Tate Olson | D

[N4ZZY]

Olson is really surprising me especially him being a 7th round pick. he's progressing quite well it sounds like. pretty happy if he ever makes it to the NHL. would be a feel good story for sure. love the late round picks that make it to the NHL. Hansen was a 9th round pick wasn't he? look at what he's doing as he's entering his prime years. good for him. hope Tate makes it. even if it means he's a 3rd pairing guy down the road. that in my opinion for a seventh round pick, would be deemed as a success. 

[Ossi Vaananen]

Benning is good with late rounders. Historically, he's landed Miller in the 5th, Gaustad in the 7th, and Wideman in the 8th. That's just his Buffalo days as  head scout, and those are just the guys currently still playing. Benning also liked Stewart (7th rounder) enough to throw him a contract last year. 

 

We could really have something with Olson, hope he keeps it up.

[tyhee]

On Thursday February 18, 2016 at 3:17 PM, Hutton Wink said:

Remember how just before McDavid went down, they were all excited at how well he was working with him?  Shoulda BJ MacDonald'd him.

Otoh, neither Berry nor Lariviere produced anything worthwhile for the Oilers after they got them for MacDonald, so perhaps isn't such a worthwhile move.
 

[VegasCanuck]

You sometimes get the right kid, who has all the tools and attitude, but maybe needed better direction and coaching, can sometimes really pay off for you.

 

Here's hoping!

[higgyfan]

Every year he seems to double his production.  This could end up being a fantastic pick for the Canucks.  A late bloomer who appears to have landed in an environment that has helped him find his game.

[BeefcakeBo]

On 21/02/2016 at 0:30 AM, clam linguine said:

A goal for Tate in a 3-1 win over Red Deer Saturday. +- was even.

Lol the goal was a shot that was deflected by a defenseman and then bounced off the backboards and then went in off the back of the goaltenders skate. It was pretty much a complete fluke. 

 

He also scored on Saturday in a loss. That goal was a little better. 

[clam linguine]

12 hours ago, LarsEller said:

Lol the goal was a shot that was deflected by a defenseman and then bounced off the backboards and then went in off the back of the goaltenders skate. It was pretty much a complete fluke. 

 

He also scored on Saturday in a loss. That goal was a little better. 

lol...I was going to jokingly say it was a 60 foot slapshot top corner to add some color. Lucky me.

[Derp...]

Not Ranked at as a top 20 Canucks prospect by Hockeys Future Spring 2016 along with Neill. Top 5 from Button, but couldn't crack the HF top 20? Seem's strange to me.
 

[Chronic.Canuck]

Hockey's Future is a joke lol

[wshdrvvn]

10 hours ago, Derp... said:

Not Ranked at as a top 20 Canucks prospect by Hockeys Future Spring 2016 along with Neill. Top 5 from Button, but couldn't crack the HF top 20? Seem's strange to me.
 

HF rankings are always screwy.  I feel they just do a broad overview generally.

[RonMexico]

1 hour ago, Chronic.Canucks.Fan said:

Hockey's Future is a joke lol

I agree. It's just someone's opinion. Take it for what it's worth (not much).

[Rollieo Del Fuego]

Tate should be in over Cederholm and Petit anyway, Probably Sautner as well, it's hard to put him higher just yet, let's see how his playoffs go.

If he has grown 10 Lbs or more that alone would increase his rating in my book.

[clam linguine]

3 assists and +3 in two games against Spokane this weekend. A 4-1 win and 3-2 loss.

[Dutch_Canuck]

Hoping to see a good effort by Tate today, going to see him play my league leading Royals tonight. 

[Dutch_Canuck]

Tate played well last night even in the 6-2 loss. The Cougars lost composure in the 3rd period and goals started to go in at will for the Royals. They dominated the first 5 minutes, and continued to play good shut down hockey for the first half of the period. Then the Royals took over and controlled the game the rest of the way. 

 

Back to Tate, seemed to me he was on the 2nd pairing and 1st PP, he played well positionally. I was impressed at how composed he looked with the puck in his own zone, and his passes we're crisp coming out of the zone. His goal was a nice one timer setup of an offensive zone face off, and he wired it five hole on Vollrath.

 

He generated a lot for his team while they were in offensive zone, and I would say he was the best defenseman for the Cougars, with Sam Ruopp being a close second. He did make a bad pinch or two, but nothing to worry about as he should learn as he grows. There was a play that he made where he let the winger come to him and he spun around him, passed down low and created a good scoring chance. He does have a little flair to him, hopefully that continues to develop. Overall a good game by him, but a bad game by the team as a whole. 

[stonecoldstevebernier]

Olson didn't play in tonight's final game, so his season comes to a close with 9-38-47 in 65 games, good for 19th in league scoring for defencemen. Massive improvement over last year. First round matchup for PG is against Seattle starting on Friday!

[Odd.]

14 hours ago, stonecoldstevebernier said:

Olson didn't play in tonight's final game, so his season comes to a close with 9-38-47 in 65 games, good for 19th in league scoring for defencemen. Massive improvement over last year. First round matchup for PG is against Seattle starting on Friday!

Sounds like solid year for Tate Olson.

[Sean Monahan]

Just about doubled his point production from last year in 3 less games. 5-19-24 in 68 games last year, and 9-38-47 in 65 this year. That's some very solid post-draft progression.

 

Also, can any of the Cougars fans here elaborate more on Jansen Harkins? Statistically he took a serious step back this year, what gives? I also see he has a brother eligible for the draft in 2019 (born on Boxing Day in 2000)...already 6"2 and 190 pounds as a d-man and played a game for PG this year. I'm intrigued on this alone.

[vancan3322]

From HFBoards: 

(Podcast) Cougars’ Olson showing signs of being more than the average 7th round pick

Chances are pretty good that NHL teams will tell us that every draft selection they make is well thought out. The player they choose is the player they had hoped to secure. And after all, it would be unfair to the athlete to suggest a late round pick was simply a formality.

But one has to wonder what goes on in the minds of the players, those taken very late in the proceedings. The NHL Draft stretches out over two days, producing a lengthy wait for almost all but the first rounders.

One such player is Tate Olson of the Prince George Cougars. The 6’3”, 175-pound defenseman was selected in the seventh round, 210th overall, by the Vancouver Canucks at the festivities in Sunrise, Florida. For the record, he was the second-last player selected. Olson, of course, did not make the trip to be there in person, but he certainly had his mind on the 2015 NHL Draft last June.

“I think Vancouver got a real steal with where they drafted him,” said Cougars head coach Mark Holick in an interview with Hockey’s Future. “And certainly he’s made some noise and been noticed. He went to Vancouver’s camp in Prince George and I thought he looked great. He did a lot of good things.”

Holick is perhaps an old school hockey type, a hard player back in the day and a demanding bench boss today. He is self-deprecating and willingly admits to occasionally lacking a “filter”. In many ways, it is actually refreshing. Holick speaks his mind. That being said, he likes what Olson has contributed to the Cougars this season.

“For Tate, it’s vision, skating, making the right play and getting the puck to the forwards at the time it should be given,” Holick said. “Young kids, when they get in trouble, they tend to hang onto the puck too much.

“With Tate, we’ve been trying to say when you get it, move it, then get up ice and support the rush. Be part of the offensive attack all the time. When you defend, defend hard. He’s not a killer by any means, but he’s got good size and he’s strong. He can defend hard and he’s got a good stick. I think he’s only scratching the surface in terms of how good he can be.”

Olson, from Saskatoon, is part of a core group of five players in Prince George that arrived in BC’s northern capital via the 2012 WHL Bantam Draft. The third pick among those five – he was chosen in the second round, 24th overall – Olson is joined on the current roster by forwardsJansen Harkins (2nd), Brad Morrison (7th), Aaron Boyd (43rd) and Shane Collins (62nd). If the Cougars make some noise during the postseason, it might just be the beginning of some big things for an organization that has struggled for much of the past decade.

An indication that things are improving in Prince George, the Cougars saw four players, including Olson, chosen at the 2015 NHL Draft. Harkins (WPG) was selected in the second round, 47th overall. Forward Brad Morrison (NYR, 4 – 113) and defenseman Sam Ruopp (CBJ, 5 – 129) also heard their names called. Jesse Gabrielle (BOS, 5 – 105), who was acquired by the Cougars last August from the Regina Pats, was also drafted in June.

According to Holick, Olson will be a big part of any future success. The coaching staff will also play an important role, doing their best to manage the minutes that a potentially dominant rearguard plays from game to game.

“He’s having a good year statistically,” Holick said. “He’s our quarterback on the power play from the back end and he’s a guy who plays on our penalty kill. He plays 5-on-5, a lot of key minutes for us.

“For us, it’s being able to manage those minutes. When Tate gets close to 30 minutes, then things maybe start to wander a bit. If we can keep him in the 23 to 26 minutes range if we can, anything over that, he maybe gets a little tired and then the mistakes come.

“We have six veteran defensemen and Tate can play his minutes and be a very effective player for us,” Holick continued. “He plays in every situation. I have no reservations about putting him out at any time. He’s a guy we depend on and a guy I trust in key situations.”

It’s safe to say that Olson, who will celebrate his 19th birthday on March 21st, comes from good stock. His father Arley was well-known across Saskatchewan as a young player and parlayed his minor hockey success into a hockey journey through the NCAA (North Dakota) and the CIS (Saskatchewan).

Olson played in the 2013 Telus Cup at Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario with the Saskatoon Contacts, who dropped the bronze medal game by a 3-2 count to Laval. No less than 10 players from that Saskatchewan AAA Midget Hockey League team’s roster went on to play in the WHL.

Olson, who is often paired with Shane Collins, is a big, rangy defenseman with good offensive instincts. He has become an integral contributor in both the defensive and attacking zones. Now in his third full season in Prince George, he has scored nine times and added 38 assists in 67 games, doubling his output from last year. A deep playoff run in the WHL this season will see Olson inch closer and closer to the 200-game plateau.

Below is this writer’s chat with the Cougars’ Tate Olson. http://www.hockeysfuture.com/articles/135745/podcast-olson-showing-signs-average-7th-round-pick/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=podcast-olson-showing-signs-average-7th-round-pick

 

[Lonny_Bohonos_14]

11 hours ago, vancan3322 said:

Holick is perhaps an old school hockey type, a hard player back in the day and a demanding bench boss today. He is self-deprecating and willingly admits to occasionally lacking a “filter”. In many ways, it is actually refreshing. Holick speaks his mind.

Future Canucks coach? Sounds like a Benning type of guy