New York Rangers Defense Prospect Draws Comparison to Toronto Maple Leafs Star Defenseman
Photo credit: EliteProspects
When a prospect receives a comparison to an active NHLer, your ears should perk up. For defenseman EJ Emery, a Rangers prospect has found himself being compared to shutdown defenseman Brandon Carlo of the Toronto Maple Leafs.
For Rangers fans, this should be intriguing, considering NHL.com's own Mike Morreale went out of his way to make the comparison.
For Morreal, the Rangers' 2024 1st-round pick reminds him of Carlo, with his skating abilities, along with the physicality in his game.
«He kind of reminds me of Brandon Carlo,» Morreale told Forever Blueshirts, when discussing Emery. «He's got a high pace to his game and he likes to get physical. Big, long defenseman, skates really well. He likes to defend and close his time and space really, really quickly, covers a lot of area with his length, with his speed. He can get that good first pass out and get the puck quickly up ice. He's a real athletic kid.»
Emery is 19 and developing his game at the collegiate level in the NCAA with the University of North Dakota. We're certain GM Chris Drury would be thrilled if he could end up as a top-four defender on a contending Rangers team.
Comparison's between Carlo and Emery
Both are tall, known for their athletic prowess, and known for their ability to shut down the opposition. Emery still has time to fill out his 6-foot-4, 189-pound frame in college and give him the chance to stop players on the ice every night. Whereas Carlo is 6-foot-5, 220 pounds (37th overall).
The 30th overall Rangers prospect will be honing his skills in the NCAA, compared to Carlo's four seasons in the WHL.
The only major difference between the two is, Carlo has scored 12 goals in two seasons with the Bruins. While Emery isn't particularly known for his offense.
«Emery's never going to be known for his goal scoring, but he's just that physical, shutdown-type player,» Morreale explained. «He absorbs and erases opposing rushes with a real smooth-skating style the Rangers got a good one in Emery when they selected him
Both players are known for their shutdown play, and instead of focusing on offensive matters, clogging the zone, rather than leading the rush.
Previously on NYRangersInsider
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