Slater Koekkoek

A very mobile defenseman with some fine offensive skills. Hockey sense is quite good and he passes and shoots the puck well. Some leadership qualities too. Admirable work-ethic. Overall a solid all-round defenseman. (EP 2012)

"Koekkoek has size, skating ability, physicality, and an offensive game that could combine to form a player who could very well be the homerun pick of the draft." (scoutingreport.org)

"He’s very good defensively, especially while defending rushes (which can be tough). He’s tough to beat one-on-one, he’s physical, he uses his body well to rub players off the puck and he’s just a tough guy in general to play against. He’s not overly big, but he uses the size and strength he does have very well. Koekkoek is a great skater, very good on the rush, and he knows when to jump into the play and when to stay back. I’d say his transition game as a whole is fantastic. Koekkoek has outstanding vision and is a very good passer which makes him quite effective on the powerplay. He has a pretty good shot, too. With his solid defensive play, it’s safe to say he is more than capable of killing penalties, as well. A few more things that I really like about him is that he’s not afraid to block shots, he never takes shifts off and will do whatever it takes to win." (mynhldraft.com)

"Mark Seidel, chief scout for the North American Central Scouting, calls Koekkoek 'physical and smart.' He’s a smooth skater that carries the puck well enough to lead rushes up the ice, but won’t leave his team hanging at the other end." (prohockeytalk.com)

"May have the highest ceiling of any defensemen in the draft...has excellent size and a frame that can support more mass...very mobile skater, strong on his edges, and has good first step explosion...very tenacious presence on the ice, making him a hard player to go up against...makes crisp tape to tape passes...very adept at skating the puck up the ice and making intelligent reads...great work ethic...battles for position in front of his net...has a heavy shot that gets through to the net...until his injury he was logging over 30 minutes a game for Peterborough...positioning and gap control can be inconsistent, but can be corrected through coaching...shoulder injury and subsequent surgery has caused him to be a forgotten player...was willing to wear a harness and play." (firstroundbust.com)

"A very intelligent defenseman with top hockey sense. Extremely mobile and loves to jump into the attack. Has a dynamic burst and straight-line speed. Sound puck mover who makes a good first pass out of the zone when time permits. Has the skills to be an offensive threat and point producer. A very strong snap shot. Not a physical player and appears content to just tie up his check in the defensive end. Uses his smarts and skating ability to avoid checkers. At times seems hurried in the defensive zone and can be pressured into coughing up the puck. Season-ending shoulder injury in November required surgery. Before that, he had become the Petes' go-to man despite his youth. Not coincidentally, the Petes dropped steadily in the standings after losing him."

Projection: Mobile, 2nd pairing puck mover.
Style compares to: Kevin Shattenkirk" (Red Line Report)

"Slater plays the game with a combination of competitiveness and determination that helps teams win. He's an excellent skater who can close down the play very quickly and deny offensive chances when they appear inevitable. He uses his body very effectively and along with his skating, he doesn't give opponents much choice or opportunity to go around or through him. He's not punishing but it's not enjoyable to play versus him because he doesn't let up in his determination to stop you. His skating also allows him to get the puck moving ahead very quickly and very effectively and he continues to explore the offensive side of his game and try to contribute in this area as well and become a well-rounded player. His puck skills are good and while there may not be a lot of deception or faking when he has the puck, there is efficiency to his puck play. He has the ability to play lots of minutes and with that type of endurance and his size, he'll be valuable in the areas that require so-called 'heavy lifting' but leads to winning." (Craig Button, TSN)