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Okay, we’re officially calling it: This is a bad draft year. Well, maybe bad is a tad harsh, but at best it’s unexciting.

What else can you say when the two top prospects on your board — Nolan Patrick and Gabriel Vilardi — have rarely been healthy enough to play at full strength? Or when the presumed top three Euro phenoms — Swedish defenseman Tim Liljegren, Finnish winger Kristian Vesalainen, and Russian winger Klim Kostin — have seen their collective play range anywhere from mildly disappointing to downright underwhelming?

And what the hell has happened to Maxime Comtois’ offensive game? If anyone can find it, please call: 1-800-HelpMax.

Yes, it’s true that others have stepped up to fill in some of the second tier. Portland center Cody Glass is doing a bang-up job out west. And Nick Suzuki has been everything we expected and more in the Ontario Hockey League, while Swiss sensation Nico Hischier is burning up the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. And Red Line Report's personal favorite, slick and intense Czech center Martin Necas, is making a run for the top 10.

NHL draft 2017: Active month in rankings; biggest surprises in Europe

But where’s the sizzle? Halfway into the season with the world juniors about to begin in Montreal and Toronto, there’s not a single player this draft class can hang its hat on — no one who pulls you out of your seat to say, “Wow!”

Let’s just say Toronto and Edmonton picked the right years to be really bad and/or win the lottery. The clubs at the top of this year’s lottey will get some solid players — but not a so-called “franchise” player.

And it gets worse, because not only is there not a lot of marquee value at the top end, in Red Line’s estimation, the depth of this year’s crop is lacking too. We look at the guys in the 30s, 40s, and 50s in our rankings and think that while they all have some traits we like, there are going to be a lot of second-round picks this year who will not go on to have stellar NHL careers.

Perhaps just some food for thought for Las Vegas’ management team when the 30 other NHL general managers offer up their second-round picks in exchange for staying away from a particular player in the expansion draft. Mental note: Make sure the picks they’re offering are for 2018.

Here is Red Line’s preliminary identification list of the top draft eligible prospects for the NHL’s 2017 Entry Draft in Chicago on June 23-24.

Rising:

Alex Formenton (London) — We have absolutely fallen in love with his speed and non-stop motor. Forechecking demon causes all sorts of problems.

Nick Suzuki (Owen Sound) — He’s been productive at even strength, productive on the power play, and productive on the penalty kill. Until they invent another part of the game, that about covers it.

Pierre-Olivier Joseph (Charlottetown) — We are loving the growth in his game; seems to get better from shift-to-shift. Becoming one of the top offensive rearguards in the draft.

Robert Thomas (London) — Has moved ahead of many quality veterans on a deep London club, and is becoming one of the driving forces of their engine.

D’Artagnan Joly (Baie-Comeau) — The size/skating/puckhandling combination is outstanding, and now the production is coming: 5-5-10 in his last six games.

Falling:

Maxime Comtois (Victoriaville) — Inexplicably, he seems to have lost his scoring touch. Still playing a heavy game, but for a potential top-five guy, he simply has to produce more.

Kristian Vesalainen (HIFK Helsinki) — Before, he wasn’t scoring against men in Sweden. Now he’s not scoring against men in Finland.

Stuart Skinner (Lethbridge) — Has really struggled all year long in net and his movement is looking stiff and mechanical.

Off the Record — News-'n-Notes from around the scouting community

Hey, kids, it’s Christmas time — time to put on your Mitens! At Red Line, we have been irrationally giddy about Latvian goalie Mareks Mitens since watching him make over 50 (mitten) saves against a powerful Swedish squad last April in a game at the World U-18 Championships. The heroic performance by Mitens helped Latvia stay ahead with under 20 seconds to play until a laser beam from Alex Nylander tied the game. The Swedes eventually won in a shootout.

Now you may think we are only mentioning this because we love writing Mitens … and you would be correct! However, the lovable Latvian (who naturally follows Red Line on Twitter, by the way) came over to North America this season after being bypassed in the NHL draft and has basically posted the type of historic numbers for the Aston Rebels that North American Hockey League statisticians have never seen before.

NHL draft 2017: Strength in forwards

He currently leads all NAHL goalies in wins (16), goals against average (1.35), save percentage (.943) and shutouts (6). And he’s getting better. His numbers for November were: 5-0-0 with a 0.99 GAA and a .959 SV%. Mind boggling!

We don’t care what league you’re playing in or what the quality of the shooters is, that’s pretty impressive for a guy playing in North America for the first time.

Beginning this week, Mitens will represent Lativia at the world junior championships, and we at Red Line are getting all tingly just thinking about it. In all seriousness, the kid has truly put himself on the map, and if he excels for an underdog Latvian squad on the big stage, we’re pretty sure he’ll be a mid-round pick next June.

*****

Speaking of NAHL goalies, even though he was selected sixth overall in last spring’s Kontinental Hockey League Draft, big Russian netminder Ivan Prosvetov found himself in Waterloo’s (USHL) training camp before a preseason injury sidelined him and he ended up with the Minnesota Magicians.

The move seems to have paid off, as Prosvetov has opened the year with a 10-5-0 record to go along with a 2.45 GAA and .923 SV% (second among first-year draft eligibles).

What it's like to face shots from Alex Ovechkin

At nearly 6-4 and just a spindly 162 pounds, Prosvetov is a big and athletic goaltender who is still quite raw. He’s understandably still growing into his frame, having grown a whopping seven inches in the past year-and-a-half. Though still adjusting to reading the play at the NAHL level, Prosvetov has an excellent demeanor. He’s poised and not easily rattled, and it’s not hard to imagine him climbing the rankings as the season goes on and he continues to get more comfortable with the North American game.

*****

At Red Line, we often felt last year that the depth of the Western Hockey League's 2016 NHL draft class was undervalued by NHL scouts. As a result, we believe several more 1998-born second-year eligibles will be drafted this June. A few WHL re-entries who are back gracing our list this year include Morgan Geekie (Tri-City), Tyler Steenbergen (Swift Current), Dylan Coghlan (Tri-City), Brayden Burke (Moose Jaw) and Kody McDonald (Prince George).

One player who didn’t make our list last year, but deserves some serious credit so far this season: skilled forward Ty Lewis out in Brandon. Lewis was constantly on our radar last year for showcasing an impressive physical tools package, but he was buried on a deep WHL championship roster, and he never got enough ice time for us to properly evaluate. Well, after multiple viewings this year, we are pleased to report his game has flourished in an expanded role.

He was a useful fourth-liner last year who got in on the rush quickly, but when he managed to get the puck he didn’t have the confidence to drive the net with any force. That has changed, and he’s now starting to show off a high level of offensive zone awareness. Lewis hardly appears to be the same player as he has added a ton of strength to his athletic frame, and he is using that size to come off the sideboards with purpose, driving into contested ice. He is definitely a name scouts should circle when they head to Brandon to see Nolan Patrick, Stelio Mattheos and Daniel Bukac in the second half.