Carolina Hurricanes 2019 Draft Update: The Final Segment

Kevin Wall. by Matt Sniegowski | Onward State

F Kevin Wall (6th round, 181st overall)

Kevin Wall is kind of an unknown to me. The Canes took him 181st overall after he played last year in the USHL, which is a league I don’t watch at all. He was orginally undrafted in 2018, and he exploded with 31 goals and 64 points in 49 games for Chilliwack, and the Hurricanes gambled on him in the 6th round.

He’s since moved to Penn State, which is a top-notch hockey program, although he hasn’t played much yet. In defense of Wall, Penn State has a deep hockey team and as a freshman he’s in tough there. However, at 20-years old, the fact he can’t crack a lineup with a fair number of players unaffiliated by NHL teams is a bit of a concern.

I really can’t find much from the way of scouts on Wall, but I mean, he did do this at prospects camp:

As far as I know, he’s got a lethal release to his shot and isn’t afraid to shy away from physical play. He’s got good enough size at 6-0 190, and is a coveted right-shot. What he supposedly lacks is quickness, and doesn’t have a real dynamic element to his game.

I’ve never actually seen Wall play, so I can’t really offer much in the way of projections. However, it seems plausible that if he does make it to the NHL (which is a huge if) he likely projects to slot into the bottom-6.

As far as his development goes, he’ll spend the next 3 seasons after this one at Penn State and hopefully progress to a point where he’s worth being offered a contract by Carolina. I think this kid is a long shot, but for a 6th-round pick he has some tools that are worth taking a chance on.

Estimated NHL arrival: Unlikely