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Capitals select forward Brett Leason in second round of 2019 NHL Draft

By Chris Cerullo

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June 22, 2019 2:19 pm

The Washington Capitals second selection of the 2019 NHL Draft came at #56 overall in the second round. With that pick, the Caps grabbed forward Brett Leason from the WHL’s Prince Albert Raiders.

Leason is an overager at 20-years-old, but is considered a potential steal.

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Leason, a twice undrafted overager, had a tremendous breakout season in the WHL for the Raiders in 2018-19. The six-foot, four-inch, 201-pound forward was also a member of Canada’s most recent U20 World Junior Championship squad where he recorded five points in five games.

As the 25th ranked North American skater by Central Scouting, the 20-year-old Leason posted 36 goals and 89 points in 55 games for the Raiders and also added 10 goals and 25 points in 22 playoff games for the WHL champions. This was his fourth season playing in the WHL, as he was previously a member of the Tri-City Americans.

Sportsnet’s coverage of the draft was highly favorable of the selection and even labeled Leason the potential steal of the draft.

“I don’t think there’s any question [he’s a steal],” a Sportsnet analyst said. “There’s rawness in him even though he’s a 20-year-old. So here’s the story with this guy. Taken in the third round by Tri-City a couple of years ago, in his first 12 games last year, he had one goal. Prince Albert went out and acquired him. In the final 54 games of the season, he put up 32 points. And then he realizes, ‘you know what? I might not be bad at this thing.’ So he decides to train a little bit. He’s doing his landscaping job, working on his skating, he gets points in his first 30 games. He makes Canada’s World Junior team. All of a sudden, they’re like ‘who is this dude?’

“Well, he’s a guy that a lot of people expected to be that guy when Tri-City took him in the third round. And now he’s a guy who is unstoppable. Dominant at certain points this year. The thing about being a right-shot guy, he’s really good at disrupting the breakout. He strips puck. There is a bit of a Mark Stone comparison when it comes to Brett Leason.”

Highlights

Draft interview

Headline photo: Sportsnet

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