2011 Draft POI: Tyler Biggs

I started doing a couple of these earlier in the year, where I'd introduce you to a kid I thought deserving of a mid-round pick. Jesse Forsberg is here and Shane Prince is here. I've been carelessly lazy for the last....ever, so these entries sort of fell by the wayside.

Blame my girlfriend, not me.

Anycase, I figured that since Lowetide has been covering the top end of the draft board with his usual excellence, that I'd leave that schtick to him and focus on players of interest that could be falling to the Oilers with the 19th overall pick. First up is a massive specimen who caught my eye reading his profile in THN's recent 2011 Draft Preview.

Meet Tyler Biggs.

Rankings:

THN: 20
ISS: NR (Top-30)
CSS: 22 CDN
Bob: 10 MID

Born April 30, '93 in Ohio, he's a 6'2" 210lb RW who plays for the US National Team Development Program (NTDP). He finished the year scoring 17-11-28 in 48 games. While he isn't the most gifted offensive force that will be available at 19, he comes with other qualities that may get him noticed. Said THN:

"His Dad (Don Biggs) was a pain in the ass and he will be, too. He is legitimate tough."

I'm thinking somewhere along the Zack Kassian side of hockey will be the expectation of Biggs. He's going to be the guy to go into the corners and use his size to lean on even the bigger NHL defenders. He's got other qualities that will suit him at higher levels of hockey, says RLR scout Max Giese:

"He's a fast, mean, physical in-your-face guy with some leadership qualities."

CSS's Jack Barzee thinks his intangibles might be holding back his offensive abilities:

"Biggs is another young player who has taken on the job as leader of his team, and does most of their fighting when they have to fight, if not all of it. I think the responsibility for standing up for teammates has taken a little away from his offensive finish … wearing that ‘C’ and doing those things. My gut feeling is that he’s on an uphill path”.

Video of Biggs' game are available here. From an admittedly limited sampling, we see that Biggs likes to get involved for puck battles along the boards, can effectively skate down loose pucks and looks capable in a two-way role. His shot also looks to be a weapon, with a quick release and is accurate. Apparently has some PK ability already at a young age also, which is a bonus for a player who looks like a 3-4 line guy.

He's committed to his hometown Miami University for the Fall, though his CHL rights are owned by the Oshawa Generals.

I think he'd be a good fit for the Oilers organization because he resembles a lot of the qualities that have already been listed by General Manager Steve Tambellini and Head Scout Stu MacGregor as areas that need to be shored up. We've got a enough young offense in the likes of Hall Eberle Omark Paajarvi (Nugent-Hopkins?) that we can now concentrate our energy on finding players to compliment their skill. A big body who can skate with a willingness to protect the meal-tickets? Sounds like a winner to me.