NHL Draft War Room: Nick Ritchie

Nick Ritchie

THW’s NHL Draft War Room Rankings: #6

• Hashtag/Nickname: #MrGrizzly
• Team: #20, Peterborough, OHL
• Position: Left Wing
• Shoots: Left
• Height: 6’3
• Weight: 229 lb.
• Born: Orangeville, ON, 5-Dec-95
• Twitter: @ritchboiii

Stats

Other Rankings

7 – Bob MacKenzie, Jan-14

7 – Future Considerations, Feb-14

8 – NHL Combined – Mid-term, Jan-14

10 – ISS, Feb-14

15 – Craig Button, Jan-14

Worth Retweeting

Is Nick Ritchie (@ritchboiii) a good fit for the @edmontonoilers? @jonusko shares his thoughts here: http://t.co/QlCGCTbchh #GoPetesGo

— Peterborough Petes (@PetesOHLhockey) February 18, 2014

Here is some video evidence on why we've had Nick Ritchie ranked in our top 7 all year long. I saw some of this live. http://t.co/3Q0WVbyTeU

— Mark Edwards (@MarkEdwardsHP) February 24, 2014

Profiles

• Profile 1: Gare Joyce at Sportsnet.ca
• Profile 2: Mitch Kasprick from WinnipegHockeyTalk.com

At @FCHockey: @PetesOHLhockey standout Nick Ritchie is following in his brother, Brett's, footsteps: http://t.co/uCSKWcoKV4

— Christian Roatis (@croatis) February 11, 2014

Quotable

• Peterborough Head Coach, Jody Hull at Sportsnet.ca:

“He’s starting to understand the defensive part of the game more and more every day.  He’s a guy I can rely on regardless of the circumstance, whether it’s to get a goal or maybe to help defend a lead late in the game. I just think his overall game has matured immensely since he was 16.”

From the War Room

• Eldon MacDonald, THW: A few words on Nick Ritchie:
  • Massive – Nick is just one big guy at 6’3, 229 lb. He can look like Mr. Teddy at times but get him along the boards and it doesn’t take long before Mr. Grizzly shows up.
  • Skills – This is a guy who has all the skills to go with his massive size – Fights, hits, intimidates; power stride, elite wrist shot, excellent hands; drives hard to the net, dominant fore-checker, punishes along the boards.
  • Genes:  His brother, Dallas Stars prospect Brett Ritchie, is a favourite of mine. His Dad, Paul, was also coached by former Peterborough Head Coach, Mike Pelino, when he played at Brock University.
  • Potential growth – Like his brother, Brett, Nick’s career has been held back by injuries. I don’t think we have seen anywhere near the potential of Nick just yet. By the way, Brett’s career didn’t really hit stride until after his draft year either. For the teams doing the drafting this year, this is a classic case of “the glass is half full” conundrum. Those teams looking at the potential that Nick has may have him higher than I have; those teams looking at his injuries as a concern will have him lower.
  • Reminds me of: Rick Nash

Video

• Video 1: Five goal game from Yahoo! Sports Canada
• Video 2:

About NHL Draft War Room Series

This series is compiled by Eldon MacDonald and edited by @ChrisRalphTHW)