Checking In On Aidan Muir

On the second day of the 2013 NHL Entry Draft, Craig MacTavish was a busy man. As you might recall, he traded the 37th overall pick for pick for picks 57, 88 and 96, and then flipped number 57 for numbers 83, 94, and 113. It was a move that was questioned by some, but what's done is done, and now we have to wait and see if any of those five picks - Bogdan Yakimov, Anton Slepyshev, Jackson Houck, Kyle Platzer, and Aidan Muir - turn into something.

So far, we've written a little about the first three, as they all landed inside our last iteration of Top 25 Under 25, but there's been very coverage of either Platzer or Muir to date. Over at SB Nation College Hockey though, they've taken a look at Muir, who's playing with Western Michigan University this season. I've included a couple of the highlights below, but I recommend clicking through to read the whole story.

The first thing stands out about Muir is that he's got some size. He's officially listed at 6-4 212 lbs. On the eyeball test, that looks a tad generous, though perception could be skewed because Western Michigan is a team of veritable team of giants, with 12 players listed at 6-2 or bigger, including 6-5 220 lbs. Red Wings draft pick Mike McKee. Muir is definitely at least 6-3 though. He may or may not be 212 lbs. he's listed at, but it definitely looks like there is room on his frame to add some more muscle and be a more physically commanding presence.

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Long-term, Muir is still a few years away from seriously being in the plans for the Oilers. That's pretty much what Edmonton expected when they drafted him though. He's still got up to three more seasons at Western Michigan to get stronger and develop the offensive side of his game a little bit more. He might not need all three years though.

His ceiling is relatively low, because he's likely not going to develop into a huge scoring threat at the next level. But he has such a unique and valuable skill set with his combination of size and athleticism that odds are pretty good that he finds a niche in the NHL somewhere as a high-energy, heavy-hitting power forward.

For 113th overall, that's not bad. Maybe we'll have to keep a closer eye on him.