needs to build up his strength to be able to continue in his development as a defenseman. While this build may allow him to out-skill other players in the VHLM, it will definitely be an area to improve on when he graduates to the VHL and Moscow.

 

Ability to Carry the Offense: Letang was blessed to be on a team of offensive juggernauts such as Joe Proto, SS Hornet, Pengu and Vladimir Shaposhnikov, which allowed him to focus on his defensive game and simply supporting the skilled group of forwards. However, S72 will show if Letang can truly step up as a star on the team and generate enough offense to keep the team within sights of another deep playoff run. So far, Letang has simply flashed the ability, with a handful of multi-goal games, and 4 games where he was named the 2nd or 3rd star. The big question will remain, can he truly be THE star?