Anaheim Ducks select Mason McTavish 3rd overall in NHL Entry Draft

With the third overall pick of the 2021 NHL Entry Draft, the Anaheim Ducks selected center Mason McTavish of the Ontario Hockey League’s Peterborough Petes.

The selection comes as a bit of a surprise to some, with players like William Eklund and Dylan Guenther still available after Buffalo and Seattle selected Owen Power and Matthew Beniers, respectively. However, McTavish going this high isn’t exactly a huge reach.

McTavish began gaining prominence as a prospect in 2019-20 with the Petes, scoring 29 goals in 57 games for a total of 42 points. And while McTavish has mostly played at center, his greatest asset is his shot and goal scoring ability, which is obviously what appealed to Bob Murray and Martin Madden the most.

Due to COVID last year with the OHL shutdown, McTavish was loaned to ECH Olten in the second-tier Swiss pro league. He didn’t look out of place, especially playing against grown men, and put up 11 points in 13 games with 9 goals. However, perhaps his best performance to date came as captain of the U18 World Championship Canada team where he was one of the tournament’s best performers with 11 points in seven games.

McTavish already has NHL-ready size at 6’2” and 207 lbs. He definitely has a mean streak and plays with a nasty edge, which was also undoubtedly appealing to the Ducks. He has one of the best shots in the draft and can fire a bullet from mid-range if the opportunity presents itself. He also has a keen eye for the net, often forcing his way up the center lane to either rip one past the goalie or to dish it to a teammate on his wing. Additionally, he has shown flashes of some good puck handling skills, being especially adept and using his opponent’s skating momentum to deke and create shooting lanes for himself or his teammates.

Despite these great tools, McTavish has a fairly significant risk profile. The first and foremost risk is that he has not played that much hockey over the last year and a half with a grand total of 20 competitive games, which is a crucial development stage for most players at his age.

The other concern is his skating. While he’s not slow, he likely won’t be able to create separation to really let loose his shot, especially in the NHL where even the smallest amount of separation between you and a defender can be the difference between a goal and a blocked shot. Not only that, but his body type means that he will have to work hard to make sure he stays in shape and avoids injuries.

At the end of the day, with proper development, McTavish projects as a great, yet still skilled, physical second line center compliment to the pure skill and finesse of playmaking Trevor Zegras for a potentially lethal 1-2 punch down the middle for Anaheim, or even an effective goal-scoring first line winger if his development goes down a different path.

Check out the highlights below to get a visual feel for the Ducks newest prospect.