DEAN LETOURNEAU

2024-12-05

Scout: Luke

Skating:

Above average foot speed. Impressively fast for someone of his size.

Passing/Handling:

Puck handling is inconsistent. When he is in space, he handles the puck well but in tight spaces or with tough passes he has trouble maintaining possession. Turns the puck over too often.

Passing is average, poor decision making makes it worse. He has a tendency to panic and throw the puck along the wall resulting in turnovers or tough pucks for his teammates to corral.

He looks uncomfortable having the puck on his stick, as soon as he gets possession, he’s looking to get rid of it rather than make the right play.

Of his two assists this year, one should have been a turnover and the other was a faceoff loss that bounced to a teammate.

Faceoffs are a real concern; on 66 faceoffs he’s only won 29%. He could move to wing, but if he continues to struggle on the dot in NCAA it’s highly unlikely he will be a faceoff guy when he makes it to the NHL.

Shooting:

He has not recorded a goal this year on 13 SOG. His decision making on when to shoot is great. He generally only shoots when it’s a good scoring chance.

He has good hands in front of the net but has yet to score through 13 games. If he can improve his finishing, he’ll score a good amount of goals within 10 feet of the net. The goalie struggles to see the puck around his large frame, and he is quick to turn on rebounds. On limited minutes and limited PP opportunities at BC it is hard to be critical thus far.

IQ (Vision, Anticipation, Panic/Poise):

He looks around before picking up the puck, indicating a good awareness of where his teammates are. This does not translate as well as it should to his decision making though, as he hits the panic button early and forces soft plays into areas where his team is outnumbered. His vision is decent, but he rarely displays it.

His offensive positioning is good and he gets to high danger areas.

Forechecking:

He’s not the most eager forechecker. When he gets engaged in a battle he wins, forces the defensemen to make a bad play, or slows the play down enough for a teammate to come help out nearly every time.

Uses physicality on the forecheck, sometimes abandoning the puck to hit players. Does not hit a ton but lays the boom when he does.

Defense:

Not the most reliable player defensively. When he engages in battles, he can take the puck away or disrupt the play, but he can be out of position relatively frequently.

Turns the puck over frequently, especially when breaking out. He makes some blind passes through the middle to where he thinks the center is, but he’s not always right.

He tends to wander around the D zone gliding and can find himself in bad positions.

Best Asset:

Size. At 18 he is listed at 6’7” 214lbs. He is already as strong as anyone he comes up against, and if he gets stronger, he has the potential to really bully some smaller defensemen at the net front. He could use his body more on the rush to lean into players and shield the puck more. He does this, but not as often as he should given his massive frame.

Biggest Concern:

Panic. It looks like he hates having the puck on his stick. While there have been successful NHL players who were not huge puck possessors, Letourneau would take a huge stride forward by getting more comfortable with the puck. This happens to younger players making jumps in leagues frequently, and it’s only fair to give him more time to work this issue out. It is frustrating to watch as he has decent puck skills, but does not put them on display very often.

Top Tier/Role Potential:

Tier 2

Justification for Top Tier Assessment:

Letourneau has as high BASH potential as any other player, it’s just a matter of how his offense will develop. He has a real shot at being a key piece to a top power play in the NHL. His size and willingness to battle at the net front will lead to a lot of scoring chances for both he and his linemates.

50th Percentile Tier/Role:

Tier 3

Justification for 50th Percentile Tier Assessment:

If he lacks powerplay deployment in the NHL it seems unlikely he would be able to turn into a 30G 80P guy. It seems more likely he ends around 20G 50P with elite BASH.

Stylistic Comparable:

Lawson Crouse, Letourneau’s physicality combined with his eagerness in front of the net looks a lot like Crouse.

Scouts Final Thoughts and Additional Stats/Info:

Letourneau is still raw and his deployment at BC has been limited thus far. There are some parts of his game that have clear NHL potential, but he is still a raw prospect. His development over the next 2 years will be key.

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2024-07-16

Scout: Tony Robinson

Skating:

Decent skater, needs work but very raw. Has a good base.

Passing/Handling:

Average to below average handling, passing is good for his stage in development

Shooting:

Good shooting although as with everything it needs work. does well pick a open spot on rush and get shot away off pass.

IQ (Vision, Anticipation, Panic/Poise):

IQ seems in line with his young age. I would say there is a lack of confidence, so therefore a lack of poise.

Forechecking:

I ddi see some forechecking , but seemed like his lack of confidence kept him from wanting to be caught up ice.

Defense:

A little defense, body player off puck, which you would expect with his size difference against his peers.

Best Asset:

Potential is his best asset. He has a lot of it. Size would be the most noticeable asset. The difference between the 2 games he seems to be learning and not making too many mistakes. It will be interesting to see how college goes.

Biggest Concern:

That he becomes just known for his size. Instead of his hockey ability.

Top Tier/Role Potential:

Tier 2 middle 6.

Justification for Top Tier Assessment:

I just don't think he will ever be a top line player not enough skill to get the amount of goals and assists. BASH could be great.

50th Percentile Tier/Role:

Tier 3. Fourth line maybe a (Matt Rempe type)

Justification for 50th Percentile Tier Assessment:

Too early to tell, needs lots of work and will be given the time to do so.

Stylistic Comparable:

I would say maybe like Jordan Greenway, Kevin Hayes or Adam Lowry

Scouts Final Thoughts and Additional Stats/Info:

So early in his career, He could be like a Patrik Lanine or he could end up like Matt Rempe, He will be an interesting player to watch.

Games Scouted:

1 high School game, 1 USHL game