After yesterday’s look at Milton Gästrin, we’ll now move to one of his teammates from many of the Swedish international teams, right winger Jakob Ihs-Wozniak. Ihs-Wozniak has the honor of being No. 32, the final pick of the BSH Community Draft Board’s first round, and a pick that the Flyers may actually own if the Oilers win the Cup in a few weeks.
The Swedish-Australian winger is a compelling player, and is mainly known for his booming shot, pretty high-level puck skills, and a slightly odd skating style that needs some work. He’s consistently been one of the strongest Swedish players of this draft class, and slots in nicely with the crop of players from the country that are projected to go in the late-first to early second round. There’s a small chance that Ihs-Wozniak is the third Swedish player selected in this draft – after Anton Frondell and Victor Eklund – if a team prefers him over fellow countrymen Sascha Boumedienne, Eric Nilson, or Gästrin. So, let’s get into what could make a team really high on Ihs-Wozniak, and what could potentially draw a team away from the player.
Pre-draft rankings
No. 25 by The Athletic (Scott Wheeler)
No. 43 by Elite Prospects
No. 33 by TSN (Bob McKenzie)
No. 40 by Daily Faceoff
Bio
DOB: February 1, 2007
Birthplace: Adelaide, Australia
Position: Right wing
Height: 6’3”
Weight: 185 lbs
Shoots: Right
Statistics
What’s there to like?
We have to lead off a Ihs-Wozniak profile by discussing his shot, which is one of the strongest in the entire class. This is especially apparent on the one-timer, where Ihs-Wozniak has repeatedly shown an ability to score from the circles on the powerplay. It’s a quick, powerful windup that Ihs-Wozniak can beat a goaltender with from any angle, and it’s easy to imagine a future where he takes down a one-timer position on an NHL power play.
Ihs-Wozniak’s wrist shot is maybe not as lethal as his one-timer, but it’s still proven to be quite effective in the Swedish J20 Nationell. Many of his goals come from fast catch-and-release sequences, particularly in plays that see Ihs-Wozniak rushing into the offensive zone with a teammate or two. That wrister has shown a capability to beat goaltenders at tough angles on a semi-frequent basis, and scouts have lauded the winger’s capability to be a true difference maker through his wrister. We’ll see, but if Ihs-Wozniak is to be an impactful player at the next level, it’s likely going to be heavily driven by his ability to beat goalies clean.
Another important thing to note about Ihs-Wozniak is his knack for being in-and-around offense at all times. There’s very few games where Ihs-Wozniak has not recorded at least one high-danger chance. Sure, there are times where he’s a bit of a passenger on his line and relies on his linemates to do some of the dirty work, but Ihs-Wozniak has the higher-end abilities and puck skills to make up for it most of the time. The quick strike nature of Ihs-Wozniak could be a serious plus if he’s developed by a team that puts him in the right developmental situation, and furthermore with some linemates that do lots of the dirty work for him. Ihs-Wozniak is obviously going to still have to pull his weight, but a situation where he can focus on being lethal in the offensive zone is one where the player could thrive. It’s the type of profile that is probably just “top-six or bust”, as some scouts have put it.
What’s not to like?
As just mentioned, Ihs-Wozniak is certainly a player that is a passenger on many of the lines that he’s a part of. He’s a flashy player that often cashes in off of his teammate’s hard work, and doesn’t necessarily create a lot of chances on his own. There’s always concern with these types of players that purely rely on goal scoring to make an impact on a game, namely due to the fact that the scoring simply might not translate to the NHL. If Ihs-Wozniak isn’t able to keep up defensively, or in battles along the boards, will he ever be in the position to beat goaltenders with regularity? The answer to that question is probably a no at the NHL level, so Ihs-Wozniak is going to need to improve to make it. Still, there’s definitely a major scoring upside here, and the potential for an impact player if Ihs-Wozniak can figure out at least a few of the small details in his game.
One more pretty big flaw that’s often been mentioned with Ihs-Wozniak: his skating. Ihs-Wozniak isn’t the most graceful skater, with a bit of an upright stride that just feels off. However, it’s not really proven to be a massive issue thus far in terms of production, and honestly, we don’t know if his skating is necessarily bad. It might just be a more untraditional skating style. There are still numerous examples on his highlight reel where Ihs-Wozniak catches defenders off guard with his speed and funkier skating style, as he may be able to mask lower-quality skating with his ability to protect the puck fairly well. We’ll see, but there’s lots of examples of effective shoot-first wingers who’ve been able to get away with average or slightly-below average skating technique.
How would he fit in the Flyers’ system?
Ihs-Wozniak would be a really intriguing fit for the current Flyers and the Flyers pipeline as a whole. The Flyers, as an entire organization, are craving a player that can absolutely rip pucks from the wing, especially on the power play. Tyson Foerster and Owen Tippett can offer glimpses of that skillset, but ever since Cutter Gauthier was traded away to the Anaheim Ducks, there’s been a severe lack of high end one-timing ability in the organization. Ihs-Wozniak could potentially offer that, and that kinda makes him an intriguing skillset to add to the organization, regardless of his flaws as a prospect.
Could the Flyers actually get him?
Yes. Ihs-Wozniak is a fun swing pick for this range of the draft, as a player who’s skillset seemingly fits best into a future NHL team’s top six, if he hits. That’s a very boom-or-bust profile, and could be a very fun pick for the Flyers if Ihs-Wozniak falls to one of the Flyers’ several picks in the 30-50 range. One of the fun things about the Flyers having seven picks in the top-50 is their ability to take on a mix of high-risk and (comparatively) lower risk players throughout the first two rounds. Ihs-Wozniak would fall into the higher-risk, higher reward category, and the Flyers will almost certainly have a chance at him.
What scouts are saying
“Ihs-Wozniak was the most productive 2007 at Sweden’s J20 level last year, even playing to a slightly higher point-per-game rate than Frondell. However, he underwhelmed at U18 worlds and the Hlinka, didn’t live up to expectations at the World Junior A Challenge — where a player with his skill set should have filled the net — and got off to a slower-than-expected start to his draft year in J20, underwhelming scouts with his inconsistency and perimeter play at times. After a five-point game at the end of October and a promotion to the SHL (scoring his first pro goal on his first shot), though, Ihs-Wozniak tore up the J20 level offensively in the second half, putting together a string of multi-point games and making plays at the Five Nations tournament and a second U18 worlds for Sweden (he also showed more of a physical side and competitiveness in the second half and at worlds). He’s a first-round talent, and I think based on his recent play that he belongs in this range.
Ihs-Wozniak’s a compelling and talented player. He’s a 6-foot-2 forward with a clean catch-and-release shot, a dangerous one-timer on the flank, an ability to handle pucks in tight or protect them out wide and a good sense of when to slow the game down. His actual posture can look a little funky, with a very upright stance from the hips up and legs that can trail behind, but he’s actually pretty fast. He can play one-on-one, he can play off the puck as a shooter, he can make skill plays for his linemates and he’s got an ability to finish with his hands and quick release. He kind of reminds me of Kraken first-rounder Eduard Sale, though, in that he relies on the power play and has been known to come and go in games a little too much, casting doubt about his projection (it feels a little top-six or bust). For that reason, it was nice to see him winning more battles at U18s while still striking quickly offensively, flashing in moments of one-on-one skill, and looking dangerous on the power play. He’s going to be one of the only players in the late-first/early-second range in this draft with legitimate skill grades/PP skills, and that’ll make him an interesting bet for the right team.”
“Jakob Ihs-Wozniak is a finisher. Plain and simple. You get him the puck in a scoring area and he’s got a good chance of making it count. Scored two goals in this one. The first was pretty. A nice deke to the inside, quick shot inside the post before the goalie could get set up. Heavy release. The second, he received the puck in the high slot, head was up, backhand, forehand snap shot above the glove. Later on, had a nice reception in flight, cut to the middle, drove through to the far side and used that power move tuck under the triangle to get to the net and chipped it just up and over the goal. Now, his feet remain a concern for me. The fly-bys aren’t great, nor is he getting knocked off the puck more than he knocks others at his size. But he knows how to get to scoring areas and finish them off. That will serve him well.”
Cam Robinson, Elite Prospects Game Report (April 25 U-18s)
As we begin the second round tomorrow at No. 33, we’ll bring in our last candidate to be the first player selected in our second round – USNTDP center Cole McKinney.
“McKinney is on the rise. He’s the type of forward who can be thrust into a variety of roles up and down the lineup. With the U18 Team USA group he is deployed in all situations and has been averaging over 20 minutes of ice time. He’s being rewarded offensively as well, with his season now up to 22G-29A. The University of Michigan commit complements darting wingers and leverages very well in the hard areas to extend plays.”
