Ty Voit
Some could argue that as great of a pick that Knies was for Toronto, Ty Voit was a better one. While Knies continues to be the stronger prospect, selecting Voit in the fifth round may be the greater steal of the draft. That’s because Voit has been having an outstanding season with the Sarnia Sting.
Born in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania, Voit played minor hockey in Florida and in his birth city. In his Under 15 year playing for the Pittsburgh Penguins Elite, he scored 32 goals and added 32 helpers in 62 games.
His performance led him to become a first-round pick by the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders in the USHL. Instead of remaining in America to pursue playing for a college team or joining the U.S. National Development Program, he went to play Major Junior in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL). Voit was selected by Sarnia in the fifth-round (89th overall) in the 2019 OHL Priority Selection.
The biggest knock to Voit’s game has been his size. At 5’9″, 151 lbs, his future as an NHL regular has been questioned, especially leading into the NHL draft. One thing that was never up for debate has been Voit’s offense.
In his OHL rookie season, Voit skated 49 games. He notched 8 goals and 20 assists. With a year of experience, Voit may have been ready for a breakout performance in the 2020-21 campaign. However, due to the breakout of the worldwide coronavirus pandemic, the season was cancelled. While that delayed Voit’s ascent until this year, he used the time off to add muscle mass.
Playing both left wing and center for the Sting, Voit has been on fire this campaign. He was the first player in the OHL to reach 40 points and now appears to be close to being the first to 50. Though his first 28 games, Voit registered 49 points on 9 goals and 40 assists. He is the OHL’s current points leader by a wide margin, 10 points.
Despite that success, Voit was snubbed by Team USA. He was denied an invitation to the USA World Juniors camp this winter. Time will tell if this motivates him even more.