It’s that time of the year for The Win Column’s NHL Draft Rankings and Draft Profiles! The 2024 NHL Draft will be held on June 28 and 29 at The Sphere in Las Vegas.
Next up is John Mustard, the 49th-ranked prospect in our consolidated rankings. I opted to write this player profile solely because he has a great name—the jokes write themselves, but I’ll be sure to write one! I knew nothing about the player behind the name, but as I learned more about him, I realized what a compelling prospect he is. Let’s dive in!
Who is John Mustard?
| PLAYER | POSITION | HANDEDNESS | HEIGHT | WEIGHT |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Mustard | LW | L | 6’0″ | 185 lbs |
Mustard is a product of Newmarket, Ontario, who played his youth hockey in the United States. He’s ranked as high as 27th among North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting and as low as 64th by TSN’s Bob McKenzie. Realistically, the package he offers should see him selected early in the second round at the latest; only McKenzie (64th) and EliteProspects.com (52nd) have him ranked lower than 48th.
Mustard is committed to the NCAA’s Providence Friars going forward.
Mustard’s on-ice production
| YEAR | DRAFT RELATIVE | LEAGUE | TEAM | GP | G | A | P |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019–20 | D-4 | AYHL 13U | North Jersey Avalanche 13U AAA | 30 | 15 | 4 | 19 |
| 2020–21 | D-3 | NJYHL 14U | North Jersey Avalanche 14U AA | 17 | 36 | 14 | 50 |
| USHS-Prep | Bergen Catholic High | 3 | 3 | 3 | 6 | ||
| 2021–22 | D-2 | AYHL 15U | North Jersey Avalanche 15U AAA | 23 | 22 | 16 | 38 |
| USHS-Prep | Bergen Catholic High | 12 | 21 | 21 | 42 | ||
| 2022–23 | D-1 | AYHL 16U | North Jersey Avalanche 16U AAA | 19 | 18 | 18 | 36 |
| 16U AAA | North Jersey Avalanche 16U AAA | 65 | 56 | 61 | 117 | ||
| 2023–24 | D+0 | USHL | Waterloo Black Hawks | 60 | 29 | 27 | 56 |
Mustard’s D-4 season in 2019–20 was unspectacular. He recorded 19 points in 30 games in the AYHL’s 13U AAA, 15 of which were goals. Among his teammates with tracked progression for this season, he was second in goals and sixth in points. The youngster was showing early signs of becoming a dangerous scorer.
His D-3 was far more impressive. Playing in the NJYHL’s 14U AA, he rippled the twine 36 times in just 17 games and added 14 assists for a total of 50 points. In three games for Bergen Catholic High of the USHS-Prep as a freshman, Mustard scored three goals and six points.
He continued torching opposing goalies in his D-2 season in 2021–22. In the AYHL’s 15U AAA, Mustard scored 22 goals—nearly a goal a game—and 38 points in 23 games. As a sophomore at Bergen Catholic High, he was on another level, leading his team with 21 goals, 21 assists, and 42 points in just 12 games.
In his D-1 season last year, Mustard tormented opposing goalies at an even higher level. In 65 games in the 16U AAA, he scored a team-leading 56 times and added 61 helpers for 117 points. In the AYHL’s 16U, he played 19 games and led his team with 18 goals (tied) and was second in points with 36. Seeing his playmaking game catch up to his scoring game has been a very good sign for his development.
This season, Mustard joined the Waterloo Black Hawks of the USHL. He played 60 games, tallying a team-leading 29 goals and 56 points, good for second on the team. Mustard’s efforts this year saw his draft stock rise and also recently earned him the honour of being named USHL Rookie of the Year.
Mustard’s strengths
Goal scoring
The best area of Mustard’s game right now is his goal-scoring ability. He’s got a mind for scoring goals, and he can score in a variety of ways. He’s also not afraid to go to the net to pot rebounds. Mustard has a hard, accurate wrist shot that he terrorizes goalies with often.
Speed/Skating
While he may not be the fastest player, Mustard does have good speed. He also has a powerful first three strides he uses to create some separation from opponents. His skating stride is a bit awkward, but it works; he doesn’t bend his knees a lot but is still very mobile and able to generate good speed, as I said.
Effort
Another thing that’s noticeable in Mustard’s game is his compete level. He plays a heavy style of game, is not afraid to battle for the puck, and forechecks hard. He’s rarely caught stationary, often looking for opportunities to slide behind defenders and find open ice.
Mustard’s areas of improvement
Playmaking
Mustard clearly loves to score goals, and shooting is clearly the first thing on his mind with the puck on his stick. He’s improved his playmaking game over the last couple of seasons, and with more work in this area, he’ll become an even greater threat. Opponents know to respect his shot and try to take it away, so if he continues to evolve into more of a dual threat with the puck, watch out!
It’s not that he can’t make plays with the puck; it’s that he’s not looking for opportunities to pass it. Predictability does not translate well to the NHL, so he’ll have to continue developing this area of his game.
Physicality
I would not say that Mustard is not physical, but he could certainly throw his body around more. He’s got good size for a 17-year-old, listed at 6-foot-0 and 185 pounds. He battles hard, but one thing I noticed watching him play is he doesn’t hit often.
He has the size right now to dominate his opponents physically, and—with more natural growth over the next few years—he should have the size to impose his will physically against NHL competition as well.
Mustard’s comparables
Mustard reminds me a lot of New York Rangers winger Chris Kreider. While Mustard doesn’t currently possess the same frame—Kreider is listed at 6-foot-3 and 229 pounds—he could “ketchup” over the next few years as he continues to grow.
Both are great skaters with plenty of speed and play a hard game. Much like Mustard, Kreider is primarily a goal-scoring power forward who’s not afraid to engage in front of the net or go to the dirty areas to score goals.
Fit with the Flames
The Calgary Flames have a plethora of wingers in the system right now, but it’s never a bad idea to add a player capable of scoring goals like Mustard. None of the Flames’ current prospects have the raw size, skill, and effort to match Mustard, though; they all lack in at least one of those areas.
Although I would certainly love to see him in a Flames uniform, I don’t think adding more wingers will be a high priority for the organization. Their needs right now are at centre and on defence, so if players with similar potential are available at those positions, I expect the Flames would go those routes first.
Summary
Mustard is an exciting power forward whose stock has risen considerably over the course of this season. He has a mind for scoring goals and is exceptionally good at it. Overall, Mustard is a reliable player; he works hard for everything and will provide good value for whatever team selects him at the draft.
He’s not perfect, though, and still needs to improve his game—specifically in the playmaking department—to become less predictable in the offensive zone, but he’s already begun that growth. Furthermore, for a big player, he really doesn’t use his body as much as he could, and that’s another thing he needs to work on.
Risk: 2/5
Reward: 4/5
Projection: top-six scoring power forward
Check out all of The Win Column’s individual player profiles of selected 2024 NHL Draft prospects:
Macklin Celebrini | Ivan Demidov | Artyom Levshunov | Sam Dickinson | Cayden Lindstrom | Berkly Catton | Cole Eiserman | Zeev Buium | Konsta Helenius | Zayne Parekh | Carter Yakemchuk | Anton Silayev | Tij Iginla | Adam Jiricek | Michael Brandsegg-Nygard | Liam Greentree | Igor Chernyshov | Trevor Connelly | Aron Kiviharju | Michael Hage | Ryder Ritchie | Sacha Boisvert | Nikita Artamonov | Maxim Masse | Cole Hutson | Beckett Sennecke | Dominik Badinka | Emil Hemming | Henry Mews | Terik Parascak | Alfons Freij | Charlie Elick | EJ Emery | John Mustard | Luka Misa | Tanner Howe | Lucas Pettersson | Matvei Gridin | Dean Letourneau | Leo Sahlin Wallenius | Jesse Pulkkinen | Cole Beaudoin | Kamil Bednarik | Jett Luchanko | Andrew Basha | Stian Solberg | Adam Jecho | Matvei Shuravin | Veeti Vaisanen
