Sault Ste Marie Greyhounds F Hayden Verbeek – Draft Eligible Prospects With NHL Bloodline’s
By Ryan Ritchie
Sault Ste Marie Greyhounds F Hayden Verbeek – Prospects with NHL Bloodline’s
Sault Ste Marie Greyhounds F Hayden Verbeek is number 10 on our list in a series dedicated to draft-eligible prospects with current or past family ties to the NHL. Hayden is the nephew of former NHLer Pat Verbeek, drafted 43rd overall (3rd Round) by New Jersey back in 1982.
Matthew Tkachuk, Jakob Chychrun, Alex Nylander, Kieffer Bellows, and Logan Brown are the first names to come to mind for 2016 draft-eligible prospects with current/or former NHL bloodline’s.
Both Keith Tkachuk and Michael Nylander had long, successful careers. Brian Bellows played nearly 1200 games, producing more than 1000 points. Jeff Brown also had a solid career posting 585 points in 747 points from the back-end. Jeff Chychrun was a 1984 draft pick, a veteran of 262 games playing until 1993-94, finishing his career with AHL Cape Breton.
We are featuring 15 draft-eligible prospects with NHL bloodline’s/family ties. The 2016 NHL Entry Draft will be held on June 24-25 in Buffalo, New York at the First Niagara Center.
NHL Bloodline’s: Sault Ste Marie Greyhounds F Hayden Verbeek
Sault Ste Marie Greyhounds F Hayden Verbeek
Uncle: Pat Verbeek
One of those great NHLers who fell a little shy of having their career deemed Hall of Fame worthy.
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In 1982-93, Pat Verbeek appeared in six games for New Jersey, tallying five points. He returned to OHL Sudbury, producing 107 points in 61 games during his final OHL season. Pat also played for Team Canada at the World Juniors, posting four points in seven games.
He joined the NHL full-time in 1983-84, and spent the next six seasons playing for the Devils. Verbeek accumulated 321 points over 463 regular season games, including 943 penalty minutes (only missed triple-digits in one season) with New Jersey. They only made one playoff appearance over that span (1987-88) – Verbeek had 12 points in 20 games.
Pat Verbeek was traded during the 1989 offseason to Hartford in exchange for Sylvain Turgeon.
One year later in 1990-91, Pat wore the “A” on his jersey. Then another year later, he was handed the “C”, in which he dawned until 1994-95. Pat spent nearly six seasons in Hartford from 1989-89 until he was traded at the 1995 trade deadline.
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Verbeek produced 403 points in 433 regular season games with the Whalers, including 1091 penalty minutes (228,246,243,197,177). Hartford made the playoffs during Verbeek’s first three seasons, falling short in the first round each time, losing in game seven twice, and game six once. Pat had 11 points over those 20 games.
Pat Verbeek was unloaded to the New York Rangers in exchange for Glen Featherstone, Michael Stewart, 1st Round Pick (Jean-Sebastian Giguere), and a 4th Round Pick.
He scored 10 goals, five assists (15 points) in 19 games down the stretch, adding 10 points in 10 playoff matches. Spending one more year with the Rangers in 1995-96, Verbeek produced 82 points in 69 games, adding nine points in 11 playoff contests.
Pat signed with Dallas during the 1996 offseason, spending the next three seasons with them. He totaled 144 points in 241 regular season games. The Dallas Stars made the playoffs all three seasons, and Verbeek tallied 16 points in three playoff appearances (42-game span). He won his first Stanley Cup with Dallas in 1998-99.
Pat Verbeek spent 1999-00 and 2000-01 with Detroit, posting 78 points in 125 games. He also had four points in 14 playoff games. He re-joined Dallas for his final NHL season in 2001-02, producing 20 points in 64 games.
Over his 20-year NHL career, Pat Verbeek appeared in 1424 games. He scored 522 goals, 541 assists (1063 points). He also accumulated 2905 penalty minutes over that span. Pat appeared in 117 playoff games, tallying 62 points.
He took a job as a Scout with Detroit back in 2006-07, where he stayed until 2009-10. Pat was hired the following year as Director of Professional Scouting for Tampa Bay. In 2012-13, Verbeek was promoted to a duel position as Director of Player Personnel/Assistant General Manager. He has served in those two roles ever since.
Yes, that is correct. Pat Verbeek was largely the mastermind behind players such as Tyler Johnson, Ondrej Palat, and Nikita Kucherov – among others.
Verbeek was even named Director of Player Personnel for Team North America at September’s World Cup of Hockey.
Pat Facts:
– He suited up for Canada at two World Championships (1988-89, 1993-94)
– Pat also played for Canada at the World Cup of Hockey event in 1995-96
– Verbeek participated in two All-Star Games (1990-91 and 1995-96).
– His nickname, “The Little Ball of Hate”, was given to him in 1995 by Glenn Healy after fellow New York Rangers teammate Ray Ferraro was tagged as the “Big Ball of Hate”. [Wikipedia]
– On May 15, 1985, one of Verbeek’s thumbs was cut off by an auger in a farming accident. Thanks to his father and brother his thumb was saved, and after extensive rehabilitation, Verbeek returned to hockey. He did not miss any regular-season NHL games because of the injury [Wikipedia]
– On April 18, 1988, Verbeek used his skate to cut the leg of Washington Capitals defenseman Rod Langway. The NHL ruled the incident accidental, but the episode added to the Patrick Division rivalry between Washington and New Jersey. [Wikipedia]
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Sault Ste Marie Greyhounds F Hayden Verbeek – 164th Ranked North American Skater (NHL Central Scouting Mid-Term Rankings)
While Pat Verbeek is the only NHL product, the family itself is highly entwined in the hockey world. Hayden’s Father (Pat’s Brother), Brian, played NCAA hockey. His Cousin Kyle Verbeek (Pat’s Son), and uncle Gerard also played college hockey.
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Hayden’s uncle Tim Verbeek was closest to making it to the NHL. He played OHL junior hockey for Kitchener, Sarnia, and Barrie in the late 90s, and went on to play several seasons between the ECHL and AHL.
Hayden Verbeek also has a 19-year-old brother that currently plays for Kingston in the OHL. He was passed over in the NHL draft the past two years.
Almost assured to be drafted in June, Hayden is currently playing his 2nd full OHL campaign after a short five-game appearance in 2013-14. He had 10 points in 51 games as a rookie for Sault Ste. Marie in 2014-15. Seeing an expanded role, and additional ice-time in 2015-16, Hayden continues to show improvement.
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Apologies for the video quality below, it can sometimes be difficult to find video on prospects. This goes back to Hayden’s 2013-14 season with OJHL Chatham, but it gives you a glimpse of his offensive attributes.
via Sportsnet,
January’s NHL Central Scouting rankings had Verbeek ranked as a late-round pick among North American skaters for the June draft in Buffalo.
“His compete, the way he works and the way he competes, he sets a level that a lot of guys can’t play at and that’s just constant with him whether in games or in practices,” said Greyhounds’ coach Drew Bannister.
In addition to centring his team’s top line, Bannister uses Verbeek on the Greyhounds penalty kill.
“He was a guy that was on the outside looking in on a very deep team, but just forced his way into the lineup and ended up being an important part of our team because of how he can skate and how relentless he is,” said former Greyhounds coach Sheldon Keefe, now behind the bench for the AHL’s Toronto Marlies.
The speedy, playmaking forward isn’t afraid to get in the corners. The shifty nature of his skating coupled with his vision on the ice helps set him apart.
Verbeek skates on a line with draft-eligible players Boris Katchouk and Tim Gettinger, and the trio believes the success of the line will help each individual when it comes time to draft.
Next: NHL Bloodline's: Prospect Ben Hawerchuk
2016 Draft-Eligible Prospects With NHL Bloodline’s:
*NHL family ties in parentheses
| Ty Ronning (Cliff) | Riley Stillman (Cory) | Graham McPhee (George) | Kenny Johnson (Jack) | Casey Fitzgerald (Tom) | Mathieu Sevigny (Pierre) | Luke McInnis (Marty) | Hudson Elynuik (Pat) | Ben Hawerchuk (Dale) | Hayden Verbeek (Pat) | Garrett Pilon (Rich) | Kelly and Kevin Klima (Petr) | David Quenneville (John, Joel) | Fredrik Forsberg (Filip) | Kristian Reichel (Robert)
In 2015-16, Sault Ste Marie Greyhounds F Hayden Verbeek has 11 goals, 18 assists (29 points) in 57 games so far. They’ve recently clinched a playoff spot, offering Verbeek one more opportunity to make a strong impression on scouts.