Brent Just

Fantasy Summary

Molendyk is a tremendous skater, a tool he may be overly reliant on, flashes very bright playmaking skill, and is a strong rush defender.


Observations

Read Less Read More

June 2025 – Molendyk impressed in Rookie Camp last summer and again in the main camp, nearly making the team. He got into three exhibition games, saw some power-play time and had two blocked shots. He’s not the biggest player, but he’s positionally sound and has very good hockey sense. His poise is already NHL-caliber. At the WJC, he was easily a Top 3 player, though the team admittedly disappointed. Expectations are high for Molendyk, as the Preds see him as potentially replacing Roman Josi as their next stud d-man. In the WHL he was a near-point-per-game player, even after his trade to Medicine Hat. He added 20 points in 18 playoff games. Now eligible for the AHL, the Preds have the option of sending him down for a few games early, but we believe he’ll play at least half of 2025-26 with Nashville. – Dobber

April 2024 – Last year’s first round pick took a big step forward for WHL Saskatoon this year, finishing 4th in points per game among defensemen with 56 in 50 games. Molendyk skated a team-leading 25:16 ATOI. He blocks more than 2 shots while taking 2.5 shots on goal per game. At this writing, Saskatoon has advanced to the final four of the WHL playoffs. At present, he is the top defenseman in Nashville’s system. Barry Trotz knows defensemen, and Nashville can be nothing but pleased with Molendyk’s progress in his D+1 year.  Jesse Severe

June 2023 – Molendyk has been selected 24th overall by the Nashville Predators in the 2023 NHL Draft. Curtis Rines

March 2023 – Molendyk is among the most fluid and comfortable skaters in the entire 2023 draft class. He effortlessly covers a tremendous amount of ice, easily gets around forecheckers, and he closes his gaps with great speed, which helps make him a very effective defender against the rush. His skating is a standout skill that Molendyk may be over-reliant on, which works fine in the WHL but could be rendered ineffective in pro hockey. One of the red flags is that he lacks a truly elite top gear, he’s not the fastest player on the ice, and as more and more of his competition can match his speed, he will possibly need to reinvent the way he plays the game.

Molendyk is a very effective puck carrier, he frequently layers lateral movement into his puck rushes, switches lanes, and changes his angles of attack to open up passing lanes. He even has shown a consistent willingness to cut to the middle on the rush, and while he lacks the strength to pull this off, the desire to do so is promising. He’s also flashed some very fun playmaking skill, often including pace shifts, eye deception, and changing angles. The execution hasn’t been consistent and the production hasn’t quite popped, but the process is there for Molendyk, and the results will come. As a whole, Molendyk will go as far as his creativity, deception, and brain take him; if he can improve his deception, become more decisive, and convert his passing into point production, he could project as a tremendously mobile 200-foot #3 D with upside on both special teams units.

Attributes
Fantasy Upside 8.5
NHL Certainty 9.0
Country CAN
Position D
Roster Type Minors
Shoot/Glove Left
Date of Birth February 3, 2005
Height 5‘11”
Weight 190 lbs
Drafted 2023 Round 1; Overall: 24
The 19th Annual Fantasy Prospects Report
Now available, no subscription needed. Find out more about over 500 prospects!

Stats – Frozen Tools – Profile on FT

SeasonLeagueTeamGPGAPTSPIM+/-
2024-2025WJC-20Canada U20502241
2024-2025WHLMedicine Hat Tigers2852126821
2024-2025WHLSaskatoon Blades2141721104
2023-2024WHLSaskatoon Blades501046561840
2022-2023WHLSaskatoon Blades67928373731
2022-2023Hlinka Gretzky CupCanada U18513400
2021-2022WHLSaskatoon Blades553151816-6
2020-2021WHLSaskatoon Blades170222-3
2020-2021CSSHL U18Yale Hockey Academy U18 Prep5156100
2019-2020CSSHL U16Yale Hockey Academy Elite 15s100000
2019-2020CSSHL U15Yale Hockey Academy U15 Prep2794655140
2018-2019U15 AAAThompson Blazers U15 AAA187182520
2014-2015Brick InvitationalBC Junior Canucks603320

Highlights