Tyler Walker - Prospect Scouting Report

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Tyler Walker - Prospect Scouting Report

 

Tyler Walker’s VHLM Career is coming to an end, as the Saskatoon Wild defender is expected to be one of the top picks in the S73 VHL Dispersal Draft.

 

The Saskatoon Wild defender started his VHLM Career in Season 71 with San Diego and had a decent start with 10 points in 19 games to go along with 22 hits and 33 blocked shots.  Sadly though, the Marlins would struggle come playoff time despite Walker tallying 13 points, 19 hits and 29 blocked shots in their 12 playoff games.

 

Season 72 was completely different for the young defender though as Walker would come out firing after being drafted 5th overall by the Saskatoon Wild.  Walker recorded 21 goals and 94 assists to go along with 60 hits and 101 blocked shots, and this time was a much better +62.  He would go on to lead the league in assists and was the top defenseman scoring, all while showing more physicality as the season went on.

 

At this juncture in the S72 playoffs, the Saskatoon Wild just rolled over their first round opponents in the Ottawa Lynx.  Walker was a star in the series with 4 goals, 5 assists, 10 hits and 11 blocked shots in those 5 games.  He along with a lot of the team, really pushed the pace against Ottawa and made it very difficult to not only stop their offense, but to score on them too.  

 

Pros

 

Skating - Walker is truly a tremendous skater and is one of the more fluid skating defenders in the entire VHLM.  He uses his quick strides and strong balance to help give him the edge in both offensive and defensive situations.  Ultimately, this is the strength that may make it an easier transition to the VHL than expected.

 

Defense - Tyler Walker had been criticized in Season 71 due to his mediocre defense at times.  In the off-season before Season 72, he decided to focus everything on improving his defensive awareness and positioning, and it really paid off with a +62 plus/minus while being tremendous positionally throughout the year.

 

Scoring - Tyler has an accurate and hard shot and used it very well throughout the season.  While the defender recorded just 21 goals, a significant portion of his assists came off of huge rebounds due to his hard point shot.  The playoffs have really seen him show off offensively with almost a goal-per-game thus far.

 

Cons

 

Physicality - While not a significant con as he stays pretty disciplined, Tyler Walker will want to show off a bit more physically if he expects to win some significant hardware in the Victory Hockey League.  

 

Strength - The other con, and probably a bit more of a major one, is Walker’s strength which he will definitely need to improve to be a quality VHL player.  Still not filled out into his body frame, Walker will need the pump the iron to reach his ultimate goal of being a Hall of Fame defender.