Returning Winterhawk Profile: #23 Dominic Turgeon

(Editors Note: In the countdown to the Winterhawks season opener; I will be looking, individually, at each returning player)

Next Up (in numerical fashion): #23 Dominic Turgeon

Born: 2/25/1996
Hometown: Cherry Hills, Colorado
Position: Center
How Acquired: 3rd Round (64th Overall) Bantam Draft Pick in 2011 Draft

NHL Drafted: Detroit Red Wings 3rd Round (64th Overall) in 2014. Unsigned.

Stats:
-2011/12 (As a 15 Year Old): 1 Game Played, 0 Goals, 0 Assists, 0 Points, 0, 0 Penalty Minutes.
-2012/13: 54 GP, 3 G, 5 A, 8 Pts, -2, 2 PIMs.
               Playoffs: 5 GP, 0 G, 0 A, 0 Pts, 0, 0 PIMs.
-2013/14: 65 GP, 10 G, 21 A, 31 Pts, +18, 31 PIMs.
               Playoffs: 21 GP, 2 G, 6 A, 8 Pts, 18 PIMs.

Analysis:
-Turgeon is the son of the Pierre Turgeon, who put up over 1,200 NHl points and was the #1 overall pick in 1987. He is likely used to this being everybody's lead in to him as a player. Last season, he began to make his own way in the mind of the casual WHL fan. Dominic has NHL ready size and last season showed some elite flashes of stick-handling wizardry. He is the odd player who,at a young age has a great grasp of defensive awareness and with his size and reach, he is already the Winterhawk top penalty killer, going into this season. It's his offensive game that needs more consistency. At times, he seems like he doesn't know where the next play is going and his one timer and wrist shot needs more accuracy. Whether or not his lack of scoring was due to this or just because he was not asked to do this, we will find out this year. If he improves in the offensive game, I think Detroit will have found a steal in the 3rd round with Turgeon.

Outlook:
-Dominic played for Team USA in the Ivan Hlinka last year and should be a finalist to make the roster this year. Seeing as how it's his first year at NHL camp, he will probably not miss any time to start the season, but could definitely make the U.S. team and miss time around New Year's. He has the size and defensive awareness that will make him desirable to the U.S. coaches. He looks to either be the Center or wing on Portland's second line and this increased playing time will benefit his growth as a player and should increase his offensive output. He scored 3 points (including a 2 goal game) in 4 preseason games, so there is cause to believe he could have a breakout season as an 18 year old. He was also wearing an "A" in the preseason and shows great leadership abilities. If he is not named the Captain this season, he will definitely be it next season. I see him developing into a top notch player this season, as he can play in any situation and does not make many mistakes.


Previous Returning Winterhawk Profiles: Alex Schoenborn, Nic Petan, Tyson Predinchuk, Keegan Iverson, Adam De Champlain, Chase De Leo, Paul Bittner, Josh Hanson, Ethan Price, Anton Cederholm, Brendan Burke