Calgary Flames Draft Profile: Logan Brown

With the Calgary Flames picking 6th overall at the upcoming NHL entry draft, it is imperative that they land a talented player, so is behemoth center Logan Brown a good option for the club?

Calgary Flames fans have probably heard a lot about Auston Matthews and Patrik Laine thanks to the fact that Toronto media often blitzes sports news in Canada with everything related to the “6” and all its sports teams, regardless of how talented they actually are.

While the Flames won’t have a shot at either of the hyped rookies Matthews or Laine, they still have an excellent shot at getting a good player. Players like Pierre-Luc Dubois and Matthew Tkachuk are the next best available after the top three of Matthews-Laine-Puljujärvi are taken off the board.

But what happens after that? It seems no one is quite sure as several names have been tossed around at this point from every blogger and draft expert around. One name that has picked up some steam as of late is Logan Brown. Logan is the son of former NHLer Jeff Brown.

Logan was born in Raleigh, North Carolina but has dual citizenship and has played for both Canada and the United States internationally, most recently suiting up for the Americans at the U-18’s where he scored 12 points in 7 games.

Logan played center for the Windsor Spitfires of the OHL, scoring 74 points in 59 games, including 53 assists. Brown is obviously more of a playmaker, but his shot is fairly decent too, he just needs to learn to use it more. The most interesting aspect about Brown is his size, at 6 foot 6 and 218 pounds, Brown is an absolute beast and is likely the biggest forward available in the draft.

While he does have great size, don’t expect a Milan Lucic type player. Brown is very adept at protecting pucks and using his size to shield away the opposition, but he isn’t very mean although he has started to finish more checks recently. Here is what some scouts had to say about Brown:

“Brown is a huge center that excels at both ends of the ice. He can be dominant in the offensive zone but takes care of his own end as well. His 6’6 frame is key to his success as he uses his body to shield his puck and his reach to keep it off other players sticks. He is not overly physical for a player his size, but will finish every check and battle down low very effectively. He has a good shot with a pro like release as well as good creativity and maturity when passing the puck. “(Tyler Parchem, EP 2016)

“The OHL player of the week, Brown is a towering center with a nice shot, though he is primarily a playmaker. The son of ex-NHLer and current OHL Ottawa coach Jeff Brown, Logan posted seven points in three games to earn the league-wide honour.” (Ryan Kennedy of The Hockey News)

“A tall, lanky power forward that possesses a dangerous shot that he can get on net from anywhere on the ice. He is not afraid to use his frame to muscle his way to the net or work the boards. Possesses impressive vision and playmaking ability from the outside and has the unique blend of imposing Big Rig size with solid speed although improvement to his first two steps is required. Needs to continue to add strength to his frame and bring more consistency to his overall game. Has high-end top line NHL upside.” (Future Considerations )

Logan Brown is the type of player that fans will look at 5 years after the draft and say, wow why didn’t he go higher? But unfortunately he also has the potential to be the next Joe Colborne, a player with ultra-size and skill but simply can’t put it together consistently at the next level.

His size and playmaking certainly are intriguing as he has drawn comparisons to Joe Thornton of the San Jose Sharks, one of the best playmakers in the game. If Brown can continue to add muscle to his frame and become more assertive on the ice, he could be a steal.

As mentioned by the scouting reports, he does have a wicked shot. From what I have seen later in the year, Brown started shooting pucks more, which is an encouraging sign his game is growing in the right direction. Also worth noting is his dominant U-18 performance where he opened a lot of people’s eyes, leaving some people to rank him as high as fourth overall in the draft rankings.

There have been some rumblings that Brown could go to Vancouver as they desperately search for the very elusive number one-centre, but I think they go with Dubois if he is available. Some mock drafts do have Brown falling out of the top-ten however, but I wouldn’t expect to see that happen as players with the size and talent of Brown are almost as rare as an Oiler playoff appearance.

The Calgary Flames really don’t need another center-man with Sean Monahan and Sam Bennett giving the club a great one-two punch down the middle. With Mikael Backlund playing the best hockey of his career and Mark Jankowski developing in the minors, there really isn’t a need at center.

However, drafting Brown would give the Flames one of the biggest center-groups in the league and could allow the Flames to move Bennett to the wing where the Flames would have John Gaudreau– Sean Monahan and Sam Bennett-Logan Brown in their top-six.

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Drafting Brown would also fill a need as the Flames are one of the smallest teams in the league, although Brown isn’t as physical as Dubois or Tkachuk. It is easy to see why teams could fall in love with Brown, he has a high offensive ceiling and is one of the best passers available in the draft, and oh yeah he’s a giant at 6 foot 6. You just don’t see players with incredible size and skill very often, so when you have a shot at drafting them, you usually don’t look that gift horse in the mouth.

One thing to note about Brown is the fact that he likely isn’t NHL ready despite having NHL size. Brown is a solid two-way player, but playing center in junior versus the NHL are two very different things. Brown also boasts decent wheels and has a strong shot, but could add more muscle to his frame and become more explosive. Taking all this into account expect Logan to go back for at least another year of junior and likely feature prominently at the World Juniors for team USA as their number one center. But in 2-3 years time, Brown could be ready to make an impact at the NHL.

I still would have Dubois and Tkachuk over Brown at this point as I like their physicality and I feel they have separated themselves a little bit, particularly Dubois. But if both of those players are gone by the time the Flames select, and it is quite possible, than Brown could be an intriguing way to add size and still get a highly skilled player in the process.

Is he better than smallish but ultra-skilled Swede Alex Nylander? Who knows, but at least the Flames can make that decision at number six instead of being stuck with whoever is left. Personally, I wouldn’t mind either Nylander or Brown at six if both Tkachuk and Dubois are gone.

If the decision for a forward comes down to Alex Nylander or Logan Brown, than I would give the slight edge to Brown as I feel he has the potential to make more of an impact at the NHL level given his incredible size and upward trajectory. If Brown continues developing and getting more assertive on the ice, he could become one of the best players taken in this year’s draft.

Next: Draft Profile: Alex Nylander

Whether Brown becomes the next Joe Thornton or Joe Colborne, the risk seems to be worth it as the young man continued to look better and better as the season wore on. While he won’t lead the Flames in hits, the young man has the potential to be an impact player on a skilled Flames team, and at the very least is an interesting option at number six for the Calgary Flames.