2021 NHL Draft: Kent Johnson might be the most dynamic player this draft

Will Scouch — a very trustworthy draft analyst that is a must-follow on Twitter and must-watch on YouTube to get a sense of players in any upcoming draft — described Kent Johnson’s game perfectly when he titled his video on the University of Michigan prospect as “If NHL 21 Were Real”.

All you need to do to justify that descriptor is watch this one goal:

Add that to the fact that Johnson has scored not one but two Michigan/Svechnikov goals for the Wolverines this year and it all sums up to an electric player that will no doubt have some NHL team’s social media managers drooling, thinking about all the highlights they get to post.

After watching just a

Depending on what team selects him, Johnson will surely be one to watch in the big leagues and make any team happy for their engagement.

Pre-Draft Rankings

#3 by NHL Central Scouting (NA Skaters)

#10 by Dobber Prospects

#10 by Elite Prospects

#6 by The Athletic/Corey Pronman

#9 by FCHockey

What Scouts Are Saying

-Clare McManus, Dobber Prospects

-Corey Pronman, The Athletic

-Smaht Scouting

-Tony Ferrari, Dobber Prospects

Would He Fit In With The Wild?

Absolutely. A desperate need for offense only leaves the Wild clamoring for forwards to select. Johnson would be an immediate top option for the role of “top prospect” once Marco Rossi hopefully graduates next season and the Wolverine’s future on this team as a top-six center for back-up Rossi or some other man from Buffalo (oops) can only be a welcome sight.

Unfortunately...

Could The Wild Get Him?

If you’ve enjoyed any of our draft profiles in the last week or so, a consistent theme of “lol no” has been prevalent in this section.

It’s still too early in the ranking to even think about the Wild taking one of these players. Even if Johnson drops a little bit, he won’t last beyond the top half of the first round and one team will surely be attracted to him by his highlights and playmaking.

A Minnesota Relation

This one is tough. The Wild don’t have a history of dynamic, skilled centers that can create plays out of nothing, but the most direct historic answer — trying to ignore the current roster out of my own sanity — is Marian Gaborik.

Even though he is not a center, Gaborik is the Wild’s largest offensive talent in franchise history (until Kirill). He was able to score goals at an insane rate and just simply make his teammates better. This isn’t saying that Johnson will have the same career as Gaborik — multiple 40-goal seasons, six All-Star appearances, and a couple Hart Trophy votes — but it’s just more so declaring that they can play a similar role on the ice. Johnson might not have the same shot as Gaborik does, or goal-scoring touch, but he can affect the game to bring everyone up with him.

2021 NHL Draft Board