If Thomas Jefferson played hockey: center, rated 76

Thomas Jefferson as a hockey player: scouting report

Thomas Jefferson would play center, the position for a player who designs the game rather than simply reacting to it. He drafted the Declaration of Independence at thirty three, designed his own home at Monticello and laid out the University of Virginia, which he founded. A man who could plan a campus down to the shape of its lawn would plan every breakout the same way. Passing is one of the two best parts of his card, and his feeds would arrive exactly where his wingers needed them.

His best single grade is goaltending, which reflects a mind that was always calm and curious. Jefferson was an architect, a lawyer, a violinist and a tireless reader whose personal library became the core of the rebuilt Library of Congress. He even devised a wheel cipher for coding messages, and a player who thinks in codes reads the other team's systems quickly. His defense is solid, so he takes responsible draws in his own zone, and his shot is accurate enough to keep goalies honest.

Physical play is the clear weak spot. He was a writer and a thinker far more than a brawler, and his skating is only average, so he needs linemates who supply the speed and the grit. Goalie is a good second option and right wing a distant third. Pair him with a fast, physical left winger who can retrieve pucks and a sniper on the right side who can finish his passes, and let him quarterback the top power play unit from the half wall.

Plays like A cerebral playmaking center who designs every breakout

Put Thomas Jefferson in your lineup

8 rolls, a starting six and a bench, 82 games. Can you go 82-0? Free, no account.