Lleyton Moore – Oshawa Generals – Player Profile

Height: 5’9”

Weight: 175 Pounds

Date of birth: February 27, 2002

Hometown: Woodbridge, Ontario

Position: Defence

Shoots: Left

OHL Draft: Round 1, 12^th overall, 2018 Priority Selection by Niagara IceDogs

NHL Central Scouting Rankings

Oshawa Generals diminutive defenceman Lleyton Moore played his Minor Midget AAA with the Toronto Marlboros during the 2017-2018 season. In 54 games, Moore scored 16 goals and piled up 34 helpers. He was even better for the Marlboros at the OHL Cup setting up 8 tallies. Moore would represent Team GTHL Blue at the OHL Cup as well where he scored once and assisted on 4 others in 4 contests.

The Niagara IceDogs selected Moore with the 12^th overall pick at the 2018 OHL Priority Selection. Here’s what OHL Central Scouting had to say at the time:

Lleyton is a mobile defenceman that loves to have the puck on his stick and isn’t afraid to lead a rush. He is a strong skater in every direction, is explosive and has a very high top speed. His puck skills are elite as it seems like the puck is on a string at times. He sees the ice well and is very creative. Lleyton’s biggest attribute is his skating ability. It helps him defend, recover when he is up in the rush and create offence from the back end. He is one of his team’s go to players and plays in every situation.

Moore made his OHL debut with the IceDogs during the 2018-2019 season where he scored twice and added 8 helpers and an impressive plus-19 in 28 games. On January 8, 2019, Moore was traded to the Oshawa Generals along with 6 draft picks for Jack Studnicka and Matt Brassard. Moore would play in just 6 games for the Genies and put up 3 assists, but got into 15 playoff games and assisted on 5 goals. Moore would also represent Team Canada White at the World Hockey Challenge Under-17 but went pointless in 5 contests.

Prior to the 2019-2020 season being cancelled due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, Moore would appear in 57 games and scored 6 goals while assisting on 22. The Generals are looking to Moore to pay dividends for next season as Oshawa is one of two teams with a bid to host the 2021 Memorial Cup.

At 5’9” tall, defence is always a question mark. What Moore has learned to do is use his skating ability and positioning to defend. But he is always going to be in tough trying to defend against bigger players at any level. Battling along the walls and defending the front of his net will not come easy to him.

So, Moore is going to have to be at the top of his game offensively to be able to make up any shortcomings on defence.

Moore is an elite level skater with an explosive first step and reaches a superb top speed quickly. His edgework is elite, his lateral movement is where you’d want it to be and he pivots from forward skating to backwards effortlessly. He has shown an ability to weave through traffic and gain the offensive zone, but he can also get separated from the puck easily if you can keep gaps tight on him. His transition to offence is very good as he can skate the puck up ice or he can make a good first pass.

Moore has shown an ability to quarterback the powerplay as he sees the ice well enough and he has some very good playmaking abilities. He usually makes the right decision when the puck is on his stick. His shot however needs to improve on many levels. Moore won’t overpower goaltenders with his shot. He doesn’t always get his shot through and when he does, it’s not usually in an area that creates second-chance opportunities.

I don’t know that Moore has done enough to draw the attention of scouts this season – as I said earlier, next season may be the year we want to see from him. But maybe there is one out there that has seen enough to take a chance on him early this year rather then waiting on his draft re-entry year.

I would certainly give him some serious consideration late in the draft.