Peyton Krebs is an interesting case in this year’s draft. His ability as a forward is perhaps masked by the team he plays for. With the Kootenay Ice, he’s not had a lot of talent to play with, and therefore, his stat line does not look as impressive as Morgan Frost or Isaac Ratcliffe. However, despite this, he still put up point-per-game numbers this past year, and could be poised to really break out if more talent is put around him.
2019 NHL Draft Profile: Peyton Krebs
Left Wing-Center / Canada / Kootenay Ice (WHL)
2018-19 Statistics: 19 G, 49 A in 64 GP
Size: 5-foot-11, 181 pounds
Pre-draft rankings
No. 10 (North American Skaters) by NHL Central Scouting
No. 6 by Future Considerations
No. 8 by ISS Hockey
No. 9 by TSN/Mckenzie
What’s there to like?
NHL scouts will gravitate to Krebs because he has shown that, despite facing challenges, he has overcome them. Now, this may just go down to him being a really good player (obviously), but NHL scouts will no doubt obsess over his “mental toughness”. His mentality is that of a leader, and he is already the Ice’s captain.
Krebs is very much a playmaking center with very good hands to match. It also helps that he can do it at speed! He is a strong skater and has a great speed upside. Krebs makes very smart, creative choices with the puck, and works very hard in the build up to goals. He is also very good along the boards. In this regard, he reminds me a lot of Claude Giroux.
What’s not to like?
His defensive instincts aren’t an issue, but he isn’t the best defensively. He can close the gaps on the back check, but he won’t always come out with the puck. He has the toughness to take hits, but he isn’t the largest at 5’11”. This is quite common though, that he’ll need to add some weight and strength.
Krebs also needs to develop his offensive style to shoot more often. He is very much a pass first player, which isn’t an issue per say unless he gets into “overpassing” territory. Additionally, it isn’t as if Krebs doesn’t have a good shot. It may not be as deadly as, say, Arthur Kaliyev’s shot, but it’s still good.
How would he fit in the Flyers’ system?
Krebs’ hockey sense means he’ll fit in anywhere he goes. In terms of his position, I like him more at center than wing due to his uncanny ability to read the play on both defense and offense. He’d probably be below Morgan Frost, but above German Rubtsov on the Flyers’ center prospect depth chart.
Could the Flyers actually get him?
This area of the board is variant on which sites are higher on whichever player. It’s entirely possible that Krebs falls to 11, and he fits what the Flyers like to do stylistically. It simply depends on whether or not teams are truly sold on his upside when he will play with greater talent. Krebs has shown flashes of this at different tournaments, and the maturing of players around him will only benefit Krebs’ output. Long story short, yes. They could actually get him.
