All About Dylan Holloway

Here we’ve put together a collection of scouting reports, highlights, and news items regarding newly drafted forward, Dylan Holloway. The Edmonton Oilers selected Holloway with the 14th overall pick, providing the depth chart with a much-needed forward that will be able to bring a dose of skill to the prospect pool.

Drafted: 14th overall

Major Junior: University of Wisconsin — League: NCAA

“Holloway consistently applies pressure on the backcheck, pickpockets puck-carriers, makes timely hits, wields a disruptive stick — you name it. He never flees the zone early and is a capable east-west attacker who shields the puck from opposing defenders really well.” -Elite Prospects 2020 Draft Guide

“He’s a unique athlete in this class, an outstanding skater, a physical presence and a talented scorer with a hard wrist shot. I’d expect a breakout season as a sophomore. It wouldn’t surprise me, either, if he quickly becomes an NHL player in the next couple of years, given his A-level skating and advanced physical maturity.” -Scott Wheeler, The Athletic

“The top NCAA draft-eligible is a complete forward with excellent hands, vision, and effective skating abilities. From his powerful stride and edgework and agility, once he has the puck on his stick, he has the ability to make flashy plays offensively.” -Clare McManus, Dobber Prospects

“The left-shot forward has good hands, high compete and a drive to create offense. He should be the first college player selected after he had 17 points (eight goals, nine assists) in 35 games as a college freshman.” -Mike G. Morreale, NHL.com

“Holloway is extremely fundamentally sound. He is a coach’s dream with his effort level and his willingness to do all the little things necessary to win games. A lack of offensive production at Wisconsin is a bit of a concern though. He has all the tools but it did not seem to lead to a lot of points last season. Being an NCAA freshman is tough, especially on a team where Alex Turcotte and Cole Caufield were higher in the pecking order and got more ice time.

Expect Holloway to play another season in college. It is hoped that more responsibility will see him take his game to the next level. While he mainly played on the wing last year, his skating and his defensive game may allow him to play centre going forward. His game is reminiscent of Jordan Staal. This is a stylistic comparison only and not one based on skill or ability.” -Last Word on Sports

“Born into a family with NHL bloodlines — his father Bruce briefly played for the Vancouver Canucks in 1985 — Dylan is a very good playmaker with excellent vision. He is an accurate passer who also can create chances off his backhand, and he plays with his head up at all times. Holloway’s aforementioned positioning is critical to his ability to retrieve pucks and jumpstart the attack into open ice, but he’s also proven to turn seemingly-harmless board battles into a prime opportunity near the net for his linemates or a cutting defender. On the power play, Holloway can orchestrate from the half wall or behind the net, but from the circles he owns an excellent shot (either wrister or slapshot) that makes him difficult to predict. He uses his size to his advantage when battling for low-slot positioning, and his competitiveness in one-on-one battles typically spells trouble for opponents. One underrated aspect of his game is his trickery with the puck in tight spaces, as he is confident enough to try and slip backdoor or blind passes through the legs of unassuming defenders.” -The Draft Analyst

“Six foot 200 pound centre with soft hands and excellent vision. The former AJHL MVP and 2019 Canadian Junior Player of the year help Team Canada win golds in the 2018 Ivan Hlinka Gretsky Cup. Possesses a high level hockey IQ, strong balance, lateral quickness and turning ability. Will need to get a quicker first step, and refine his play in his own end. Very creative pivot who plays to control the mid-ice. Has soft hands and passing ability and a strong wrist shot. Possesses tremendous puckhandling ability and lateral quickness that propel him through the defensive layers. Uses his top gear to drive from possession scrum to the next, and is great on the cycle. Always using his speed as a weapon and as a relentless checker and attacker, he creates space on zone entries. So strong in his stop and starts, but his best attribute may be his lateral quickness, where he turns in tight space and strings one move into a series that causes the opposition to leave their assignments and start running around. Will play both wing and centre as he climbs the rungs to the bigs.” -Bill Placzek, DraftSite.com

Holloway will be a player that Oilers fans will certainly be following as he enters his sophomore season with the University of Wisconsin in the NCAA. At the time of posting, the Badgers’ season is set to start as early as November 13th, playing 24-game conference schedules in addition to four games against Arizona State University. Their season will wrap March 18-20, 2021 with the Big Ten Men’s tournament. The University of Wisconsin will play against Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Notre Dame, Ohio State, and Penn State in that tournament.

Corey Pronman analyzed the Holloway pick post-draft at The Athletic:

Holloway is the third player that the Oilers have drafted out of the University of Wisconsin. They selected Paul Houck 71st overall in 1981 and Brad Winchester 35th overall in 2000.

Ranked #18 by ELITEPROSPECTS.COM

Ranked #15 by FUTURE CONSIDERATIONS

Ranked #20 by ISS HOCKEY

Ranked #14 by TSN/CRAIG BUTTON

Ranked #26 by MCKEEN’S HOCKEY

Ranked #12 by NHL CENTRAL SCOUTING (NA Skaters)

Ranked #17 by CONSOLIDATED RANKING

Ranked #16 by TSN/McKenzie

2019-20 Season Highlights:

Scouting Profile, The Hockey Guy:

Post Draft Interview: