USA Phenom Auston Matthews to Spurn North American Hockey?

by Redwing77

I read Eric Burton's Sin Bin Article about how US NTDP phenom and future NHLer Auston Matthews may sign with a team in the Swiss Leagues.

This is baffling news to be sure.

Eric states in his article that he doesn't think that "anyone should be shocked by these revelations."

I beg to differ.  I think there should be two entities and one eyebrow raised at a third that should be shocked.

First, USA Hockey.  USA Hockey prides itself on developing solid American players for North American hockey, be it NCAA or Major Juniors with the aim at marketing that player towards a career in the NHL.  Auston Matthews going to Europe in anything less than the typical (rookie contract expires and does not get re-signed or ages out of NCAA/CHL without a pro contract opportunity) is a slap in the face to USA Hockey.  No way around that.

Second, and most stingingly, to the CHL.  It's rarely news when a top flight prospect, be it Canadian or American, goes to the Major Junior leagues from the position Matthews sits in now.  They parade around the interweb crowing that it is the dream of "every North American and most European" teenager to play for the CHL before they make their pro debut.  But it IS news when they are spurned, not for the NCAA, but for EUROPE and by a NORTH AMERICAN player nonetheless.  I think it stings them more than the NCAA because, in that regard, Eric is right.  No way was Matthews going the NCAA route.  No way.

The eyebrow being raised is by the NHL.  Now, I doubt that this move would really hurt Auston's draft stock, but it isn't going to endear him to the NHL either.  Here's why:

1.  When the NHL drafts a European player (and sometimes even before that player is drafted), that player is pressed to come to the US or Canada to get into North American's style of hockey.  It is very different over in Europe.  It has been stated in the past that those skaters from Europe who refuse such pressure are deemed more of a risk than otherwise.  How will this impact Matthews?  I'm not sure it will because he comes from North American style hockey to begin with.

2.  The Swiss Leagues is hardly a juggernaut in European hockey.  I mean no disrespect to the Swiss Leagues.  Many former UND players have gone there to play.  Switzerland also is a beautiful country with extremely nice and polite people in it.  However, it's not the "go to" avenue in Europe to get to the NHL.  It's considered that the best path in that regard runs through the Elite leagues of Scandinavia: mainly Finland and Sweden.   The Swiss Leagues are mentioned enough in North American to warrant the same notoriety with the DEL (German) and the Czech Leagues.  To be fair, I'd put even the KHL as a better path than the Swiss Leagues if it weren't for the financial peril the KHL finds itself in.

So I want to know:  Why Swiss Leagues?  Is it financial?  If it is displeasure over the WHL team who owns his rights, why not do the typical and use the NCAA as leverage?  Heck, why not just stay in the USHL until his draft year and ask the team who drafts him their advice?  There's every bit of likelihood that whomever drafts him will want him to get seasoned a bit back into the North American leagues and that would mean Major Juniors once he signed... assuming that he doesn't jump immediately into the NHL.

As for that, though, in my armchair scout opinion, I think this move DOES hurt Matthews.Getting used to the pro game AND reacclimated to North American hockey is a lot for a 17 or 18 year old to do.

It's not going to make him drop in the draft any, but I do think it will impact how long it takes him to get to the NHL... by a few months.