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Getting to know your new Winnipeg Jets: J.C. Lipon, Andrew Copp, Jan Kostalek, Tucker Poolman, Brendan Kichton, Marcus Karlstrom

We have already gone over some of the bigger names in the Winnipeg Jets 2013 draft class, but the talent doesn’t end there. Winnipeg Jets‘ General Manager Kevin Cheveldayoff has unearthed some interesting pieces late in the draft.

Let's take a look at just who Chevy nabbed.

Round 3, Pick #91: J.C. Lipon

Centre/Right Wing 6’0″, 180 Kamloops Blazers

J.C. Lipon is an interesting pick and the start of an interesting trend as he will be the first of 4 overagers that we cover in this outline. Lipon will soon be 20 years old and was selected in his 3rd year of draft eligibility. This means he will in all likelihood start next season with the St. John's IceCaps.

Lipon finished the WHL season ranked 6th in scoring — three spots behind new Jets draftee Nic Petan and 11 spots ahead of fellow Winnipeg Jets 20 year old Adam Lowry. That said, there are still question marks surrounding Lipon. Some scouts question his skating ability and others wonder how much of his offence should be attributed to his linemates, but there is no doubting Lipon’s passing ability or feistiness (he fights and earns suspensions). Hockey Canada also saw something in him as evidenced by his World Juniors invite. Even if Lipon doesn’t project as a scorer at the next level, he does project as a pain in the ass (pest) to play against.

Peter Sullivan says:

This kid has just exploded out of the gate, Here's a kid that in his [initial] draft year wasn't drafted, and guys that were drafted in the first two rounds [last year], he's better now at this point than the kids that were drafted.

Guy Charron says:

I knew of the skill he had, he was a good skater, could handle himself physically. He had good attributes — good hands, good shot. It was just a matter of would he be able to put it within a team frame-type of thing.

I don't see any reason, outside of injuries, for him not to be able to produce at the level he's producing.

More pluses:

This excellent piece from Flames Nation compares Lipon to other WHL 20 year olds and the results are positive.

The same piece shows that most of Lipon's offense came at even strength which in encouraging.

Lipon has drawn comparison to super pest Andrew Shaw. He may need to work on his skating to get there though.

Pre-scoring, super pest highlights:

You can follow JC Lipon on Twitter at @Jgator34

Round 4, Pick #104: Andrew Copp

Centre 6’0″, 187 lbs Michigan Wolverines

Andrew Copp is a really interesting pick. He is an overage prospect who was first draftable last year. At that point he really hadn’t done much and he wasn’t even a full time hockey player. That didn’t prevent him from scoing on par with 2012 1st round pick Stefan Matteau (NJD, #29 overall) and 2012 2nd round pick Nic Kerdles (ANA, #36 overall) for the USNTDP Juniors.

Still, Copp wasn't seen as a player with big upside. He was recruited to Michigan and expected to play in a depth role for the team. Andrew started his season plugging away on the 4th line, but eventually worked his way up to a top line gig. His boxcars may not be particularly overwhelming (21 points in 38 games), but it is worth noting that 20 of those points came in the final 23 games of the season – he only took 2 penalties over that span as well. Even more impressive, Copp has earned the right to wear an 'A' going into his 2nd season. That doesn't happen often.

Chris Dilks says:

The concern with second-time eligible players is always going to be that they are further along their development curves than their younger counterparts, but that doesn't appear to be the case with Copp at all. If anything, Copp appears to be just scratching the surface of his potential. His football experience shows that he's a pretty gifted athlete, and the fact that he showed so much potential and improvement in his first full year focusing on hockey is very promising as well.

Billy Powers says:

Andrew came to us from the NTDP, but he was really a part-time player for them in a way. He was a pretty elite high school quarterback and played football through Thanksgiving, so this was his first year focusing on one sport. We knew he was a character kid who had the ability to play a defensive role, but in the second half he really showed that there’s more to him on the offensive side. He has good puck vision and hockey sense, and he loves to go to the tough areas. He was overlooked last year but we really feel as a staff that a team will be very fortunate to get him this time around.

Jacob Trouba says:

More Pluses:

Andre Copp has recieved and invite to Team USA’s World Juniors Summer Camp (Jimmy Lodge will also be there).

Read this excellent profile from our College Hockey affiliate.

Here are a few more tidbits from michiganhockey.net.

Movie time:

Round 4, Pick #114: Jan Kostalek

Defense 6’0″, 182 lbs Rimouski Océanic

The Winnipeg Jets drafted their first ever European player. Kostalek also happens to be the first player that General Manager Kevin Cheveldayoff and Co have drafted out of the QMJHL. While Kostalek broke some new ground, he also continued an interesting trend from this draft – pretty much everybody is undersized. Jan doesn't really suffer in the physicality department though.

Kostalek looks like another decent value pick at this spot. The ISS ranked Jan as the 43rd best North American. Craig Button had Kostalek ranked as the 66th best player in the draft and Corey Pronman had him ranked at 57. Can't complain about pulling that kind of value in the later half of round #4.

Pronman says:

Kostalek is one of the better Czech prospects in recent years. He played in the Czech men's league for ten games at age 16, and played at the U-18 and U-19 levels that same season before coming to the QMJHL for his draft year. Kostalek is a heady defenseman, and while he may not possess the most offensive upside, he projects as a tough-minutes defender with some puck moving ability. He makes a lot of stops with a good stick, impressive defensive positioning, and solid physicality. When Kostalek has the puck, he has a good panic threshold, and enough offensive instincts to make a good outlet. He has second power play unit potential. He will not rush through the neutral zone, or dangle through opponents, but he can be a good secondary carrying option. He skates at a solid level with good mobility and agility. He has the speed to join the rush or pinch, which he does selectively.

Mark Edwards says:

His physical game is excellent and he plays the majority of his minutes against the opposing team’s top line. He has proven to be tough to beat one on one and he has shown scouts the ability to be a good body checker.

More pluses:

Kostalek already has some experience playing against men, so his eventual transition to pro should be smoother than most.

Jan has been invited to the Czech Junior team's summer camp and he will very likely make the cut.

You can read a few more tidbits on Kostalek here.

You can take a peek at his 4 way mobility here.

Kostalek may not be big, but he lays big hits:

Boom!

Round 5, Pick #127: Tucker Poolman

Defense 6’2″, 194 lbs Omaha Lancers

There simply isn’t a ton of info about Tucker Poolman available without hiring a PI, but the following info was available. Poolman is a big D man. He was born in Grand Forks, so is darn near a local boy. He can fight. He can score goals on the powerplay and he will be attending the Universivty of North Dakota.

Omaha.com says:

Poolman is a reliable, steady player who also brings a solid offensive game. With his size and strength, Aikens expects Poolman to play in all situations. "Coming out of the Fall Classic, Tucker is one of the hotter guys in the league as far as college attention," Aikens said. "He gained valuable experience last year and is kind of a late bloomer. He’s only scratching the surface of what he could be eventually."

More Pluses:

Apparently Tucker's dad is a strength and conditioning coach.

Not really a plus – 12 of Poolman's 14 goals came on the powerplay.

You can find Tucker Poolman on Twitter at @PuckerToolman

Round 7, Pick #190: Brendan Kichton

Defense 6’0″, 192 lbs Spokane Chiefs

Brendan Kichton is a really interesting late round pick up. Kichton is a 21 year old who has now been drafted twice (The Islanders took him in the 4th round of the 2011 draft). Much like former Jets’ prospect Zach Yuen, failed to sign with the team that drafted him. Unlike Yuen, Kichton was actually re-drafted.

Kichton has been a dominant offensive defenseman throughout his junior career. He has led the WHL in defensive scoring three times and led his team in scoring twice. The offensive side of his game will be his biggest asset moving forward. Lucky for him, he will likely be stepping into a gig as the top powerplay option for the St. John's IceCaps next year.

Corey Pronman says:

Kichton was named the WHL Defenseman of the Year in his overage year after being a runner up last season. The former Islander prospect was my #13 prospect in the NYI system last summer, an organization that I ranked 2nd and classified as very deep. A report by Arthur Staples said Kichton turned down an offer from the Islanders.

Kichton is a very talented offensive defenseman. He’s been above a point per game in the WHL for the last three seasons. His skating is solid with notable above-average puck handling and puck moving abilities. He also displays a fine on-ice work ethic. The issues with Kichton are he’s a tad undersized and his defensive game remains underwhelming. He has top four defenseman upside, but if his own end play never comes around, he could potentially be a specialist.

More pluses:

Season Awards by season

2010-2011 WHL (West) Second All-Star Team

WHL Most Assists by Defenseman (58)

WHL Most Points by Defenseman (81)

2011-2012 WHL (West) First All-Star Team

WHL Most Assists by Defenseman (57)

WHL Most Points by Defenseman (74)

2012-2013 WHL (West) First All-Star Team

WHL Most Assists by Defenseman (63)

WHL Most Points by Defenseman (85)

WHL Top Defenseman “Bill Hunter Trophy”

Awards by league

– WHL (West) First All-Star Team 11/12, 12/13

– WHL (West) Second All-Star Team 10/11

– WHL Most Assists by Defenseman 10/11, 11/12, 12/13

– WHL Most Points by Defenseman 10/11, 11/12, 12/13

– WHL Top Defenseman “Bill Hunter Trophy” 12/13

Not too shabby!

Movie time (yes this one actually has a highlight reel):

You can follow Brenden Kichton on Twitter at @B_Kichton8

Round 7, Pick #194: Marcus Karlstrom

Defense 6’2″, 181 lbs AIK J20

There is very little info available on Marcus Karlstrom. He is however notable in that he is the first Euro (still playing in Europe) drafted by the Jets 2.0 organization. The franchise has also had a lot of success drafting late round D men. Toby Enstrom was drafted in the 8th round and Redmond and Postma were both 7th round picks.

More pluses:

Karlstrom has good size at 6'2.

Marcus handily outproduced (doubled) a fellow Swedish defender and 2013 4th round pick (#111 overall, Chicago) Robin Norell in both J18 Elit and J18 Allsvenskan before getting a shot to play with 20 year olds.

Pronman says:

No video available.

You can find Marcus Karlstrom on Twitter at @Karlstrom28

Analysis

The bottom half of the Winnipeg Jets 2013 draft featured an interesting mix of known players, overagers and complete question marks. Lipon and Kichton are likely to slot in as IceCaps right away, the rest are likely a few years away from Kevin Cheveldayoff's decision on their ELCs. Waiting and watching will be fun.

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