Owen Pickering is a tall, rangy defender whose long-term potential has scouts salivating. He’s a solid two-way defender who is only just scratching the surface of what he can do in all facets of the game. He’s already the top guy for Swift Current, logging massive minutes. For a blueliner of his huge size his skating is his best attribute, skills that were honed before a late growth spurt. He has a powerful, clean stride and good foot speed. He likes to carry the puck up from his own zone and has the fluidity of feet and the sureness of hands to do it well. He’s just as impressive skating backwards, able to crossover cleanly, which helps him maintain a good gap while defending rush opportunities. He is an effective passer. He makes good decisions on breakouts and is able to pass the puck to teammates while they’re breaking out in stride. He possesses both an NHL-caliber wrist and slap shot from the point. He uses his long reach to his advantage while defending in his zone, as he is able to break up cycle attempts by poke-checking or he can easily pick off passes simply because his reach is so long. An attribute He could try and develop a bit more is his offensive instinct. He more often than not makes the safe decision when it comes to things like pinching in the offensive zone or taking open ice given to him, not truly opening things up himself or helping drive the puck to the net. While making the safe decision definitely isn’t a horrible thing, he could benefit his team by being more aggressive and assertive in certain situations. Pickering has taken major strides in his development, and it still seems like he is only just getting started. That thought makes him an intriguing fit for a team looking to the blue line.

– FCHockey’s 2022 NHL Draft Guide