2024 NHL Draft Profile: Why the Dallas Stars must draft Adam Kleber

Another tall but smooth-skating right-handed defender falls to Dallas.

If you’re not a draft nerd, well, you should be. When it comes to prospects, some make the cut but many don’t. Regardless, every journey, whether it’s Julius Honka or Logan Stankoven, can help make you a more informed hockey watcher.

Charlie Elick and E.J. Emery are the real deal. I have no doubt about that. Because of that, don’t get your hopes up if they’re available at 29. In that instance, how well do the Plan B’s rate? Not bad.

The Bio

• Date of Birth: Mar. 24, 2006

• Age: 18

• Height: 6’5

• Weight: 207lbs

• Position: RHD

• Shoots: Right

• Team: Lincoln Stars (USHL)

What the pros are saying

Below I’ve highlighted a few choice quotes from the most familiar, and most respected public outlets.

From EPRinkside (ranking him at #45):

• With agility, reach, and details, Kleber’s a formidable defender. He angles opponents to the outside and times his pokes just as they expose the puck. He has the range to switch between high, low, and off-puck coverage with ease. Smooth, powerful pivots catch attackers off-guard and he even gets recovery stops. He’s physical, yet rarely chases or ends up in the box.

From Scott Wheeler (ranking him at #49):

• He’s a towering right-shot D who had a good season in the USHL this year and even showed a little bit of offense. He outlets pucks well. He’ll hold and skate pucks. His offense isn’t natural per se but he puts pucks through and on net. He’s got a good stick and snuffs out his fair share of plays. I worry about his boots, though. He can look a little heavy and sloppy at times out there (he moves well within a pattern but less well in a rush) and it’ll have to improve for him to progress up levels to the pro game.

From Corey Pronman (ranking him at #35):

• He is a very athletic defenseman who projects to be a strong pro defender. He's 6-5, skates well for a big man and competes hard enough. He will be quite difficult for even NHL forwards to get by or try to gain footing around the net. Kleber's offensive play is what has sold me on him. I didn't originally think he was a true puck-mover, and still don't, but he's shown enough sense with the puck this season for me to think he can have an NHL career.

Unimaginative, misleading comparables

These are meant to represent a wide range of possibilities. They are not meant as direct comparisons, hence the facetiousness. I’m a big believer in comps being misleading (name a player exactly like someone else), but I understand that for new fans, it’s an easy in-road towards understanding players you’ve never seen before.

• Nikko Mikkola

• Nic Hague

• Kevin Bahl

• Zach Whitecloud

• Erik Cernak

• Philippe Myers

• Jonas Seigenthaler

The numbers

If a team needs someone to shut down the opposing rush and can make an outlet pass, Kleber fits the profile. There’s also an oddly specific amount of offense to his game.

Not sure what this chart means and need a quick and dirty explainer? I’ve got you covered! Click here to learn more from a man who knows less.

The tape

Personal observations

The comparables list may cast Kleber in a negative light, but except for Myers, those are all everyday NHLers. For me, one thing about Kleber is that similar to Emery and Elick, his skating is not just “good for a big man.” His acceleration is top notch, and his ability to shut down rush entries comes down to the perfect combo of skating + stickwork. Other parts of his game are lacking, and I don’t necessarily see a great problem solver from the backend, which is why I left out the usual comps (Ekholm, Tanev, and Manson, etc) for this type of shutdown defender. But there is some offense to his game, so while he’s a work in progress, the foundation is strong. And there’s a lot of foundation to work with; literally and figuratively.

How he helps the Stars

Just to be up front, Kleber is not my favorite ‘big man.’ I think Emery and Elick are a cut above, I prefer Dominik Badinka (who I’ll preview on Friday), and there’s a slew of defenders with more potential, whether they shoot right or left, like Alfons Freij and Henry Mews (I’ll talk about both in next Wednesday’s big draft board).

However, if you’re picking him in the first round, and you want a sure thing (to the extent that such a thing exists in the draft), Kleber is a good pick. He already plays a stout defensive game, and he’s massive, which makes any potential improvements nothing but the proverbial cherry on top.

Consider how Alex Petrovic looked, and Kleber is the absolute floor of that. (I know I was hard on Petrovic in my final grades episode with Gavin Spittle, but I just don’t know understand all the “might have earned himself a raise” talk. He’s cleared waivers for three different teams. People know the score, and have since 2019.) Big defenders are picking up offensive skills at higher rates, and Kleber is the — albeit more raw — evolution of this player type.

He may not represent the ceiling of that player type, but certainly represents its floor, which is already quite high.