He’s not the smoothest or fastest skater but he thinks the game at a high level offensively and has potential to make high-level plays when he can keep up with the play. Poole is an offensive player as evidenced by his stats from the Manitoba midget league last season and while he has some upside, he will need to continue to work on his skating to have a chance at playing pro in the future. It may take a lot of time to adjust his pace of play to adapt to a higher speed of the game and will need to gain more confidence with and without the puck. He’s a big kid who does have some underlying skill and a power forward style, but his skating is simply holding him back from having any sort of impact with the puck. Stride for stride, he often falls behind in the play despite skating his fastest, though he knows where to be positionally and goes hard to the net for rebounds. Knowing he has room for improvement, he is often the last player on the ice after practise and continues to work on his game to reach the next level. He is still finding his way in the WHL in a depth role after ripping up the Manitoba midget league last season. He has good offensive instincts and a scoring ability, but his skating and consistency remain a work in progress. An intriguing player for NHL scouts, but he’s not necessarily on the draft radar yet.

– FCHockey’s 2020 NHL Draft Guide