Prospect Profile: Dominik Bokk

Dominik Bokk, Vaxjo, SHL/SuperElit

Pos: RW, Height: 6-1, Weight: 179

Draft Ranking
TCB – 28
The Hockey News – 26
Future Considerations – 33
ISS – 28
Corey Pronman – 8

Dominik Bokk is an extremely skilled German born winger who spent his draft eligible season splitting time between the SHL and Junior hockey with Vaxjo in Sweden.

He is easily one of the most interesting prospects, especially in the latter half of the first round. He has been getting a lot of hype lately and I wouldn’t be surprised if he ends up going in the 20-31 range, but if he is on the board at 32 I would expect him to get heavy consideration from the Sabres.

Bokk possesses an insane amount of skill, his ability to create offence specifically in 1-on-1 situations is near the top of the draft class, and he can make plays that leave you speechless.

In his Top-74 prospects piece, The Athletic’s Corey Pronman said, “he shows you glimpses of elite talent and someone who can be an impact winger. Bokk’s pure puck skill is up there with the very best in the draft class.”

His ability is skill is undeniable and he should make a very good top-6 winger in the NHL once he is ready to make the jump to the North American game.

The knock against Bokk has been his ability to adjust to the pro game. He spent a majority of the 2017-18 season playing in the Swedish Junior circuit and put up great numbers, but struggled adjusting to the men’s game.

Bokk hadn’t played at a high level until this year so it makes sense that he didn’t adjust the way that he would have wanted. But he did manage to score his first professional goal in pretty good fashion.

When breaking down Bokk’s game there are plenty of things that lead scouts to believe he will be an impact winger in the NHL. But like any prospect he does have a lot of developing to do before he can make the jump successfully.

Positives

Puck Skills
As stated earlier, Bokk’s ability with the puck ranks right at the top of the entire draft class. He has amazing hands that allow him to pull off dekes that will remind you of Pavel Datsyuk.

He also has incredible passing ability. When you couple his ability to stick handle with his ability to pass the puck you get a player who can make passes that most players can’t even think about making.

Shooting Ability
As evidenced by the highlight of his first SHL goal, and his 14 goals in 35 games in the U20 league Bokk can flat out shoot the puck.

He has played internationally in two tournaments for Germany, and the team looked to him as their trigger man. In 10 career appearances for Germany (five U18 and five U20) Bokk has 8 goals.

As an 18-year-old Bokk should make the jump to the SHL full-time next season and his shot will allow him the ability to factor in offensively as a junior player playing in a men’s league.

Negatives

Off the Puck
Like any young offensively gifted player Bokk hasn’t figured out how to play when he doesn’t have control of the puck.

His hands and and quickness allow him to be an effective defensive player but he isn’t as engaged on the defensive side of the puck.

The good news is that he is only 18 and his coaches should be able to help him correct his ability to play off the puck before he becomes a factor in the NHL.

Timidness
For a guy with decent size Bokk avoids physical play a lot of the time. He doesn’t actively engage himself on the boards, can be intimidated at times.

Of course a lot of this could be due to the fact that he is a kid playing against men, now that he has one season under his belt it will be interesting to see if he gets more involved next season.

Why Bokk makes sense for Buffalo
With the Sabres taking Dahlin first overall a void on the blue line is obviously being filled.

The other major need for the Sabres is speed and skill on the wings. While Bokk’s skating is described as average by a lot of scouts he definitely checks the box in terms of skill.

Bokk could be a future top line winger playing alongside Jack Eichel in the near future. With Bokk’s skill and his shot he makes a perfect complimentary player to either Jack Eichel or Casey Mittelstadt.

In a sense Bokk reminds me a lot of current Sabres prospect Alex Nylander.

While that may set off an alarm to some Bokk’s situation would be drastically different from Nylander’s. If Bokk is drafted at 32 he wouldn’t have the pressure of being a top-10 pick and he wouldn’t be rushed into the AHL or NHL.

Bokk is probably two years away from signing an NHL entry level deal so he will have time to develop properly while playing in one of the top leagues in the world.

If Bokk is the selection at 32 fans should be extremely happy.

He has the possibility to be a steal in this draft as long as his drafting team has patience and allows him to develop properly. Bokk looks like a legitimate top-6 NHL winger with the potential to be something more.

Follow @TheChargingBUF for extensive combine and draft coverage, as well as myself (@austin_broad) and @JoeTCBNHL for more prospect coverage.