It’s that time of the year for The Win Column’s NHL Draft Rankings and Draft Profiles! The 2024 NHL Draft will take place on June 28 and 29 at The Sphere in Las Vegas. Up next for us is Andrew Basha from the Medicine Hat Tigers.
Who is Andrew Basha?
| PLAYER | POSITION | HANDEDNESS | Height | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Andrew Basha | LW | Left | 6’0″ | 185 lbs |
Basha’s on-ice production
| YEAR | DRAFT RELATIVE | LEAGUE | TEAM | GP | G | A | P |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018–19 | D-5 | AMBHL | Calgary Royals U15 AAA | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| HCBAA | CRA Blue U15 AA | 26 | 11 | 9 | 20 | ||
| 2019–20 | D-4 | AMBHL | Calgary Royals U15 AAA | 33 | 24 | 33 | 57 |
| AMMHL | CRAA Blue U16 AAA | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | ||
| 2020–21 | D-3 | AEHL U18 | Calgary Royals U18 AAA | 6 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| 2021–22 | D-2 | CSSHL U18 | SAHA U18 Prep | 14 | 7 | 16 | 23 |
| WHL | Medicine Hat Tigers | 48 | 5 | 9 | 14 | ||
| 2022–23 | D-1 | WHL | Medicine Hat Tigers | 67 | 20 | 36 | 56 |
| 2023–24 | D+0 | WHL | Medicine Hat Tigers | 63 | 30 | 55 | 85 |
Basha started off by playing AA as a 14-year-old in 2018–19. With the CRA Blue, Basha participated in 26 games, scoring 11 goals and 20 points. He received a three-game stint with the Calgary Royals AAA putting up one point.
The following year, Basha was in AAA full-time. This season, we saw Basha play 33 games with the Calgary Royals, taking a huge jump in production. He scored 24 goals and 57 points, nearing two points a game. Basha suited up for one game with the U16 team, finishing with two assists. After this season, Basha was drafted 105th overall by the Medicine Hat Tigers in the 2020 WHL draft.
In 2020–21, Basha made the jump to U18 as a 15/16-year-old. Due to the global pandemic, his season was limited to six games. In those games, he scored three assists.
Basha started his 2021–22 season playing U18 Prep with SAHA. He played 14 games, scoring seven goals and 23 points. Then, Basha was called to join the Medicine Hat Tigers. He saw ice for 48 games, scoring 14 points in limited minutes.
In the 2022–23 season, Basha was destined for a bigger role with the Tigers, and that’s what he got. In 67 games, he improved to 20 goals and 56 points, which was good enough for him to be third on the team in scoring.
Finally, in his draft year, Basha was looking to improve again. That he did, as in 63 games he scored 30 goals and 85 points. He was still only third in team scoring, but the Tigers as a whole took a big step forward. In terms of league-wide, Basha was just outside the top 20 at 21st. The player at 20th had 88 points.
Basha’s strengths
Skating
Basha might be the fastest skater in this draft class. He can pick up speed with and without the puck, flying past defenders. When he receives the puck, he doesn’t lose momentum. These things make him great on the rush. Basha can create the rush himself, weaving around opponents at a high speed, generating space for himself and his teammates
You will see Basha get or make breakaways. To add to his speed, Basha also has nice edgework. This helps him move around smoothly when blasting through the zone. He will fake a left or a right, then turn off the other way. His speed truly helps in the rush, but in-zone is where is edges shine as they allow him to make quick cuts and the ability to walk the zone.
Skills/Smarts
To pair with his skating, Basha is a very skilled and smart player. When moving with his speed, Basha has the hands to deke around opponents and ensure that he leaves them in the dust. His control and quick hands allow him to make cuts to the middle or outside and then blast into the open ice.
In the zone, he can move around smoothly with his hands and make drives to the net. You may also see him use them to set up a creative pass. His smarts help him with this. With the puck, Basha can read where he needs to go to get the best advantage and then act on it. Even off the puck, you’ll often see him trying to position himself for shots, rebounds, etc.
Passing/Vision
To round out his set of skills, Basha brings great passing and vision to the table. He can make simple or creative passes, whichever he believes is best. Both give-and-go and highlight reel plays can come out of Basha at an effective level. He can scan the ice and find wide-open teammates for dangerous chances. If there is no open teammate, he can make space for one and then send over a nice pass. Basha’s main goal is to always draw opponents towards him to give his teammates extra space.
Basha’s areas of improvement
Consistency
With his skill set and being one of the older players in the draft, you would like Basha to be more consistent. There are nights when he looks completely disengaged from the play. His effort isn’t showing, he’s not attempting those same deceptive moves you see on nights where he’s buzzing. His top-end play fades, and instead of making highlight reel plays, he disappears to the perimeter and works from there.
Does too much
A common theme among skilled draft players is that they do too much, and Basha falls victim to this as well. Basha will go for flashy moves that aren’t necessary and will lose the puck without generating a real chance. Some have said he can be too fast for his own good. He knows he has the speed to do things quickly, so he tries to rush chances. He doesn’t let things develop and then attempts a play that has too much to it for any value.
Physicality
Basha isn’t the smallest at 6-foot-0 and 185 pounds, but often he appears small. He doesn’t engage in physical play, and even with his effort, you don’t see him enter puck battles or fight for position. You might see him try to rush a play, taking a quick shot or pass to get out of an oncoming physical play. Possession stays, but something more dangerous could’ve been developed if he took the physicality. Sometimes, Basha will stop his pursuit of the puck, allowing the other team to gain possession just to avoid hits.
Basha’s comparables
Two players that I can see similarities in for Basha are Nikolaj Ehlers and Jordan Kyrou. Both Ehlers and Kyrou’s games are built on skating ability. They have fast speed paired with great agility while being fantastic on the rush and in transition. They are also primarily playmakers who can also score goals, like Basha. Both are skilled forwards who produce threats with their creativity and hands. You may also see them run into issues with consistency or physicality.
Fit with the Flames
Wingers should not be a priority for the Calgary Flames at this draft, but Basha would be a fun pickup. The Flames don’t have that skilled passer in their pool yet, and Basha could be that. Basha’s speed and agility would be a much-needed addition to the Flames.
Summary
Andrew Basha was great for the Medicine Hat Tigers this season and could go anywhere from the later half of the first round or the very early second. His game brings tons of skill and offensive potential. Skating is the main highlight that is complimented by vision, hands, smarts, and more. He has some struggles that bring risk with consistency, overdoing things, and physicality, but those are things that can be taught. Basha projects to be a top-six scoring winger for some team, and at worst, he should be an effective bottom-six player.
Risk: 2.5/5
Reward: 4/5
NHL Comparable: Nikolaj Ehlers, Jordan Kyrou
Projection: Top-six, scoring winger
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
