Tanner Adams scouting report: Is he a fit for someone in NHL Draft?

Could Tanner Adams be chosen in this week's NHL Draft? (Richard T Gagnon/Getty Images)

Tanner Adams (Northport, N.Y.) was one of the youngest players in Division 1 college hockey this past season, but age — just 18 years old — didn’t stop him from making an immediate impact as a freshman at Providence College.

Adams finished second on the team with 21 points, including a team-high 15 assists.

Now he’s a candidate to be selected in the NHL Draft, which begins on Friday.

Joel Beal, assistant coach of the Friars, broke down Adams’ game and how he was able to make his mark going through the rigors of Hockey East at such a young age.

INTANGIBLES

“He was the youngest player on our team this year, but I thought he had a real pro mentality for how he approached practice every day. He was very consistent in his work ethic, in his awareness, in his preparation, in his energy level, kind of every day at practice. A lot of times that’s something that you don’t see with freshmen, especially with young players, and they kind of have to learn when they get to college and then again at the pro level. Tanner really brought that mentality, and he was kind of beyond his years in terms of how he approached every day. I think what that allowed him to do was kind of have a confidence going into every weekend in the games. He stayed relatively consistent throughout the year.”

“He believed in himself. He knew he could play at this level right away, and it showed with his consistent production throughout the year. And I thought we relied on him certainly at 5-on-5 and then quite a bit on the power play as the year went along. It was a real credit to him.”

HOCKEY IQ

“I think his IQ is at an extremely high level. His in-game awareness, his hockey sense, his hockey IQ and his ability to make plays at a high pace, I think really helped Tanner. A lot of guys coming into the league may struggle a little bit with the speed and the pace, and really the lack of time and space that you have to make a lot of plays. But that never really affected Tanner because I think his brain was always one or two plays ahead. I think that hockey IQ really helped him.”

OFFENSIVE SKILLS

“I think he’s an especially good player in his offensive-zone play. What we were trying to do is get Tanner into situations and with lines that are going to be able to spend a lot of time in the offensive zone. That’s really where he shined. We wanted the puck on his stick in the offensive zone. Obviously, on the power play, we’re spending a lot of time in the offensive zone. He was able to make plays at a really high pace when there wasn’t a lot of time and space.”

“We saw (his success) again in Tri-City. He had a big role, was really effective. I guess you never know how it’s going to translate. We tried a lot of guys on the power play, but we felt like it was consistently successful when Tanner was the one with the puck making plays. Again, it’s the IQ, it’s the stick skills that allow him to be really good, and the guys wanted to play with him on the power play.”

ON PREP TIME WITH USHL

“Obviously, you’ve got to be a really smart player (to be good in those situations). I think what you’re noticing (about) a lot of the young players in college hockey this year — the best teams have a lot of really young players … that spent two years in the USHL. It’s a great league, the best feeder system for college hockey. The coaches in that league do a great job. … Tanner spent two years in Tri-City. I think the players that spend two years in that league have a little bit less of a learning curve when they come to college. Tanner had over 100 games of experience in the USHL. He played for the Hlinka team in his U-17 and U-18 years. That path really prepared him.”