Karch Bachman
Birthday: 1997-03-10 | Position: C |
Eligible for draft: 2015 | Shoots: Left |
Drafted: 2015 | Height: 5-11 |
Acquired: 5th round (132nd overall), 2015 | Weight: 180 lbs. |
Probability of Success
- D
History
2012-13: Karch Bachman attended the Culver Military Academy in Indiana, skating for the school’s U16 team. In 25 games he scored 14 goals with 14 assists and 10 penalty minutes. Bachman was selected by the Tri-City Storm in the fifth round (62nd overall) in the 2013 USHL Futures Draft and was chosen by Barrie in the 11th round (215th overall) in the 2013 OHL Priority Draft.
2013-14: Bachman made his USHL debut, appearing in two games with the Tri-City Storm, and was one of the top scorers for the Culver Military Academy U18 team as the Eagles reached the USA Hockey U18 nationals. He had no points nor penalties in his brief stint with the Storm. Bachman scored 36 goals with 15 assists and 28 penalty minutes in 41 games for Culver. He scored 5 goals with 1 assists in four games at the U18 National tournament as the Eagles finished 2-2 in pool play.
2014-15: Bachman skated for the USA U18 team at the 2014 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament in August before returning to Culver Military Academy for his senior season. He scored 3 goals with 1 assist and 4 penalty minutes in five games as the USA captured a bronze medal. In 32 games for Culver he scored 19 goals with 24 assists and was +32 with 10 penalty minutes. In March 2015 the Green Bay Gamblers acquired the USHL rights to Bachman from Tri-City in exchange for forward Chris Brown. Bachman, who skated for Team Grier in the 2014 All-American Prospects Game, committed to playing college hockey at Miami University in 2016-17 in July 2015. He was ranked 87th amongst North American skaters in the Central Scouting final rankings and was invited to the NHL Prospects Combine. Bachman was selected by Florida in the fifth round (132nd overall) in the 2015 NHL Draft.
2015-16: Bachman skated for three different teams in the USHL. He opened the season with the Green Bay Gamblers, playing five games before being acquired by the Chicago Steel. Bachman played 24 games with the Steel before being traded again in February, finishing the season with Cedar Rapids. In 35 regular season games between the three teams he scored 14 goals (11 with Chicago) with 8 assists and was +1 with 10 penalty minutes. He scored 2 goals with 3 assists in six games with Cedar Rapids before suffering a season-ending injury. The RoughRiders finished first in the Eastern Conference before falling to fourth-place Bloomington in a quarterfinal series.
Talent Analysis
Bachman possess lightning-quick speed and that is arguably his greatest asset. He stood out at the NHL Draft Combine for his fitness and agility. He’s a little short at 5-foot-10 but his strength lies in his core which allows him to be strong on his skates. He’s a very raw prospect at this point in his development and is, at the very least, several years away from turning pro.
Future
Bachman played for three different USHL teams in 2015-16, missing out on a potential Clark Cup playoff run with Eastern Conference regular season champion Cedar Rapids after suffering a season-ending injury. The RoughRiders were upset by Bloomingotn in a first-round series. Bachman is an undersized and light, but highly-skilled offensive forward who will begin his college career at Miami University this fall. Likely to need most of his four years of eligibility to mature physically and continue to develop his overall game, Barchman projects as a second or third line center with some scoring ability.