Moderator Baozi 1,658 Posted June 26, 2014 Moderator Share Posted June 26, 2014 Former Japanese Stars Weigh in on Rising Youngster Yamazaki www.VHLHockeyNews.com The land of the rising sun has produced several remarkable hockey players in the past and it seems in the upcoming S39 draft, another hot prospect is set to make his debut in the VHL. The last Japanese player to be taken first overall in the VHL draft was Daisuke Kanou. The last Japanese defender to be taken in that spot was Ginzou Fujiwara, who won a cup with the Helsinki Titans back in S15. Meet Koji Yamazaki, six foot four, mean, nasty and dynamic. Hailing from Tokyo Japan, the Japanese import is currently ranked #2 in the upcoming VHL draft but there has been a lot of talk on him over taking Jackson Miller for first overall in the draft. Playing on an ultra-dominant squad of Outlaws, Yamazaki accrued 128 points in 70 games, a great start to his professional career. His 293 hits and 200 penalty minutes made him an imposing defender throughout the junior league and his perchance for making smart offensive plays was one of the key reason why the Outlaws were so strong offensively this season. It is because of this that there have been comparisons drawn between him and the former first overall pick Fujiwara, also known as the White Wolf. Certainly Yamazaki is much bigger, Fujiwara clocked in at only 5 foot 11, but was incredibly solid and strong on his feet. While Fujiwara never posted gaudy numbers in junior, I believe he only registered a point per game pace, one could see his talent level. He had great technical and puckhandling ability, but what separated him from the rest of the pack back then was his phenomenal skating ability and defensive awareness. Lots of this we can see in Yamazaki , he has great skating ability, he is tough and he is great defensively in his own zone. His technical skill may not be on par with Fujiwara back then, but there is no doubt that the potential is there. We spoke to the two former Japanese stars, Kanou Daisuke and Ginzou Fujiwara about Yamazaki. “When I watch Yamazaki, I’m seeing him as the face for the next generation of Japanese hockey players. He has great work ethic and he has all the physical tools to be a great player for a long time. Though he has some ways to get to the same level as Fujiwara, I think it will happen eventually. Few came out of the draft class as refined as Fuji. I believe scouting reports put his defense rating at an 80 and his puck skills at 70 and the rest of the offensive kit at 70 as well. It was how he was able to step into the VHL almost seamlessly. I think Yamazaki will need more time to adjust and may struggle a bit early on. That being said, he is much bigger than Fujiwara, and when all is said and done, if he progresses at his current rate, I think he has the tools to be better than Fujiwara. Playing with the Vasteras IK, Fujiwara never really massed high point totals because PensFan at the time played an all defense trap system. In fact I believe it wasn’t until he went to the Titans that they finally uncovered Fujiwara’s latent offensive ability. I think if Yamazaki goes to the Titans, he will have a great group to play with and the Titans have always been about offense so that I think that will help since it is a strength of Yamazaki’s game. I look forward to seeing how he does.” - Daisuke Kanou, Former VHL Goalie “Yamazaki is really good. I like how versatile his game is. He skates, he hits and he can run the power play. I think he is a bit of a higher risk than Miller, but I think he has the ability to be the best player out of this draft. I think he will be better than me to be honest. He definitely hits harder as I’ve seen on the replays.” – Ginzou Fujiwara, Former VHL Defenseman One thing is for certain, he will be good, the only question that remains is...just how good? Devise, Samurai7 and BOOM 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Samurai7 102 Posted June 26, 2014 Share Posted June 26, 2014 This is a 6 on content alone, ha. Enjoyed reading it and thanks for the kind words. I hope to live up to the standards set by the previous players. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JardyB10 4,865 Posted June 26, 2014 Share Posted June 26, 2014 herro prease Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RomanesEuntDomus 442 Posted June 26, 2014 Share Posted June 26, 2014 Admit it, you always looked up to Taro Tsujimoto! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Molholt 2,185 Posted June 28, 2014 Share Posted June 28, 2014 Content: 3/3 - Good work and interesting viewpoint. A little history learned, and a little future discussed. I liked it. Grammar: 2/2 - I didn't see anything that bothered me.Appearance: 1/1 - Looked good!Overall: 6/6 Final 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kesler 1,514 Posted July 1, 2014 Share Posted July 1, 2014 Claimed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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