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NHL draft tracker: Daniel Sprong, Charlottetown Islanders

Charlottetown Islanders (QMJHL) F #11 Daniel Sprong is ranked as a potential first-round pick in the 2015 NHL Draft. Mike Carroccetto / for Yahoo! Sports Canada
Charlottetown Islanders (QMJHL) F #11 Daniel Sprong is ranked as a potential first-round pick in the 2015 NHL Draft. Mike Carroccetto / for Yahoo! Sports Canada

For Daniel Sprong, it's all about tailoring his talent to his team.

That 30-goal rookie season that the Charlottetown Islanders wing produced last winter was nice and everything, although it was also a partial byproduct of often playing protected minutes. The 17-year-old Sprong, rated as a potential NHL first-rounder by Central Scouting, is now learning to work the angles while playing mostly against foes' first lines and first defence pairs.

That evolution was displayed well during an Islanders road win last Friday over Gatineau. Sprong had two assists during a decisive third period. The first came from forcing a defensive zone turnover that jimmied the puck loose and led to a golden opportunity that Filip Chlapik buried. The second came from carrying the puck to the half-well, pulling up to freeze a defender and then sliding the puck to an oncoming Chlapik, who ripped in a goal from the high slot.

"I had to adjust at the beginning of the year," says the Amsterdam-born Sprong, who resides in the Montreal suburb of Île Bizard. "I didn't expect teams to play me this tightly and be so focused on me. Now I'm starting to figure out how teams want to play me and what I have to do to get away from it. I think I've been effective lately. It's like a chess game. They're going to play one move; I'm going to play another move. And I'm looking forward to that."

The six-foot, 192-pound Sprong has 10 goals and 25 points across 23 games for the Islanders, who are in their second season since being renamed by a new island-based ownership group. Sprong has relished being part of a team that was trying to forge a new identity.

"It was perfect timing for me to come to the league," he says. "No one really knew me. I kind of dropped in the draft [to No. 13 overall]. Go in with a new team, new identity, I felt comfortable going there and they really wanted to build the team around me and some other guys. I'm very happy with I am, I like [head coach] Gordie [Dwyer] and the coaching staff."

Draft-year players with gifts such as Sprong's are often scrutinized over how they involve their teammates. The Islanders are confident that Sprong, a right-handed shooter who can attack from either wing, will steadily unlock all the secrets of being an offensive leader.

"I always joke, 'Ray Charles could see the skill,' " Islanders general manager Grant Sonier says. "He's got so much talent; it's quite evident. Daniel's biggest issue being an offensive player is puck management but there's so much to work with there that he's worth spending the time on. He really, really wants to have an impact every shift. Sometimes you just have to let the game come to you. You can't always take the game. He's a wonderful skilled player that's got a lot to learn if he's going to be a good pro. It's a process and we continue to work with him.

"Great skating, great puck skills, great vision, elite shot," Sonier adds. "When you have all those attributes and it all comes together, it's going to turn into being a dynamic offensive player. He wants to have an impact all the time, which is a great asset to have."

Sprong has a unique identity due to having moved with his family, at age seven, from the Netherlands to Quebec to further his hockey development. The one downside is he's in a no-man's land for international hockey, since he can't play for Canada until he receives his citizenship. Otherwise, Sprong has maintained the best of the old world and the new.

"I think learning English and French was the biggest adjustment," he says. "I knew I could play the game and fit in there and make friends easily. Hockey was a great way for me to make friends and learn my English. I just grew into Canada. I still have my Dutch meals at home, but I'm very happy at home.

"We have this peanut butter sauce and potatoes and spinach mixed together, typical Dutch meals. We have Chinese food every Sunday. Those are like little Dutch traditions we still do. And now, playing in P.E.I., it's great there too."

1. The Chicago Blackhawks' Patrick Kane is your favourite player; what prompted you to choose him as a your role model for the next level?

"The way he plays with the puck. You never know what he's going to do. When he carries into the zone he can turn away and make a pass and score. When Ilya Kovalchuk was in the NHL I really watched how he play and how he shot. I loved those guys because I think that style is a big part of how I play. I have to keep my own identity, too, and learn little things to make my game better."

2. Where is an area of the game where you to show improvement over the course of the season?

"I think I want to show improvement everywhere. You don't want to just improve in the D zone, you have to improve at everything. I have to improve in the offensive zone and neutral zone and the D zone — sometimes I leave a bit too early. It's just a complete game I have to work with."

3. Who is the toughest defenceman you have faced in your year-plus in the QMJHL?

"Probably Justin Hache from Cape Breton last season. He's with the [Arizona Coyotes'] farm team now. He's a very good defenceman, very good with his stick. He doesn't really bite on anything, so I have to go wide on him, try to beat him there. I looked forward to the matchup when I played him last year, a great defenceman going against a 16-year-old. That made me better every game. This year when I go against other defencemen I know I can beat them because I was able to beat him."

4. If it hadn't been hockey, what sport do you think you could have excelled in?

"I think tennis. I was a pretty good tennis player when I was young. One day my parents asked me, 'you have to make a choice now, hockey or tennis?' I picked hockey. I love scored goals and making plays. I still watch the French Open and Wimbledon when I get a chance."

5. What is your favourite movie and/or TV show?

"Favourite TV show, I would say, is BMS — Blue Mountain State on Netflix. Another TV show would probably be Suits."

Neate Sager is a writer for Yahoo! Canada Sports. Follow him on Twitter @neatebuzzthenet.