"I think it's extremely difficult for an 18-year-old to play in that league, but I believe he can do it," Naurato said on the latest episode of the "NHL Draft Class" podcast. "I think everyone's path is different. Adam needs to do what's best for him. I'll give him my thoughts at that time and I don't think it's never wrong to be overripe, but I think Adam can handle it with his skill set and type of person that he is."
Fantilli (6-foot-2, 195 pounds) is No. 2 on
NHL Central Scouting's midterm ranking of North American skaters
presented by BioSteel. He was named one of the 10 candidates for the Hobey Baker Award, presented annually to the top NCAA men's hockey player.
Fantilli leads NCAA Division I men's hockey in points (61) and points per game (1.85), and is second in goals (27). He had five points (two goals, three assists) in seven games to help Canada win a gold medal at the 2023 IIHF World Junior Championship.
"He's just such a competitive kid on and off the ice, wants to win every race and battle in the game, and every small-area game in practice," Naurato said.
Naurato also discussed the impact of freshman forward Gavin Brindley (5-8, 165), No. 40 on Central Scouting's midterm ranking of North American skaters, and how his team will prepare for the rigors of the NCAA Tournament, which begins Thursday.
The podcast is free, and listeners can subscribe on all podcast platforms, including iTunes, Spotify and Google Podcasts. It also is available on NHL.com/multimedia/podcasts and the NHL app.
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Listen: New episode of NHL Draft Class
