9 Pro Comparisons for Top Prospects After the 2025 NHL Draft Combine
The NHL Draft Combine is always a fascinating and quirky event.
The prospects spend the entire week in Buffalo, NY conducting interviews with teams interested in talking to them. Some of those talks are fun and enlightening while others are like a full-on job interview while others try their best to throw the players a curveball to pick their brains. After all, who doesn't want to know what kind of animal a player would be if they could?
Sometimes they're treated to a dinner out with some of those teams to get to know them better and maybe even conduct more psychological tests to see how they handle themselves. But the week closes out with the physical testing in which there are long jumps, shuttle runs and ends with a bike ride where they're very loudly encouraged to push as hard as they can until they maybe puke.
That all leads up to us media folks chatting with them after testing to get our own get-to-know-you cram session and find out who the players want to eventually emulate if/when they reach the NHL. That information is what serves as our inspiration to break down where some of the players we'll see taken near the top of the 2025 NHL Draft see themselves and how fitting that comparison is or isn't.
Sure, the Stanley Cup Final is in full swing, but the draft is coming in the last weekend of June, so it's time to learn a few things.
Matthew Schaefer as Miro Heiskanen
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Erie Otters defenseman Matthew Schaefer is NHL Central Scouting's top-ranked North American prospect. Injury held him to 17 games played this year, but it didn't affect how the scouts saw him perform when he was on the ice.
Schaefer can move the puck well, he can score, and he can play well in his own end of the ice. If he's taken No. 1 by the New York Islanders, he'd be the fourth defenseman to go No. 1 in the past 11 years joining Florida Panthers' Aaron Ekblad (2014) and the Buffalo Sabres duo of Rasmus Dahlin (2018) and Owen Power (2021).
So, who does Schaefer like to watch play defense?
"I love watching Cale Makar, (Miro) Heiskanen, two really smooth skating defensemen," Schaefer said. "I don't think there's a guy I really model my game after. I love watching (Chris) Tanev on the PK block shots, kill penalties. I want to be that defenseman that can play all over the ice, whatever the coaches need."
Being the top defenseman in a draft class will automatically bring the top comparisons, but it's how he stressed the defensive side of the game that gets us thinking about Heiskanen most of all.
"With elite skating, hockey sense and defensive skills, he projects to be a top pairing defenseman," Shane Malloy of Hockey Prospect Radio said. "Schaefer is a star in the making."
Michael Misa as Kirill Kaprizov
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Scorers always get the big hype in drafts and Michael Misa from OHL Saginaw forced everyone to pay attention to him based on being an absolute offensive monster.
Misa was the OHL's leading scorer with 134 points including 62 goals in 65 games and he's ranked second among North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting. Averaging more than two points per game and being captain of his team at age 17/18 provides some astounding perspective. He's played on the wing, he's played center, but wherever he was on the ice goals followed in bunches. If that sounds a little bit like how it goes for Kirill Kaprizov from the Minnesota Wild, that's not a coincidence.
"Kirill Kaprizov and (Nikita) Kucherov, I do know they are both wingers, but I think what they do on the ice I can play to in a lot of ways," Misa said. "The way they drive themselves offensively, their playmaking ability, just stuff when I watch them, I can hopefully see myself like in the future."
The best part of being brilliantly talented and with a bright future ahead is that making the highest of high skill guys you want to emulate and pull inspiration from is more than proper to do. If you want to be the best, you want to be like the best and Misa wants that badly.
"Misa's elite skating, hockey sense and dual threat skills make him a game changer," Malloy said. "His ability to drive play, create space and anticipate the game sets him apart."
With the kind of moves he has on the ice and the creativity he plays with, Misa bringing a Kaprizov-like ability to another team in the NHL would make the league even more entertaining, especially if he winds up playing with Macklin Celebrini, Will Smith and William Eklund in San Jose.
James Hagens as Jack Hughes
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As the No. 3 ranked North American skater by Central Scouting, James Hagens entered his draft season as one of the most hyped prospects. Although Matthew Schaefer and Michael Misa have nosed ahead of him, the Long Island native Hagens shined in his freshman year at Boston College.
Hagens's size, slickness with the puck and his overall offensive skill are more than attention grabbing. His 37 points in 37 games for the Eagles showed he was able to jump in right away and succeed and BC returned to glory of sorts landing a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
It's hard to not think of another American star forward from recent years when watching Hagens, New Jersey Devils star Jack Hughes, and it's his ability that Hagens likens to his own game.
"I see a lot of similarities in his game that I see in mine," Hagens said. "The way he skates, the way he sees the ice, the way he scans, things like that."
Although Hughes didn't go to college the way his brothers Quinn and Luke did, his prolific offense with the US National Team Development Program made him the No. 1 pick in the 2019 Draft. If Hagens's game can translate similarly to the NHL, one NHL team is going to be very happy, albeit a Hughes comparison is quite a lofty one.
"Hagens boasts brilliant edge work, nimble playmaking and goal scoring ability with potential for being a top-end center or first line winger," Malloy said.
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Porter Martone as Brady Tkachuk
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While a lot of young players who score and fill the net do it with high-end skill and playmaking, that's not all there is to hockey. The more physical side of the game can lead to big-time success and that's what Porter Martone has done to boost his profile headed into the draft.
At 6'3" 208 pounds, Martone is big and plays with a rabid competitive nature. He had 37 goals and 94 points for Brampton in the OHL and he's the sixth ranked North American skater by Central Scouting.
"He's a dual threat with elite shooting and passing, Martone's playmaking and deceptive shooting draw immediate comparisons to Corey Perry and Brady Tkachuk," Malloy said. "His size, combative style and offensive zone prowess make him a playoff-ready, power forward asset."
Playing that style of hockey is demanding and for someone at 18 years old, there's a lot to learn about doing it the right way. That said, playing the game his way landed him a spot on Canada's World Junior team as well as a spot at the World Championships in May. Still, playing hard-nosed, physical hockey means getting in scrums and sometimes settling scores and there's a method to it.
"I think a big thing I learned this year is when to do it," Martone said. "It's kind of on my time. I don't let other people take me off of my game and me doing that every single time. You see Tkachuk in the playoffs and it's his time. He chooses what he does when he creates that stuff because I feel like for myself, I'm a very offensive player and I want to create plays so I can't spend all my time in the penalty box."
Caleb Desnoyers as Jonathan Toews
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As much as NHL teams love players that can fill the net, they also love forwards that can do that and thrive defensively. For Moncton's Caleb Desnoyers, the two-way game is what he's taken the most pride in and said he models his own game after Jonathan Toews.
"I'm a competitive centerman, versatile, big factor that makes the players around me better," Desnoyers said. "Also, a leader. I'm pretty vocal on the ice."
Desnoyers had 84 points in 56 games with Moncton and another 30 in 19 playoff games as he helped lead them to winning the QMJHL title and a spot in the Memorial Cup. His dogged style of play mixed with his abilities at both ends of the ice gives him the kind of traits that coaches dream of having in all of their players.
If that doesn't remind you of Toews and his time with the Chicago Blackhawks, then we don't know what else to tell you.
"Known for his intelligent, structured play, he shines in defensive duties and penalty killing, while his crisp passing fuels elite playmaking," Malloy said. "He thrives in big moments."
Anton Frondell as Aleksander Barkov
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When analyzing young players, usually the easiest thing to do is compare them with players from their own country and say they could be just like them if everything goes well. In Anton Frondell's case, the Swede cited Finland's Aleksander Barkov as the player he most wants to emulate.
"Good size, strong, good hockey sense," Frondell said describing Barkov. "Smart hockey player who likes to compete, I play like him."
Having the confidence to model and compare his own game didn't stop with Barkov, he also said he looks to Anze Kopitar for his two-way ability and said he's got a good shot like Leon Draisaitl. With role models like that, it's no wonder that Frondell is the No. 1 ranked European skater by Central Scouting.
It's not all talk, however, the numbers and results back it up. As a 17-year-old, Frondell put up 25 points in 29 games with Djurgårdens in Sweden and helped them win the Allsvenskan title and earn promotion back to the SHL. Players that age in a men's league don't often get the chance to contribute that much, and yet, he did.
"He has a pro style body and a mature game," Malloy said. "Boasting an elite one-timer, Frondell shines with his off-puck play, physicality and versatility and has an NHL-ready style of play."
Whether he's more like Barkov, Kopitar, Draisaitl, Jesper Bratt or Filip Forsberg or some kind of conglomeration of them all, he won't be on the board too long come draft time.
Victor Eklund as Travis Konecny
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Considering that Victor Eklund has his older brother, San Jose's William Eklund, already thriving in the NHL, you'd think that would make for the easiest comparison. Then again, how often do siblings wind up being exactly the same? While William is proving to be a smooth skating offensive threat with the Sharks, Victor enjoys mucking things up and scoring goals.
"People have compared me to Travis Konecny so I model my game after him," Eklund said.
Konecny is a curious comparison because he's known for scoring points, yes, but also driving opponents up a wall with his persistence and knack for pushing buttons.
"He likes to (get under other player's skin)," Anton Frondell said. "He likes to talk and be tough. He's not the biggest guy but he's playing like it sometimes. He has pride, too, he gets angry if we lose. It means so much to him."
Frondell and Eklund are teammates at Djurgårdens and they were able to lead the team to the Allsvenskan title. Eklund had 19 goals and 31 points in 47 games and, like Frondell, was able to put up those kinds of numbers as 18-year-old in a men's league.
Eklund's size (5'11"; 161 pounds) could be an issue for teams, but if he takes the Konecny comparisons to heart, finding a consistent role in the NHL won't be difficult, it'll just be really annoying for opposing teams to deal with him.
Radim Mrtka as Moritz Seider
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While Matthew Schaefer is the top-rated defenseman in the 2025 draft class, teams always need help on the blue line and going beyond Schaefer, one of the most intriguing players likely to go in the first half of the first round is Radim Mrtka.
Mrtka is nearly 6'6" and 207 pounds and a righthanded shooting defenseman which automatically checks a lot of boxes for teams. He's a big guy with a long reach and now that he's playing in the WHL with Seattle, he's also learning how to make more use of that size to be physical. All of those physical traits as well as his 35 points in 43 games helped him land fifth on Central Scouting's list of North American skaters.
Mrtka said he models his game most after Victor Hedman and Moritz Seider and it's Seider that really makes sense. In Seider's draft year, he was an intriguing prospect because of his size and ability and also that he was coming out of Germany where it's uncommon to have first-round type talent. Mrtka is from Czechia and Czech defensemen aren't common in the NHL these days. Just five defensemen from Czechia played in the league this season.
"I want to be better offensively and get better in every detail of the game," Mrtka said.
Any player his size is going to have GMs and coaches clamoring for them to be more physical with their play to help shut down and make games hard on opponents. Mrtka said he had hold off on playing that way because he'd be penalized for being bigger than whoever he was hitting. But if that part of his game catches up to his offensive and positioning instincts, the sky is the limit.
Jake O'Brien as Wyatt Johnston
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It's always wild to hear the name of another young player being mentioned by an even younger player when it comes to who inspires their play. When Brantford's Jake O'Brien cited Dallas Stars forward Wyatt Johnston as someone he models his own play after, it was surprising but also made a world of sense.
"He's very good with the puck, deceptive," O'Brien said. "Just the way he thinks the game. I think he's very deceptive in the way he kind of looks to pass and then has a good shot, He can really score goals, and I try to play like him."
O'Brien was ranked fourth by Central Scouting among North American skaters and his 32 goals and 98 points would've already made a strong case for him to be taken early anyway. As a center, distributing the puck often takes priority offensively, but with as many goals as he scored and Johnston as an inspiration, he could be a center that does it all and more.
If O'Brien is able to make an impact on his new team as quickly as Johnston was able to, the team that drafts him will have a lot of reasons to be excited.
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