Andrew Cristall is a crafty playmaking winger that played left wing for the Kelowna Rockets. He is a highly skilled player that scored 39 goals 56 assists in 54 games. Cirstall is dynamite on the offensive zone. He uses his high-level edge-work to maneuver around the offensive zone and setup plays for teammates. He uses his vision in the offensive zone to make plays happen and is a great capitalizer. Cristall scored 2 goals and 4 assists in 7 games at the u18s and only produced 1 goal no assists in 4 WHL playoff games. His numbers have dwindled in bigger moments this season. This has scouts worried and is a big reason he has been a faller this year. Corey Pronman polled some NHL scouts and a lot of them said they wouldn't draft Cristall in the 1st round because there is a huge risk in his projection. One said they wouldn't draft him until the early 3rd. There was one scout that had him as a top 20 talent. He might be the most polarizing prospect in the draft (along with Riley Heidt). I am on the low-end of the Cristall hype-train because I don't like his projection to the NHL. Personally, he would be in my 40-50 range (had I ranked more players).
The biggest issue with Cristall is his skating. While his edgework is gorgeous (he uses mohawk turns very well), his top speed is ugly. You don't see players as small as Cristall and that slow of foot speed in the NHL. It just doesn't happen. I can't think of one current NHL comparable to Cristall. There are some scouts that are really optimistic about his skating that say he can improve his pacing. There is no denying Cristall has many offensive talents. He is electric in the offensive zone and produces higher point totals than most WHL players in the draft class. He is a grade 'A' capitalizer that takes advantage of any open space or prime opportunities. The skill is obvious, but there are too big of faults in his game
Another area Cristall struggles in is his compete/physical area of the game. He is a smaller player and doesn't do well against physicality. You won't see him win too many board battles and he tends to look uninterested in the play at times. Once the game gets physical, Cristall can be a non-factor. These types of players don't do well in playoff hockey and I see this as a turn-off for many NHL teams. The skill element is certainly there and he is more skilled than most players that will get drafted ahead of him. If your team drafts Cristall, they are getting a smaller highly skilled winger with potential to be a top 6 player and powerplay specialist.
Below is his Elite Prospects page
Elite Prospect's page for Andrew Cristall2/4 Average
1/4 Below Average
3/4 Above Average
3/4 Above Average
1/4 Below Average
Below are some sources to look at for visual demonstration;