Mitchell Miller – McKeen's Hockey

In Defense of (No) Character

Ryan Wagman — Wed, 28 Oct 2020 18:06:51 +0000

Some of you may have seen Mitchell Miller’s name all over social media in the last day or so, far more than any late round pick should rightfully be in the news. Whenever anyone is in the news that much, it stands to reason that the cause is not favorable. And boy is it ever not.

The details of his bullying are frankly disgusting and, as he was already convicted, they are a matter of public record. You can read more about it here and here. What follows is not, by any measure, a defense of Miller for any of his actions, because there really is no way to defend it, but a look at how we approach “character” when analyzing prospects, and some thoughts on why the publicly-known facts are not enough for me to advocate for the player losing his scholarship at North Dakota, or any hopes of a professional career in the sport.

***

Before delving into some of the elements of the Miller situation that I think are noteworthy in bringing me to my present state of mind, I need to come clean that I have skin in this game. My older brother, Larry, was born with severe physical and mental handicaps. These conditions cast a large shadow over my childhood as he was in and out of the hospital continuously throughout his youth (and mine), undergoing over 20 major surgeries by the time he was 15.

I look back to my early childhood, when I was six or seven, and I heard the two brothers who lived next door, yelling insults at Larry. Insults that he only somewhat understood. I understood, and for a brief period, thought they were funny. I held Larry’s differences against him and felt, on some level, that his handicaps were reflected back on me. For a brief period of my childhood, I even resented him.

Thankfully, still around that same age as I was when I found the neighborhood bullies to be funny, I also realized that none of this was Larry’s fault. The despite his generally happy-go-lucky mood, he understood pain, and knew that many of the things he wanted would never be possible. And yet he was still able to demonstrate love for his family with a positivity that could be infectious.

I never spoke to those neighbors again, except to threaten them with fists if they bullied either of my brothers again, but that is a different story, something that happened when I was in high school.

I bring this up because I was smarter at age eight than I was at age six, and I am much smarter today than I was then. I grew up in a somewhat sheltered environment, going to a private, religious school and having little experience with people of different races or religions. Because of this lack of diversity in my young life, I sometimes didn’t know how to react to those that were different when I did encounter them. Before knowing what homosexuality really meant, I had heard dozens of jokes about it. Racial jokes were also abundant. I am sure that I laughed at many that I heard in my early adolescence.

I don’t mind saying any of this now because I have grown up. I’m in my 40s now. Things that I thought were funny in the early 90s I mostly no longer do. Things I find funny now I likely would not have understood at all back then. But I also believe strongly that my sense of humor changed not because of some feeling for political correctness, but because with maturity, with getting out of my childhood bubble, my world view expanded, and empathy rushed in.

***

I had watched Miller play a bit in his USHL debut season in 2018-19, and saw some talent, but it was raw. I filed his name away as someone to watch in his draft year (2019-20) and watched others instead. When last season began, Miller was on a new team, and his play hit a new level. As in, he was really good. I chatted with an NHL scout about him, and the scout mentioned the curiousness of his offseason trade from Cedar Rapids to Tri-City. He did not know why Cedar Rapids would trade him away, and if he knew anything about his criminal past, he didn’t let on, as he suspected the issue was due to the Cedar Rapids’ coaching staff, if anything.

I didn’t think about that conversation again until a few months ago, when I heard through Guy Flaming that Miller had a criminal record. I didn’t have to dig too far before finding one of the stories I linked to near the top of this article. By that time, the McKeens Hockey Draft Guide was already published. Miller had performed exceptionally throughout his draft year and looked for all intents and purposes like a noteworthy prospect, earning the 50^th slot in our rankings.

Once I found out about his past, I knew that I would have to dig in further, but that also we would be very unlikely to issue a revision to his ranking. The latter point is largely because we make a point of almost never factoring in “character” into our grading system, with only very rare exceptions. There is good reason for that.

For starters, I strongly believe that we would never be able to look at all prospects in the same manner when it comes to off-ice considerations. On the ice we know how to compare apples to apples. The context is established and understood. Away from the rink, the reliability of the information we receive is maddeningly inconsistent. Most coaches/GMs will promote their players. Few, when asked how one of their players is “in the room”, will say negative things.

Further, very few players can get to where they are in their respective draft years without a lot of hard work and so judging players by perceptions of how hard they work is worse than useless. In short, good character is a matter of perception and there is way too much hidden context for any of us to pretend we have a handle on those things in a way that would allow us to compare any one player to another.

Back to Miller. I wanted to find out how much of his past record was known to NHL scouts and what they made of it. I spoke to scouts from three different organizations (I did not speak to a scout from the Coyotes). One scout would not say very much other than being familiar with the matter and that his team tries to know as much about a player’s character as possible before drafting or signing anyone. Another scout noted that Miller seemed to not be sufficiently forthcoming in his explanations about his record and mentioned other, vague misbehaviors. The second scout was clear that his team would not be drafting Miller. The third scout was more positive. He had read the same letter than Miller’s camp sent out to all teams, in addition to letters of recommendation from the Tri-City coach and his billets, as well as coaches from his time with Cedar Rapids. This third scout believed that the record belonged to the past and that Miller at age 18 was not the same person he was at age 14.

Hearing these three different perspectives, I was convinced both that Miller would not be drafted as highly as we had him ranked, but that he would still be drafted. In all subsequent writings about Miller, I was sure to mention both his one-ice potential as well as his off-ice record, but we elected not to adjust our rankings, which were always meant to be a reflection of potential as a hockey player.

***

Hockey has long had a very disturbing problem with accepting players of color. There is a type of character that is expected and accepted in hockey players, and that, along with other reasons requiring much deeper investigation, have not always made the sport comfortable for players of color.

We can see how Miller is treated, or how Steve Downie was given opportunity after opportunity even though his cruel and callous treatment of teammate Akim Aliu was public knowledge at the time. Downie, a white player, and clearly the instigator of the incident with Aliu was still selected in the first round. Aliu was traded away from Windsor and blossomed with Sudbury. Unfortunately, as many of us learned this year, racism followed Aliu around for much of his career. Downie is White and Aliu is Black.

Tony DeAngelo, receives chance after chance despite a well-documented history of spewing homophobic and racist slurs. DeAngelo is White. PK Subban is seen as a clubhouse cancer because he donated several million dollars to a Montreal hospital. Subban is Black. Josh Ho-Sang showed up late for practice once in 2015 and still hasn’t gotten out of Lou Lamoriello’s doghouse. Ho-Sang is Black. Casey DeSmith was kicked off of the University of New Hampshire hockey team entering his senior season after being arresting for assaulting his ex-girlfriend and then resisting arrest while intoxicated. DeSmith’s collegiate career was over, but he was later signed to an ECHL contract in the Pittsburgh organization, and rose up to the NHL within three years. DeSmith is White.

I could find more examples of double standards, but I would rather not. This is depressing enough. Racism is important to the Miller story, as Miller is White and the classmate he bullied was Black. Further, the victim’s skin color played a significant role in the bullying. Regardless of my feelings on the Miller, I have no doubt that if Miller was Black and the developmentally disabled student he bullied was White, he would have been treated differently by the law and by the sport of hockey, as repugnant as that would be.

***

All of the above is true and Mitchell Miller’s case will stand or fall on its own merits and facts. I recently read an interesting article in The Atlantic about niche sports and Ivy League schools. The article discusses how the Ivy league obsessed spare no expense in having their children coached to the max in sports like lacrosse, rowing and fencing, in hopes of easing the process of admission to a prestigious school. The piece goes on to discuss how that abundance of coaching is sometimes detrimental to a young athlete’s chances of recruitment, as that athlete is more likely to have maxed out in their chosen field, while a similarly talented player from an area with less top-tier coaching may be able to improve at school.

I don’t know the particulars of Miller’s upbringing, but I do know that he was identified as a prodigy for an early age, having played for the prestigious Compuware program at the 13U and 14U levels by the time of his arrest. After the arrest, he moved to the similarly elite Honeybaked program before ascending to the USHL. What that means in terms of his psyche at that young age is only possible through conjecture. Clearly not all of his Compuware teammates committed similar heinous acts. But it seems to be the case that Miller was coddled from a young age. His gifts on the ice allowed the people around him to overlook some of his behaviors, at least until he crossed the line too egregiously.

Reading the news story about the court case, his parents seem to be making excuses for him, that he just is a good kid who made a mistake. When looking at how he communicated the matter to NHL teams, with a prepared letter, the impression I received from the scouts I spoke with speak to me of being over-coached. A young man who may be acting a role because that is what he has been coached to do. If questions veer away from his canned statements, he doesn’t know what to say. Sometimes, a lack of answers is an indication of a person who has something to hide. Other times, it indicates someone who simply doesn’t know how to represent himself. I have never spoken with Mitchell Miller, so I can’t say which is the case, but knowing how players in high level programs are trained – not just on the ice, but in terms of PR, and having spoken to enough young players to see that training in action, I would not discount the latter out of hand.

Please make no mistake; even if his current awkwardness and formality when discussing his record is a product of bad advice and coaching, that does not excuse what he was convicted of doing in a court of law. I will make no apologies on his behalf. Yet it is not unreasonable that his failure to apologize directly to the victim of his actions, Isaiah Meyer-Crothers, may also have been a result of legal advice. Or (im)maturity. Or shame. Or fear. Or some combination of the above. There are several reasons why he may not have apologized in person to Meyer-Crothers, and some reflect worse on Miller than others.

***

My wife is an Early Childhood Educator, and she used to tell me, while she was studying, that there is no such thing as a bad person, only a bad action, or a bad decision. She would not even make an exception for Hitler. This philosophy stemmed for her learnings about educating children, and how bad and good should be isolated to those actions, so as not to label people as one or the other, as children can learn from bad behaviors and change those behaviors. This gets back to my read on the Miller situation.

Like many athletes, Miller was coddled, allowing his talent to overshadow his behavior off the field of play. He would not be unique in that light. Think of the countless stories of NCAA basketball and football players who were functionally illiterate but were allowed to skirt through their education because of their athletic talents and achievements. If Miller was never reprimanded for bad behaviors, it is easy to see how those bad behaviors would proliferate and grow more sinister over time. Thankfully, we will never know how much further he might have taken things if he wasn’t caught when he was.

It is for the best that Miller’s history is now in the public eye. If he slips up even marginally at any point from here on out, the consequences will be swift and severe. And if he doesn’t, his good behavior will also be in the public record. One can say that the actions of the 14-year-old are the actions of a child and the law will agree, to an extent. Miller is now 18, and liable and responsible for everything. If he has matured, he will be able to point to his clean record. If he hasn’t, he will be found out very quickly in the age of social media, where baseball players are held to the fire for the racist and misogynistic tweets of their high school selves (see Josh Hader and Trea Turner, for two recent examples).

***

I believe in the ability for people to improve with age. Not everyone does, but I strongly believe that we should all be given the chance to learn from our mistakes. It sometimes takes time, but I want to treat athletes the same way I would treat “regular” people. I don’t know what my colleagues and neighbors were like at 14 and 15. I would like to think that they are better people today than they were then, but I will only judge them on who they are today.

I do not at all excuse Mitch Miller for what he did to Isaiah Meyer-Crothers. No one can or should. Further, he should never be allowed to forget his actions. But I believe he should be allowed to grow from it and be as productive a member of society as his skills and work ethic allow, like all of us. The fact that his record is now part of public consciousness can only help his continuous path to (or from) redemption.

***

Unlike the other major North American sports, when a hockey player is drafted by an NHL organization, the player is not given a contract right away, if at all. Depending on where the player played and will play, the drafting team simply picks up an option on the player that it holds for a set number of years before it either has to sign the player to a contract, or release the option.

Miller, drafted out of the USHL and committed to play NCAA hockey at North Dakota, has a full four-year window with his rights controlled by Arizona. Many players drafted on their way to college, especially in the late rounds, are never signed, no matter their past behaviors or actions. If Miller is less than stellar throughout his time with UND, he will never play pro hockey. If he is stellar and has more reports of poor behavior, he might never play pro hockey.

In using a fourth round pick on Miller, the Arizona Coyotes, perhaps cynically, are leveraging his record to take out an option on a player who would have been drafted far earlier than their first pick, in the hopes that he can prove his contrition and provide on-ice value in time. They must realize that anything short of angelic behavior would constitute too much of a PR risk to give him even a minor league contract, much less an NHL deal. The fact that Meyer-Crothers’ mother has recently come out to state clearly both that Miller has never apologized in person to the victim, and that he continued to torment the young man after completing the court-ordered probationary period certainly points to Miller simply being a bad seed. Ultimately, Miller must make the choice for himself to seek redemption, which includes, but is not anywhere near limited to, a sincere apology to Mr. Meyer-Crothers. We can allow him that opportunity or deny it. The Coyotes have already made clear that they hope that he proves the evidence of his youth wrong.

As for me, I still don’t think that we can adequately include character in our assessments of prospects. But I think we can do a better job of calling attention to serious issues when we learn of them, even if they don’t change our grading and rankings. Even though hard to quantify, they are still very important. When it comes to rankings, the NHL (not just the Coyotes) have proven time and again, that they will overlook horrendous actions on the part of a player if the player has sufficient talent. We have yet to see any evidence from the league as a whole that a player will be left aside for any level of bad behavior that doesn’t involve jail time. Not Miller, not Steve Downie, not Patrick Kane, not Bob Probert. The bar might be set at Slava Voynov’s level, or Mike Danton’s. Regardless of where the bar is, a question we should deal with as a society and as a sport is whether we should be as unforgiving of the crimes committed by White athletes as the world has been with those committed by Black athletes, or whether we should be more forgiving of Black athletes for misdeeds. I tend to side with those who try to offer a path to redemption. Your mileage may vary.

At the end of the day, our goal at McKeens is to look at the draft class as a whole and determine who the most talented players are, because those are the players that NHL teams are looking at. We do not publish a “Do Not Draft” list and never will, because we aren’t drafting in the first place. As we know that NHL teams will not overlook horrible character - and they never have – we are doing a disservice to our readership if we exclude players for reasons not affiliated with their inherent talent level. But we can do a better job of mentioning these red flags when we learn of them, and we are committed to doing so going forward.

2020 NHL Draft: Analysts Choice for Top Sleepers Around the World

Brock Otten — Sat, 25 Apr 2020 11:24:10 +0000

While the status of the 2020 NHL Entry Draft remains unclear in the current world climate, we at McKeen’s Hockey continue to bring you detailed and engrossing features that focus on the players available.

By now, most draft followers and fans are familiar with the top end players available. The names of Alexis Lafreniere, Quinton Byfield, Lucas Raymond, and many other potential first round selections have received significant attention, including in-depth scouting reports on this platform. But what about potential sleepers; the players available who could go relatively high but are failing to receive serious hype?

We have polled our various analysts around the world and asked them to provide us with their favorite personal “sleeper.” The definition applied here being, “a player said analyst feels is being underrated right now, but who could end up as a fairly high NHL draft selection.” In other words, our analysts feel that the players highlighted in this article deserve more of your attention.

Karri Aho - Defense – 6-1”, 180lbs - Ilves U20 (Jr. A SM-liiga)

Analyst: Marco Bombino

One of the younger players available due to a September 6 birth date, Aho played for three different teams this year. He bounced between the U18 and U20 programs with Ilves, in addition to a cup of coffee with KOOVEE in the Mestis league.

Perhaps due to him not playing at the Hlinka/Gretzky Cup for Finland, Aho has certainly flown under the radar among draft eligible Finnish defenders this year. With 5 points in 8 games with KOOVEE in a men’s league (the Finnish second division), Aho really caught the attention of some scouts. Although a small sample size, his production there compares favorably to other young strong Finnish defenders like Olli Maatta and Sami Niku.

“Aho is a smooth-skating defenseman with good four-way mobility. Light and nimble on his skates, he has strong edges and pivots well. Love his poise and confidence with the puck as he remains unrattled no matter what situation he's in. A firm, strong passer who can move pucks quickly to the forwards. His defensive game loses nothing, as he uses an active stick and keeps tight gaps, making him an effective defender in the neutral zone and defensive zone. Made significant strides this past season and will continue to get better once his physicality catches up with the rest of his game. The ceiling isn't the highest and he may not play in the NHL for several years, but I think this is a gamble worth taking.” (Bombino)

The Czech Republic Goalkeeper Jan Bednar and Swedens Karl Henriksson during the ice hockey quarter final game in The IIHF U18 World Championship between Sweden and The Czech Republic on April 25 in Örnsköldsvik.
Photo: Jonas Forsberg / BILDBYRÅN

Jan Bednar - Goaltender – 6-4”, 195lbs - HC Banik Sokolov (Czech2)

Analyst: Derek O’Brien

Bednar, along with Soo Greyhounds (OHL) netminder Nick Malik, has been on the scouting map for a few years now. The two had very high expectations coming into the year, but both struggled, despite taking different routes. Malik missed the preseason Hlinka/Gretzky because of injury, giving Bednar the opportunity to be the lone starter. Unfortunately, he struggled at the event and that really set the tone for the rest of his season.

Splitting the year between the Czech Extraliga and the Czech second division, the hulking netminder failed to replicate the strong performance he had in the Extraliga last year. And with the IIHF U18’s cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic; Bednar did not get an opportunity to show scouts that he can play up to his potential. As such, he has seen his draft ranking suffer.

“One of the more curious Czechs available at this year’s draft is goaltender Jan Bednar. As a 16-year-old, Bednar burst onto the scene, winning the Extraliga’s Rookie-of-the-Year award. Positionally sound, mobile, 6-foot-4 and 196 lbs, he was pegged as a future impact goaltender. However, Bednar’s 2019-20 campaign was a disappointment. He only played 13 games in Karlovy Vary, spending most of the year in the second-tier Chance Liga. It’s a shame Bednar didn’t get the chance to redeem himself at the cancelled U18 Worlds. Heading into the season, Bednar was projected to be a second- to fourth-round pick, but that’s dropped a bit as scouts now question his mindset a bit. However, if a team figures he’s still got all the physical tools to be a starting NHL goaltender down the line and he just needs a change of scenery to get him back on the right path, they may take a chance on Bednar.” (O’Brien)

Valentin Demchenko - Right Wing – 6-0”, 175lbs - Baie-Comeau (QMJHL)

Analyst: Benoit Belanger

While his production certainly doesn’t jump off the page at you, the Belarussian winger has done well to open some eyes in his first CHL season. Like a lot of first year imports, Demchenko struggled initially, but by season’s end he was looking quite comfortable in the QMJHL with the Drakkar. His high-end puck skills give him a high offensive upside, which is why NHL teams should have him on their radar heading into the NHL Draft.

On top of playing for Baie-Comeau this year, Demchenko has also suited up for Belarus at the International level. As an underager, Demchenko was part of that U18 team that was able to stay in the main group last year (along with the likes of Vladislav Kolyachonok and Yegeni Oksentyuk). And as a double underager, he was part of the U20 squad that competed at the lower division World Juniors this year (although Belarus failed to advance to the main draw).

“For the choice of a sleeper player in the later rounds, I had a few names in mind. However, the one that came back to me was more "sexy" because of his origin: Belarus. It is not so common to see players from Belarus landing in the QMJHL. The 44th player selected during the last CHL import draft came to Baie-Comeau as a total unknown. It was a season of adaptation for the young winger but the more the season progressed, the more he looked comfortable on the QMJHL ice rinks. He produced 25 of his 34 pts after Christmas and 30% of his shots were generated in the month of February. Demchenko has excellent puck skills, probably his strongest attribute. He has shown his soft hands on multiple occasions, whether by coming alone in front of the goalkeeper or for making a superbly accurate pass. His shot, clapper or wrister, is excellent. He is deceptive and precise. In terms of skating, I like his mobility and the way he uses his edges. He is not the strongest physically, but he has fairly good balance, which allows him to be solid on his skates. He has a good hockey sense and understanding of the game. I would like to see him improve his passing game. Not because he is not a good passer, it's more about the vision. Sure, he still has to mature his entire game. He also needs to start gaining weight, strength and power to his body. If he can add grit and bulk up his game, I remain convinced that he is the kind of player who will have a good progression in the junior ranks. He showed me that he was smart enough to improve his weaknesses and work on those aspects. I would not hesitate to make him one of my choices in the late rounds of the draft.” (Belanger)

Riley Duran - C/RW – 6-1”, 175lbs - Lawrence Academy (USHS-MA)

Analyst: Tom Dorsa

Almost all players drafted out of high school are longer term projects, with NHL teams operating under the assumption that they will need to be patient with them. Duran is exactly that. One of the largest risers in the final NHL Central Scouting rankings (breaking inside the top 100 of North America), the lanky pivot is enticing because of his skating ability and size combination and is tracking towards a potential top 100 selection in 2020. In recent drafts, the Massachusetts prep scene has done very well with the likes of Jayden Struble, John Farinacci, and Jay O’Brien all being selected high. This year, Duran and defender Ian Moore could follow the pattern.

Originally a second-round selection of the Halifax Mooseheads in the QMJHL Draft, Duran has spent the last two seasons at Lawrence Academy (which has alumni such as former Boston Bruin Steve Heinze). He recently signed a tender with Youngstown of the USHL to play there next year before heading to Providence the following season.

“Riley Duran elevated himself 47 spots on the NHL Central Scouting board from the mid-term rankings to the final rankings revealed just weeks ago. Prep school players will generally have a harder time getting on a pro scout’s radar, but Duran has made his presence known over the last few months. The Lawrence Academy forward plays a complete 200-foot game and has the skating ability and physical attributes to carry that kind of playing style into the college ranks, where he will suit up for Providence. His hands are not elite, but his lanky frame gives him solid puck-protection skill with which he can bulldoze to the net for scoring chances. The American prep school ranks are not generally where elite junior players will come from, and so, his game should be taken with a grain of salt. Added to that, he does play a fairly careless, wide open game, and that could be an issue for some coaches. I was expecting a respectable sixth- or seventh-round selection for Duran, but now I would not be surprised to hear his name called in the third or fourth rounds.” (Dorsa)

Max Glotzl - Defense – 6-2”, 200lbs - Kolner EC U20 (DNL U20)

Analyst: Chapin Landvogt

A good sized, left-handed shot defender, Glotzl has emerged as one of the top young defenders in Germany, which has greatly improved their country’s status of a development hotspot as of late. Perhaps overshadowed by the trio of potential first round forwards (Stutzle, Reichel, Peterka), Glotzl is a quality player in his own right.

As an underager, he was a member of the U18 squad that captured the Division A title at last year’s IIHF U18s. This would have allowed Germany to play in the main draw of this year’s now defunct tournament. He played four games against men this year at the DEL and DEL2 levels, and was top 5 in defenseman scoring in the U20 league, in addition to being one of the highest scoring U18 players overall.

“No single player in the German ice hockey scene would have benefited more from the U18 Worlds than Max Glotzl. Blessed with size, athleticism, and a powerful - though not yet particularly quick - stride, Max has been a man among boys for Cologne in Germany's U20 DNL junior league. The highest scoring U18 defenseman in the league, his ability to read the game, maintain a physical presence, and take on a major offensive role for one of the better junior programs in Germany earned him a 2-game look with the big boys in the DEL and another couple of outings with Bad Nauheim in Germany's DEL2.” (Landvogt)

James Hardie of the Mississauga Steelheads. Photo by Terry Wilson / OHL Images.

James Hardie - Left Wing – 5-11”, 180lbs - Mississauga (OHL)

Analyst: Michael Rand

If you eliminate a stretch of 14 games from mid-October to the end of November, where Hardie struggled (1 goal and 2 assists), his numbers hold up with some of the best in this year’s OHL draft class; 33 goals and 60 points in 45 games. That type of production is similar to the likes of Tyson Foerster and Jacob Perreault, two players widely considered as potential first round selections.

Originally a first-round selection of the Steelheads in the OHL Priority Selection, Hardie improved greatly in his second year in the OHL. The Mississauga Steelheads, a quality young team led by 2019 NHL draft picks Thomas Harley, Cole Schwindt, and Keean Washkurak, had a very strong showing in the second half of the OHL season and Hardie was one of the main reasons for that. He ended up finishing the year as the team’s leader in goals, shots, powerplay goals, game winning goals, and was second in points. Yet, we don’t hear his name very regularly as a potential selection in the first three rounds.

“James Hardie of the Mississauga Steelheads is a super intriguing prospect. Hardie is a player that a few years down the road, could quite possibly look like a steal in the mid to later rounds of the draft. He is a very strong skater and a player that handles the puck quite well. He adds that “bite” component to his game as well, as he does not shy away from engaging in physical contact. With a continuation of honing in on this defensive zone coverage and his play away from the puck, we could be talking about a completely different player come next season. Hardie was a 30-goal scorer and over one point-per-game with the Steelheads this past season and if he continues his offensive abilities and tidies up those details in his game, he could be a force to be reckoned with next season.” (Rand)

Leksand's Emil Heineman during the ice hockey match in SHL between Brynäs and Leksand on March 7, 2020 in Gävle.
Photo: Daniel Eriksson / BILDBYRÅN

Emil Heineman - Left Wing – 6-1”, 185lbs - Leksands IF J20 (SuperElit)

Analyst: Will Scouch

The exhilarating thing about covering junior hockey, prospects, and the draft, is the unpredictability of a player’s development. Look no further than Swedish winger Emil Heineman. The late born 2001 forward was not on the radar at all at this point last year. He was coming off of a season in the SuperElit league where he had a single goal and had not played for Sweden Internationally...ever. Yet here we are discussing Heineman because of the steps forward that he took this year.

In 29 SuperElit games this year, Heineman had 26 goals, by far the best goals per game rate of any player in the league, including some highly ranked prospects like Zion Nybeck. This of course led to a call up to the SHL where he played 11 games and did not look out of place playing against men.

“My work allows me to view and track games almost anywhere in the world, and I can’t just talk about Marat Khusnutdinov forever, so I thought I’d dig for someone still not getting the attention they deserve. Heineman came out of absolutely nowhere this season to become a near goal-per-game player at the Under-20 level for Leksands, earning a callup to the SHL club to play 11 games. Heineman didn’t look out of place in the SHL playing decent minutes and finishing the year as an average possession player on the team, with a -0.83 SAT% relative to Leksands without him on the ice. The question with Heineman is both “What happened” and “Is this just the best year of his career?” Heineman has scored 29 goals in any level of competition over the course of the last five seasons yet scored 26 this year alone. From what I’ve been told, there’s a positional awareness and shot quality that people had not seen prior to this year, and while I’m still somewhat skeptical considering his track record, the data speaks for itself. All of his points at even strength were primary points, he had primary points on 71% of the goals scored with him on the ice at the U20 level, he relinquished under 0.6 even strength goals against all season, a measure 60% better than his team without him on the ice, and he was a clear power play threat on top of everything. He’s a quick and agile scoring winger who is still a bit lanky and could fill out his frame more over time, but I’m of the belief that the guy is legit. He had two points in SHL competition, but in my viewings he could’ve been even better, and I’m fascinated at where his name will be called and by whom at the 2020 NHL Draft.”

Sweden's Anton Johannesson during the ice hockey match in the U16 4-nation tournament between Sweden and Russia on April 15, 2018 in Umeå.
Photo: JOHAN LÖF / BILDBYRÅN

Anton Johannesson - Defense – 5-9”, 155lbs - HV71 J20 (SuperElit)

Analyst: Jimmy Hamrin

Injuries can be a tough thing for players in their draft year, let alone their draft year and the year prior. That was the case for Johannesson who has missed a good chunk of the last two years, including the previous summer’s Hlinka/Gretzky Cup. When you combine injury issues with a smaller frame, this can cause a lower ranking among the scouting community.

However, upon Johannesson’s return towards the end of the 2019 calendar year, fully healthy, he was able to showcase why he has long been considered one of the most skilled blueliners in Sweden among his age group. His 1.20 points per game (across 20 games) in the SuperElit league was considerably better than more hyped Swedish blueliners like Helge Grans (1.00 ppg), Emil Andrae (0.95 ppg), and William Wallinder (0.65 ppg). It would appear that Johannesson would have had a lot to gain from playing at the World U18s, had they actually occurred. Instead, he is a prospect currently flying under the radar.

"Anton Johannesson was under the radar early due to injury issues. After he got back in November, he dominated in the SuperElit scoring 24 points in only 20 games, including 8 goals. Johannesson surely has some red flags in his defensive game and his physicality, but in my opinion, he is the most skilled Swedish defenseman in the draft. He has elite puck skills, a good shot and his offensive hockey IQ is elite. He can control the pace of the game and shows awareness under pressure. He also skates fast with ease and can move around coast-to-coast with the puck. He isn’t ranked particularly high and I can see teams hitting a jackpot picking him as early as late in the first round. His upside is that good." (Hamrin)

Mitchell Miller. Photo by Dan Hickling. Hickling Images

Mitchell Miller - Defense – 5-11”, 195lbs - Tri-City (USHL)

Analyst: Ryan Wagman

Not only was Miller the highest scoring defender at the 2018 Hlinka/Gretzky Cup (for Team USA), but he was also the highest scoring defender at the most recent World Junior A Challenge. The later born 2001 left shot defender uses his strong skating ability to impact the game in all three zones yet finds himself outside of the first two rounds on most scouting lists.

A North Dakota commit, Miller was a standout for the USHL’s Tri-City Storm this year, helping them to finish 4th in the Western Conference. His 33 points helped him finish third in USHL defenseman scoring.

“At this point, I believe that Miller is the top draft eligible defender among the non-USNTDP USHLers, and no one else is particularly close. A true modern-era defender, Miller has great edges, enabling him to stop and change direction on a dime, breaking ankles along the way and his high-end acceleration leads to Miller leading his share of rushes from end to end. A very composed puck mover, Miller combines his puck skills with his skating to present dynamic elements fairly regularly. He has very good vision and is a creative passer. His puck control is high end. He can dangle at top speed to evade the defense as he prepares to attack the home plate area. Between his high-end skating and puck skills and refined hockey sense and instincts, he looks like a potential second pairing defender with some power play time thrown in. He would not look out of place in the second round.” (Wagman)

Tristan Robins. Photo by Steve Hiscock/Saskatoon Blades.

Tristen Robins - Center – 5-10”, 173lbs - Saskatoon (WHL)

Analyst: Vince Gibbons

Robins, a late born 2001 center, used a terrific second half to the WHL season to propel himself up the draft board. He ended up leading the Saskatoon Blades in scoring with 73 points in 62 games this year. However, if you dissect those numbers, you’ll see how good he was in the 2020 calendar year. During that span (27 games), Robins had 22 goals and 23 assists. Those points per game (1.66) and goals per game (0.81) numbers would put him right near the top of the WHL, not just among draft eligible players, but all players.

Buried behind a strong group of centers and forwards (Kirby Dach, Max Gerlach, Gary Haden, Eric Florchuk, Ryan Hughes, Chase Wouters) on a terrific Blades team last year, Robins was given a much larger role this year and flourished. This was especially true after Florchuk was dealt to Vancouver at the beginning of January. Even though the expectation was that Saskatoon would be in a rebuilding year after dealing off veteran players, the one two punch down the middle of captain Chase Wouters and Robins helped the Blades finish the season strong and end the year as a playoff team.

“Tristan Robins is a player that fully embodies the old adage “greater than the sum of his parts.” He doesn't have size, but he isn't small. He is a jack of all trades, master of none sort of player that contributes at both ends of the ice. He has great hockey sense and good offensive instincts. He supports his defense well down low and really excels at carrying the puck out of his own zone. His uptick in production coincides with his move back to Center where he handles his defensive responsibility well despite occasionally being physically overmatched. One of his most notable attributes is his willingness to pass the puck. Seems backwards for a ‘shooter’ but he trusts he will get it back. His game consists of a lot of quick one-two passes or give-and-goes where he creates a couple more inches of space to then release his very good shot. He has a quick release and consistently hits the net. He is a volume shooter who ranks ahead of several first round picks at 3.76 shots per game. His even strength production is also comparable to guys like Zary, Sourdif, Neighbours & McClennon with Jarvis the only one who has created any real separation and yet most of those players are ranked 30-60 spots higher than him.” (Gibbons)

Evan Vierling of the Barrie Colts. Photo by Terry Wilson / OHL Images

Evan Vierling - Center – 6-0”, 165lbs - Barrie (OHL)

Analyst: Brock Otten

A former second overall selection in the OHL Priority Draft, Vierling’s draft season could be termed unsteady. He started the year in Flint but left the team in November for personal reasons. Sitting out nearly two months, Vierling was traded to Barrie where his game flourished closer to home.

Developing terrific chemistry with fellow 2020 draft eligible Tyson Foerster, Vierling put up 34 points in 28 games with the Colts. That is a production clip of 1.21 points per game, which would place him right near Sarnia’s Jacob Perreault, who is universally considered a potential first round selection.

“Towards the end of the season, we really got a glimpse of the real Evan Vierling in Barrie. He had become an impact player, night in and night out. He is a very complete player. He plays the game with power despite needing to bulk up and is very effective in traffic because he shields the puck well, has a high IQ, and possesses high quality hands. Vierling competes hard in all three zones and projects as a middle six, all situations, playmaking center. Once a slight knock on him, his skating has improved considerably this year and is no longer an issue. Had the U18’s occurred, I believe that Vierling would have been an integral part of the team (alongside Foerster) and raised his draft stock above where it currently is. He is definitely someone who closed out the (abrupt) OHL season well.” (Otten)

William Villeneuve - Defense – 6-1”, 165lbs - Saint John (QMJHL)

Analyst: Mike Sanderson

When discussing the top QMJHL players available for the 2020, Villeneuve seems to fall through the cracks despite being a former second overall QMJHL selection, an assistant captain in Saint John, and the leader in defenseman scoring in the QMJHL this year.

His defensive partner Jeremie Poirier receives much more attention. Perhaps that’s due to the fact that Villeneuve is not quite as flashy. Additionally, his skating and strength level are areas that will require improvement. However, his quiet effectiveness and elite IQ should have him closer to his teammate than scouting rankings currently do.

“Honestly, I don't get the wide gap separation between Poirier and Villeneuve, and I've seen them both 40+ times in their junior careers. To me, Villeneuve will be just about as good offensively and won't be that far off defensively. I see Villeneuve, with more experience, as a finesse defender with great positioning and solid stick off the rush consistently. Currently holding Villeneuve back a bit is the need to put on a bit more muscle. From this, his stride will be more powerful and it'll help him out. He's very agile and fleet on his feet, maybe a better technical skater than Poirier. Additionally, he is more calm and mature with the puck than Poirier. He works the line really well, but I'd like to see him play with more confidence, generally. He doesn't take charge that much offensively, but does put up points. Adding more weight would also aid him defensively, as his reads are decent, but he can be beaten wide and lose some physical battles.” (Sanderson)

USA: Mitchell Miller, D, Tri-City, USHL (2020)

Ryan Wagman — Thu, 02 Apr 2020 11:57:13 +0000

Playing with Cedar Rapids last year, Mitchell Miller had enough flashes for me to slot his name away in the darker regions of my mind as a player to keep an eye on in 2019-20. Moved to Tri-City in the off-season, I first saw him again at the season opening USHL Classic in the outskirts of Pittsburgh. Immediately, he struck me as a player that was primed to take the leap.He was more dynamic, he made plays, pushed the pace, and generally showed that he could impose his will on the ice at any time.

As the season progressed, the North Dakota commit did just that with ever greater frequency. At this point, I believe that Miller is the top draft eligible defender among the non-USNTDP USHLers, and no one else is particularly close. True, some of that is a factor of the USHL being light on the blueline this year, but Miller is a legit good prospect. Between his high-end skating and puck skills and refined hockey sense and instincts, he looks like a potential second pairing defender with some power play time thrown in. He would not look out of place in the second round.

Mitchell Miller	2020 NHL Draft Eligible
Position: D, Shoots L	H/W: 5-11", 194 lbs
Stats to date (GP-G-A-PTS-PIMS)	Tri-City Storm, USHL (44-8-25-33-40)
	USA U19, WJAC-19 (6-2-4-6-4)

Mitchell Miller. Photo by Dan Hickling. Hickling Images

Skating: A true modern-era defender, with the compulsory skating chops included. The first thing one should note about Miller’s skating is his great edges, enabling him to stop and change direction on a dime, breaking ankles along the way. Some of his spins to evade forecheckers and get the puck out calmly have been breathtaking. His quickness is also a plus and he does well when he needs to race for a the puck with a good first few steps to get him off the mark in the lead. That acceleration leads to Miller leading his share of rushes from end to end. If there is a downside to his skating, I have reservations about his lateral mobility as I have not seen impressive line-walking from him, but then again, he doesn’t stay on the line that often anyway. Grade: 60

Shot: Miller has a solid one-timer from the point. When he has more time and elects for the wrist shot, he gets good whip on that as well. Although he led all USHL defensemen in shots taken, I would like to see him exhibit more patience from the point, and walk the line a little to create better angles. I think he could get there, but even if he doesn’t, there is enough for him to be a second unit power play guy. Grade: 55

Skills: A very composed puck mover, Miller combines his puck skills with his skating to present dynamic elements fairly regularly. He has very good vision and is a creative passer. Coming up the ice near the wall as he approaches a defender, he can pull off the self-pass off the boards, the puck going to the right as he goes around the backchecker on the left to meet up with the puck on the other side. His puck control is high end. He can dangle at top speed to evade the defense as he prepares to attach the home plate area. Grade: 60

Smarts: While Miller gets time in defensive situations with Tri-City, I would not expect that to remain the case as he moves on to North Dakota next season. His aforementioned vision is an asset. Furthermore, he positions himself well off the puck, and can use his stick to very good effect to help shut down opponents. Even if he doesn’t project as a shut-down type, Miller will be usable enough that he won’t need to be shielded. Grade: 50

Physicality: Miller is a bit hit or miss in terms of the physical game. Literally. He has a physical side, and I have seen him level a player with a big hip check. But this is not a major part of his game. More consistently, he will take a hit to make a play and he has never been shy to play in greasy areas. He seems well built despite not being big and that should be good enough for him to play his game. Grade: 50

Overall Future Projection (OFP): 54.75

A note on the 20-80 scale used above. We look at five attributes (skating, shooting, puck skills, hockey IQ and physicality) for skaters and six for goalies (athleticism/quickness, compete/temperament, vision/play reading, technique/style, rebound control and puck handling). Each individual attribute is graded along the 20-80 scales, which includes half-grades. The idea is that a projection of 50 in a given attribute meant that our observer believed that the player could get to roughly NHL average at that attribute at maturity.

2019 WJAC: Standout performances, rising draft stock

Derek Neumeier — Mon, 13 Jan 2020 14:33:54 +0000

When it comes to exciting junior hockey tournaments that start in December, the World Juniors aren't the only game in town.

While lesser known as an international event, the annual World Junior A Challenge has steadily become a must-see event for scouts. Whereas the WJC usually skews toward 19-year-olds, the WJAC is a lot younger on average, making it easier for draft-eligible prospects to make the roster of the participating countries.

There is no shortage of big NHL names that have played in the event in recent years, including (but not limited to) Vladimir Tarasenko, Andrei Vasilevskiy, Cale Makar and Kyle Turris. While it's impossible to predict the future, don't be surprised if a number of different players from this year's iteration of the WJAC end up becoming household NHL names one day.

Hosted this year in Dawson Creek, B.C. (no, it has nothing to do with the former television show) and featuring the United States, Russia, the Czech Republic and two Canadian teams made up solely of Junior A-level players (Canada East and Canada West), the tournament was a real treat to watch, for both fans and scouts alike. Entertaining hockey was played from start to finish, ultimately culminating in a thrilling gold-medal game that saw Russia defeat the Canada-East squad in double overtime.

Here now is a breakdown of each of the five teams and how they performed.

Canada West

To say it was a disappointing finish for the Canada West team on home ice would be a major understatement. With Carolina Hurricanes 2019 7th-rounder Massimo Rizzo, the BCHL's leading scorer in Kent Johnson, and big-time point-producing Okotoks Oilers teammates Carter Savoie and Michael Benning, it was expected that Canada West would be an offensive powerhouse. And yet, that presumed flame turned out to be little more than a fizzle, as the group won just one preliminary game and failed to reach the semifinals.

Johnson, Savoie, and Benning all had a few moments that looked good, but overall, they failed to make much of an impact, to the disappointment of the eyes of scouts. Savoie and Benning specifically read the very ice well and are able to strike when they get the puck with room to operate, but both prospects really had trouble creating it for themselves and their teammates.

Spruce Grove Saints netminder Matthew Davis, a tournament returnee, was ultimately Canada West's main bright spot, outperforming Detroit Red Wings pick Carter Gylander and guiding the team to their lone victory with a 25-save shutout that included stopping four of five shots in a shootout. It seems unlikely that he did enough to put him on the draft radar of NHL clubs, considering his slight 6-0” frame, though he will have a few years at the University of Denver to refine his game.

Czech Republic

Despite bringing the oldest roster among all the teams, it was another disappointing World Junior A Challenge for the Czechs, who only have one bronze medal (in 2017) to their credit since becoming a part of the tournament. Things started off well for them, pulling off wins over Russia, Canada West and Canada East in the round-robin, but they were handily trounced 5-1 by Russia in the semifinals and then narrowly edged 2-1 in overtime in the bronze-medal game by the Americans. Offense was quite a team effort, as 13 different players picked up two points or more, though Halifax Mooseheads forward Marcel Barinka led the team in scoring with three goals and four assists in seven games.

Big netminder Jakub Dobes was passed over in the 2019 NHL draft, but his strong play in Dawson Creek might help him get his name called this upcoming June. He naturally fills the net well and has good technique and reflexes, so there is enough of a base there for teams to develop long-term. He took his development to North America a few years ago and recently bumped himself up from the Topeka Pilots of the NAHL to the Omaha Lancers of the USHL, where he will likely stay until he's ready to attend Ohio State University.

United States

The high-flying American team was easily the tournament's most entertaining, and they rolled through the preliminary games undefeated while racking up a couple of lopsided wins. So, it came as quite an upset when they were stopped by Canada East in the semifinals. Led offensively by Chicago Steel teammates Brendan Brisson, Sean Farrell, Gunnarwolfe Fontaine, and Sam Colangelo, the quartet of forwards carried their lethal chemistry from Illinois to Dawson Creek and made playing defense an absolute nightmare for opposing squads.

Brisson ended up as the tournament’s leading scorer, with the brunt of his production coming through his lethal one-timer from the right faceoff circle, but that strategy became a little predictable by the end of the tournament and he was held off the score sheet in the final two games. Farrell, an alumnus of the USA Hockey National Team Development Program, was always noticeable in a good way because of his advanced hockey sense and non-stop motor.

The U.S. also received plenty of depth production beyond the four Steel teammates, most notably from sturdy forward Trevor Kuntar (who scored the bronze medal-winning overtime goal) and blueliners Mike Koster (a 2019 Toronto Maple Leafs draft pick, who had six points in six games) and Mitchell Miller (who also had six points in six games), the latter two both from the USHL’s Tri-City program. On the flip side, it was a bit of a disappointing showing for Waterloo Blackhawks forward (and another NTDP alumni) in Ryder Rolston, who has a lot of natural offensive tools but really struggled to get into a rhythm here.

Canada East

For much of this year's World Junior A Challenge, Canada East's hopes were hung on goaltender Devon Levi — but luckily for them, he was more than up to the task. Levi was simply sensational in this event, making save after save after save for a Canada East team that was outshot in every contest. He is not the biggest of goalies but has very advanced control of his crease movement and was superb at tracking shots through traffic. He got pulled in a lopsided round-robin match versus the U.S., but the Carleton Place Canadians netminder would exact his revenge against the Americans in the semifinal, turning aside 41 of 42 shots to steal a dramatic victory.

He was equally impressive in the gold-medal game, making 36 saves (including nine in extra time), but a Russian powerplay goal in double overtime ended his Cinderella run. He was deservingly named tournament MVP for his heroic efforts, and almost certainly improved his odds of being selected in the 2020 NHL draft.

Offense was fairly spread out on the Canada East roster, with Ayrton Martino, Ryland Mosley and Philippe Chapleau finishing tied for the team's scoring lead with five points apiece. And though he didn't appear often on the score sheet, Charles Tremblay's speed to the outside was another major weapon for his team.

Russia

Russia had the youngest roster at this year's World Junior A Challenge (every player was 16 or 17), but they also had one that was talented, deep and balanced, and in the end their young age didn't end up being a detriment. They actually struggled in the preliminary round, managing just one win (which came in overtime), but they brought their "A" game when it mattered most: the elimination games.

For my money, center Vasili Ponomaryov was the best forward in the entire tournament, using his excellent blend of sense, skill, and work ethic to make a consistently positive difference in all three zones. His stats from the event don't jump off the page at you, but he created offense in ways that should translate well to the NHL. Daniil Gushchin was another a standout up front, using his blazing acceleration to generate odd man rushes with impressive frequency. He also has the hands and shot to make good on those chances, converting for three goals.

Quick, undersized forwards Marat Khusnutdinov and Alexander Pashin were nice complementary pieces on the roster, but their performances were a little disappointing because they failed to live up to strong showings from last summer’s Hlinka Gretzky Cup. On the back end, with Daniil Chayka, Shakir Mukhamadullin, Kirill Kirsanov, Yan Kuznetsov, and Kirill Steklov, their big and mobile defense group was just too hard for opposing teams to crack. Chayka, a member of the OHL’s Guelph Storm, was especially impressive, covering the ice very well and moving the puck with consistency and composure. Mukhamadullin was an easy player to notice — for both good and bad reasons. He makes open ice disappear for opponents thanks to his reach and skating, and his slapshot from the point was a frequent offensive weapon, but he still has a lot of work to do with puck movement and own-zone decision-making.

Even when Russia's stout defense did crack, undersized-but-fast goaltender Yegor Guskov was there to bail them out, posting a .959 save percentage. Even though it is rare for goalies of Guskov's size (about 5-foot-11) to get drafted and play in the NHL these days, he does a lot of the things that are necessary for guys like him to succeed.

USHL 2019-20 Season Preview – Fall Classic 2019

Ryan Wagman — Wed, 09 Oct 2019 14:13:08 +0000

As is now customary in the USHL, the league season opened in the outskirts of Pittsburgh, at the UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex. Over a four day period, when one of the main ice sheets was not being used by the pre-season Pittsburgh Penguins, or one of many elite youth tournaments featuring teams from around the country, all 16 teams* in the league gathered in Cranberry Township, Pennsylvania, around 50 miles away from the nearest USHL franchise (Youngstown, Ohio), to play their first two games of the regular season.

*The USNTDP U-17 and U-18 squads play different schedules, but their combined records are used in the league standings. Also, only the U-18 team featured here.

The USHL is a funny league. Like the OHL, WHL, or QMJHL, it is a great league for high end under 20 hockey players. The USHL has close to a 100% graduation rate for its players either going to play for Division I NCAA programs, or turning pro in Europe. There is, however, a critical difference between the USHL and the CHL leagues.

Whereas the CHL will only lose two or three players directly to the pros after their age 17 year, and maybe 6-10 more after their age 18 seasons, the vast majority of players stick around until their eligibility is exhausted. On the other hand, around 35-60% of the best 17 year old’s in the league move on to play college hockey as true freshman. Half or more of the rest go to school after their age 18 season. For the most part, the only players who use up their eligibility are the depth player of whom their commitment schools do not have as high hopes and push for a delay in enrollment so as to get a player who is at least physically mature, even if he will not be a top end collegiate player.

What that leaves us with is a league that sees a tremendous amount of year-over-year turnover, particularly among the high end of the league. It is very difficult to not only know the various rosters before the puck drops, but to know who to look out for in any given year as development is rapid.

While I was not able to get to the arenas in time to see the opening game, missing a chance to see the Dubuque Fighting Saints take out the Muskegon Lumberjacks by a 4-1 margin. I also had to leave before the games of the final day commenced, but over three days of attendance, I got to see each team play at least once, seeing all or parts of 12 games in under 72 hours. I say “parts of” games, as there was some overlap around midday each day, forcing me, and scouts from every NHL and seemingly every NCAA Division I school, to jump back and forth between arenas. As much as the event is great for NHL scouts to familiarize themselves with the new batch of talent from one of the better prospect leagues in the world, it is also a great chance for college recruiters and coaches to look for late blooming talent that have not yet committed themselves to one program or another.

With the caveat that the teams will change markedly as the season progresses, due to injuries, trades, and players leaving or leaving for high school programs, imperfect information is always better than no information and I’d rather share what I know about the early 2019-20 season in the USHL with you than not do it.

For those who just want to know which teams are best/worst, I was most impressed with Waterloo, Chicago, and Cedar Rapids. Des Moines, Sioux City, and Muskegon had it roughest. For everybody else, keep reading.

Cedar Rapids RoughRiders (Prediction – 1^st in the Eastern Conference)

I am going alphabetically, so it is just a coincidence that the team I had as the best on the weekend is going first. After getting past the first round for the first time in nine years last season, the RoughRiders are positioned to go further in 2019-20. Outscoring opponents 10-3 on the weekend, it was the defense that stood out to me most consistently. The name everyone knows is Will Francis, a sixth round pick of Anaheim’s last summer. He was always a good skater for his size, but he looks to be a bit more assertive with the puck this year. He is joined on the blueline by a number of other sizable, mobile blueliners, several of whom should be watched closely by NHL scouts this season. 17 year olds among them include Alex Gagne, a big player who can help to push the pace, and Bennet Zmolek, who is more of a first pass kind of player. Most impressive though was Ben Meehan, an 18 year old who spent his draft year playing New England prep school hockey. Although not as big as his teammates, he has dynamic elements to his puck game and isn’t exactly small. He could be a game breaker.

The forwards are solid, but there might not be a future NHLer among them, although I wouldn’t put it past Grant Silianoff to have a big second year of eligibility. He is a very good skater with solid hockey IQ. Instead, look in net. I’d also keep half an eye on Justin Hryckowian, an 18-year old who joins the team after a year at prep school, who brings pace and energy, blended with some puck skills. The RoughRiders will probably split the crease, at least in the early going, but at least on one out of every two games, giant Colorado draft pick Shamil Shmakov will fill up the space between the pipes. His limbs are so long, I have taken to calling him Shamil the Shpider. Unlike most big netminders, he is aggressive in the crease. According to Alessandro Seren Rosso, he had been inconsistent in Russia, but it’s easy to see what the Avalanche like about him.

Chicago Steel (Prediction – 2^nd in the Eastern Conference)

Once again, the fact that another of our expected front-runners comes near the top of our list is coincidental. Despite the loss of top scorers Nicholas Abruzzese and Robert Mastrosimone to the college ranks, the Steel should once again be one of the strongest teams in the league, and may in fact be a more well-rounded team this year than the squad that made it to the Clark Cup finals last year.

The biggest change is in net, as the graduation of inconsistent incumbent Justin Robbins has paved the way for a pair of newcomers to the league in Victor Ostman from Sweden and Ian Shane from California. Both were steady in their debut games, allowing a pair of goals apiece. The blueline should also be stronger than the youthful crew in place last year. While Luke Reid is the only defender likely to be observed closely for draft reasons this year, the North Dakota commit has some flaws to iron out in his own end. On the other hand, 2021 eligible Owen Power is ready to lead the charge from the back. He is large, mobile and his game grew by leaps and bounds as a 16 year old rookie in the league last year. He is trending to be a high pick when his time comes.

The offensive attack will be led by a trio of intriguing draft eligible forwards in late-‘01 birthdays Sean Farrell (late of the USNTDP) and Brendan Brisson (son of super-agent Pat Brisson), and Sam Colangelo. Farrell and Brisson both play skilled games with pace and hockey IQ. Neither have great size, but make things happen on the ice. Colangelo has similar attributes, but better size in his package. Also worth keeping an eye on are Gunnarwolfe Fontaine, whose overall game is almost as much fun as his name, and Matthew “Mackie” Samoskevich, a late-’02 birthday who looks like a probable draft pick in the 2021 draft. Famously under the tutelage of star skills coach Darryl Belfry, the Steel have talent up and down the lineup and will be a tough out all season, even though their roster is the youngest (excepting the USNTDP, which has age limits) in the league.

Des Moines Buccaneers (Prediction – 7^th in the Western Conference)

While the Buccaneers were pretty rough in their opening weekend, all hope is not lost for the Iowan squad. Their team is at an odd juncture of being among the oldest in the league, but only in the middle of the pack in terms of experience at this level. It is fair to expect more out of imports Yaroslav Alexeyev, who has already seen success at the QMJHL level, as well as from third year USHLer Jan Kern, who played for his native Czech Republic at last year’s WJC. I would also assume there is more offense to come from 2001 borns Mason Nevers and Michael Mancinelli, who have flashed their skills in the past.

A lot of their hopes to turn around the tough beginning will rest on the shoulders on former USNTDP backup netminder Cameron Rowe. He has the requisite athleticism you want in a top goaltender, but needs to take a few steps forward in terms of his consistency and focus. Rowe will need the blueline to step up and minimize Grade A scoring chances against and I will be keeping my eyes on a pair of 2001s to play key roles in that endeavor in Nicklas Andrews, an undersized puck mover, and John Driscoll, a much bigger, rangier player who is more of a stay-at-home type.

For those interested in first year draft eligible players, I will be focused on Iowa native Noah Ellis, a UMass (Amherst) commit who is entering his first year in the league and is being given a chance to prove himself on the power play, as well as center Matt Choupani, who has come to the USHL from the AAA ranks in Quebec. He has solid wheels, some puck protection ability, and brings energy to all three zones.

Dubuque Fighting Saints (Prediction – 3^rd in the Eastern Conference)

The Fighting Saints always build talented rosters, even if most of their players are on the older side (oldest roster in the league) and many are not necessarily on the forefront of NHL scouting radars. Exhibits 1A and 1B to that point are the Jackson twins, Ty (a center) and Dylan (RW). A pair of waterbugs on the top line, Dylan is the bigger of the two, at 5-9”, 155. They are both quick and talented, playing a creative, instinctive game. Had they been born 10 days later, they would have been first time eligibles next June, but were passed over last season. In a similar boat, but one year older, is Riese Gaber, tiny yet one of the most talented stick handlers in the league. Gaber could be a potential free agent signing out of college like recent signings Blake Lizotte and Mason Jobst, but he is going to turn 20 this week and 5-8” is still small, even in the modern NHL.

Dubuque also has a pair of already drafted players in the lineup in Swedish netminder Erik Portillo, who aced his debut, holding Muskegon to a single goal on 23 shots. Jimmy Hamrin was very high on this mountain man from his time in the Swedish junior ranks and the Buffalo Sabres were intrigued enough to use their third round pick on him. Blueliner Braden Doyle looked overwhelmed late last season after his prep schedule ended, but Los Angeles saw enough potential to use a late pick on him and he looks much better in the early going, with his stickhandling and puck rushing abilities more able to come to the fore. Both Portillo and Doyle will be critical to Dubuque’s chances this year.

In terms of first time draft eligible for this season, look back to the Jackson line where Stephen Halliday is being tasked with creating room for his talented linemates. Already standing 6-4” and over 210 pounds, he has the size to play a power game and the speed and puck skills to keep up in the modern game. The first overall pick in the USHL Futures draft in 2018, he was stuck on a now-defunct Central Illinois team last year and now has the chance to establish his draft stock in light of his natural gifts. First, he will need to play with some snarl to match his skill as he was getting pushed around too easily by smaller players for my liking.

Fargo Force (Prediction – 6^th in the Western Conference)

A team with age and size on its side, Cary Eades’ team is set to compete now. The most well-known names on the roster belong to netminder Cole Brady and forward Aaron Huglen, both entering their first full seasons in the USHL but with NHL affiliations already in place. Brady was a late round pick of New Jersey and Huglen of Buffalo in last June’s draft. Brady impressed in his debut games. He takes up a lot of room in the crease, has his movements under control, stays square to the shooter and flashes a quick glove. Huglen missed the USHL Classic due to injury but his high end skill set is expected to make him one of the Force’s offensive leaders.

Fargo’s chances will rest on their ability to limit the scoring chances provided to the opposition, which they looked more than capable of doing in the opening weekend. Their blueline crew is relatively anonymous, although big Cedric Fiedler played for Switzerland at last year’s WU18 tournament. Their first pairing for the moment consists of Noah Beck and Colton Huard, who are both reliable defenders with plus size but without any remarkable tools to their name. In the absence of Huglen, their top offensive threats look like a pair of 18 year olds who passed over at the draft last year in Lynden Breen and Kaden Bohlsen. The former brings the skill and play driving ability and the latter brings the size and trigger. 16-year old Tristan Broz is also worth noting, although his draft date won’t be until 2022.

While any of the names mentioned in the last paragraph can make enough noise in their respective second years of draft eligibility to hear their names called next June (I would say that Bohlsen is the odds-on favorite in that duck race), the only first year eligible player who played a regular shift at the USHL Classic was Kyle Smolen, who was essentially their extra skater.

Green Bay Gamblers (Prediction – 8^th in the Eastern Conference)

In the absence of much in the way of 2002 born talent, the primary point of interest in scouting the Gamblers this year is to see how a trio of drafted forwards continue their development. Big Texan Ryan O’Reilly is the rare player who is still gracing the rinks of the USHL in his draft + two season. He has always had talented mitts and good shot, but has struggled with his consistency throughout his time in the league and his first few steps have remained below average. The other two drafted players were more surprising that they were selected in the first place. In the seventh round last year, Boston drafted Jake Schmaltz and Tampa took McKade Webster. The Schmaltz selection was odd in that he was a bottom six player without any discernable high end tools in his draft year as a member of the Steel. For Webster, it was his second year of eligibility, but he missed most of the season to injury. Schmaltz should take on a bigger role this year and we will get the chance to see if there is any latent skill lying beneath the two-way responsibility. Webster is healthy and brings energy, but can his early point pace be sustained over time?

Green Bay’s ability to compete will rest on a group of undrafted, yet talented late 2000 and 2001 born players. Up front, I would look to Tyler Paquette, Nicholas Zabaneh, and Camden Thiesing. Paquette is big and skates well, although his hands haven’t yet caught up to his feet. Zabaneh and Theising are both undersized and have flashed the ability to execute skill plays, but without the necessary consistency to be of pro interest. On the blueline, the top two left side players, Dylan Moulton and Chris Giroday, are all situations players with solid all around games. Moulton, in particular, has the look of a promising late bloomer, after spending last season in the NAHL.

Thus far, the only first year eligible on the roster are wingers Luke Mylymok and Alex Servango. Servango has scored twice in his first three games at the level, but standing 5-8”, he will have to prove himself continuously all year. Mylymok had a decent rookie season in the USHL last year, but hasn’t shown much yet in 2019-20. I would posit that one of the players in the previous paragraph is more likely to earn the affections of NHL scouts, with Giroday and Paquette the most primed.

Lincoln Stars (Prediction – 4^th in the Western Conference)

After a terrible 2018-19 campaign, which saw the team sell off many of its better players at the trade deadline, the Stars seem to have regrouped with much better things expected for 2019-20. The lineup is stocked with players with USHL experience, with only Green Bay and Omaha have more on hand. This type of team-building is easiest to recognize with their goaltenders. Neither Ryan McInchak nor Jacob Mucitelli look like future NHLers, but neither are prone to coughing up games behind their squad.

The Stars feature four veteran forwards leading the charge, including three who all played with the Chicago Steel last season in Travis Treloar, Josh Groll, and Christian Sarlo. Groll may be recognized as a depth player for the Team USA outfit at the 2018 Hlinka, although he struggled to produce for the Steel. Treloar and Sarlo were productive, and Treloar looked, at times, like a potential NHL draft pick in the first half, before slowing down considerably in the second half. They played as a first line at the USHL Classic and could collectively be primed for a strong season now. Joining them as a critical forward is holdover Josh Lopina. He has gained in mass since last year and flashes a promising wrist shot. Through their first two games, the Stars blueline corps did not add a single point, although players like Jordan Power and Jake Boltmann should change that in short order.

Speaking of Boltmann, he is one of the few first year draft eligible players on the roster. He plays in all situations and has a solid point shot from the right side. He also plays a promising physical style. Two other draft eligibles of note are left winger Zach Urdahl and blueliner Jacob Bauer. Urdahl impressed for the Stars in a brief cameo last year. His first few steps are fine, but his top speed needs an extra gear. Bauer is a right handed shot with good size, but none of his tools flashed overly brightly on the weekend.

Madison Capitols (Prediction – 6^th in the Eastern Conference)

Ever since I began covering the USHL, the Capitols have been the dregs of the league. They would have the occasional high end prospect in their ranks, but more often than not, they were drastically outmanned by the other teams in the league. While I am not ready to state that Madison will play in the postseason for the first time in its six year history, they could be a .500 team for the first time. The roster is still too shallow for me to project for more, but progress is apparent.

My general optimism comes from the first line of forwards, with Hungarian center Kristof Papp flanked by two first year draft eligible wingers in Carson Bantle and Reid Pabich. I will start with a word on Pabich, a Madison native who helps to keep things moving along, but is the clear third wheel on this unit. If the Capitols wanted to maximize their top line, Pabich would be subbed out for another first year draft eligible in Ryan Kirwan, who had a good showing for Team USA at this summer’s Hlinka Gretzky Cup. Regardless of how they move the right wing forward, the player to watch here is left winger Bantle, also a Hlinka alum. In his second season in Madison, Bantle has started the season hot, with six points through his first three games. He has ideal size, good touch, a nice top gear and a strong stick. I would like to see more aggression, but so far he looks like one of the top draft eligible prospects in the league. The line is centered by Papp, the team’s second leading scorer last season. He has very soft hands and plays creatively and now with added confidence. His size is only average and he may not have the speed to be of great NHL interest, but if he continues to push the pace as he did in the USHL Classic, he will force teams to take notice.

Although most of the attention on Madison will be placed up front, there is one blueliner who should also be minded in right handed shooting Stephen Davis, a Boston College commit. Although offensively inclined for the most part, the puck mover puts in good effort in his own end and could do enough to keep himself on the radar. Starting netminder Simon Latkoczy is also a 2002-born player, but at 5-11”, he is too small to be a draft target. That said, if he can provide Madison with at least average performance in net, the team will be competitive.

Muskegon Lumberjacks (Prediction – 5^th in the Eastern Conference)

One of the most surprising facets of the USHL this year is that Daniil Gushchin is still a part of it. The Lumberjacks have a knack for developing Russian players, with high draft picks Andrei Svechnikov and Yegor Afanasyev both recently gracing the team roster. Gushchin played with Afanasyev last year and was very impressive as a 16-year old in the league, so when the Regina Pats used the seventh overall pick in the CHL Import Draft on the pint sized winger, it was widely expected that the player would be moving to Saskatchewan. Perhaps not. Although Gushchin has not recorded a point through three league games, he is widely expected to spearhead the Lumberjacks offense as the season progresses.

Coming up behind the talented Russian is another talented left winger who is small enough to make the 5-8”, 165 lbs Gushchin look big. I am referring to 5-7”, 158 lbs Alex Gaffney, who held his own as a rookie last year, but will need to do far more than that to garner NHL attention this year. Gaffney was strong at the Hlinka, but with his frame, the Harvard commit will need to prove that he can handle the grind. Another first year draft eligible winger of note for Muskegon is Jack Williams (one of two Jack Williamses on the roster). After crushing at the Selects Hockey Academy for two years, he was electrifying in a short stint with Muskegon at the tail end of last year. He has already shown that he can bring a lot of energy to his shifts this year, but the offense will need to follow.

There are enough interesting players on the Lumberjacks to expect them to overcome their rough start to the season (5 goals through 3 games), but the only one who seems likely to be followed for draft purposes is netminder Jonathan (Jack) Williams. Passed over last year after an uneven NAHL campaign, he has the size and athleticism that teams look for. He needs the minutes and the consistency. They are the smallest team in the league, and one of the least experienced to boot, so a slow start is not all that surprising, but better days should be ahead.

Omaha Lancers (Prediction – 2^nd in the Western Conference)

Muskegon has the least experienced roster in the USHL. Omaha has, by far, the most experience, with nearly 200 more cumulative games to its players’ credit than the runner-up. Among those experienced players, none will play as critical a role in Omaha’s fortunes as that of starting goalie Akira Schmid. The 6-5” behemoth led the league in save percentage after coming over from the WHL, by way of the NAHL, and allowing for a mid-year break to represent his native Switzerland at the WJC. Considering the gap in ability between New Jersey draft pick Schmid and his backup, he should receive the lion’s share of playing time.

The Lancers’ offensive attack will reply on two 18 year olds who actually have very little USHL experience in Alexander Campbell a Nashville draft pick, and Rhett Pitlick, a Montreal selection. Campbell is coming over off a fantastic draft year in the BCHL, while Pitlick spent the bulk of his draft year playing Minnesota high school hockey. At the USHL Classic, they were generally playing opposite wings on the same line, with Pitlick playing as a trigger man on his off wing. Both players are above average skater and exciting puck players. When they are on the ice, especially playing together, the opposition should expect to be playing mostly in its own end.

Similar to the gap between Schmid and his backup, the level of talent on Omaha sees a big drop off after Campbell and Pitlick. With a plethora of 1999 and 2000 borns, there is little room o the roster for first year draft eligible, and only three played at all at the Classic. Neither Cameron Berg, Michael Cameron, or Matt Basgall did much to separate themselves. Omaha will go only as far as its three drafted players can take them.

Sioux City Musketeers (Prediction – 8^th in the Western Conference)

Eeli Tolvanen is long gone. Last year’s hero, Bobby Brink is gone now, too. Draft picks Martin Pospisil and Marcus Kallionkielli are also gone. In fact, all of the top eight on the scoring list from last year’s squad are now gone. So are the two main netminders. I have already mentioned how high the level of turnover is in this league and the Musketeers are the prime example of that trend. It isn’t all bad though. For one thing, Sioux City could have even better netminding this year as Ben Kraws and Jake Sibell have been replaced by Nashville draft pick Ethan Haider, coming off a fantastic campaign in the NAHL, where he was named the Goaltender of the Year for the Midwest region of that league.

Additionally, even though they didn’t factor into the scoring leaders last year, the team added a pair of defensemen from high end college programs around midseason and both Adam Samuelsson and Dominic Vidoli are back. The former provides a gigantic body on the blueline with enough snarl to make himself useful even without much in the way of offensive contributions. The latter is six inches shorter and 55 pounds lighter, but looks to be one of the more dynamic offensive defensemen in the league this year. As a 20 year old, he is not draft eligible, but could work his way into consideration as an undrafted free agent after more time in college at Ohio State.

The Musketeers may be a weaker squad this year, but with a plethora of 2002 borns in the lineup, the stands will always have a lot of NHL scouts in attendance. Among the first year eligible, Jackson Nieuwendyk, son of Hall of Famer Joe is currently more curiosity than legit draft prospect, but that may yet change. Offensively inclined blueliner Christian Jimenez is a decent puck mover, but his reads are still a little rough. Center Blake Biondi comes with glowing advance clippings, considering his past production for Minnesota high school powerhouse Hermantown, which last year culminated in his being named an All-USA Hockey First Teamer, along with four players who were drafted last June. There is some thought that he will yet return to play for Hermantown this year, and his early play this season in the USHL has been underwhelming, but leaving for high school will leave his prospect status with more questions than answers, even if he excels for Hermantown once again. At this point though, the top scouting draw is following in a hallowed Sioux City tradition as a high end Finnish scorer. Tolvanen begat Kallionkieli. Kallionkieli has begat Joel Maatta. Maatta has started his USHL career on fire, with the ability to control the offensive attack from the half-wall, getting right to the net on rushes and making sure his stick is ready to play the puck. Between his hands, size and solid stride, he has the makings of a top half of the draft candidate.

Sioux Falls Stampede (Prediction – 3^rd in the Western Conference)

Winning the Clark Cup last year was very nice. Starting again with only two players who contributed even 10 points to the championship team is not as nice, but flags fly forever. The goalies have turned over, too. So let’s give a quick shout-out to returning champions Jared Westcott and Ryan Sullivan, as they spend one more season in the USHL before going to school, but the simple matter is that any chance of repeating that the Stampede have will be reliant on new players. Starting in the crease, both netminders are new to the league, and neither Nathan Reid nor Grant Adams (both 2000-borns) has yet to claim a stranglehold on the starting job.

The biggest drop off from year to year for Sioux Falls is most likely on the blueline, though, as the championship team starred NHL draft picks Ryan Johnson and Max Crozier in the back in addition to other veterans of the league. The only defender on the current squad to have entered the new season with over 10 USHL games under their respective belts is the undersized Chase Foley, who held his own last year as a member of the defunct Central Illinois Flying Aces. For draft purposes, I will be keeping an eye on Evan Bushy, who joined the Stampede late last year after a strong showing for his hometown Thief River Falls High School team. Bushy didn’t record a single point in 10 regular season or four postseason games last year with Sioux Falls, but is being given a bigger role for the moment.

The forward group is also young and relatively inexperienced, but through three regular seasons, they have combined to score 12 goals, with eight different players lighting the lamp. Having a roster that can contribute from every line can only be a positive, even if it means that there isn’t a single offensive play driver, or focal point to lean on. That said, there are two first year eligible players that have earned a follow already. One is right winger Luke Weilandt, who the Stampede nabbed in the 13^th round of the most recent USHL entry Level Draft. The Chicago native leads the way with five points through three games, although he is undersized and hasn’t yet shown any high level tools. The other player of note is Poland import Jakub Lewandowski, a rangy winger who comes over after a strong season in the Czech U19 league. He has good balance on his skates, can control the puck nicely and shows a touch of creativity to boot.

Tri-City Storm (Prediction – 5^th in the Western Conference)

Although they have yet to come away with two standings points from any of their three first games, scoring only six times in the process, there are a lot of pieces on the Tri-City roster who should be interesting follows as the season plays on. Despite losing four NHL picks to the college game in netminder Isaiah Saville, defensemen Ronnie Attard and Zac Jones, and forward Shane Pinto, a fifth draft pick, Mike Koster, who only played with the Storm in the final quarter of the season, returns. His early absence due to injury has not helped the Tri-City offense find its legs.

Even without Allard, Jones, Koster (for now), or Ruben Rafkin, upon whom high hopes were placed, but who left for an opportunity with Windsor in the OHL, the Tri-City blueline once again should provide a lot of eye candy for scouts. Most prominent among that crew is Mitchell Miller, who came over in an off-season trade from Cedar Rapids. Miller is undersized, but is a composed puck mover, who plays with a pleasant physical side away from the puck. He has a full tool kit and may be one of the better first time eligible defenders in the league this year. He is joined on the blueline by a pair of rookies who join Tri-City together from the Chicago Mission program in Kyle Aucoin and Nicholas Donato. I am not sure if Donato is part of the famous Donato hockey clan, but Aucoin is the son of longtime NHLer Adrian. He showed a few flashes of high hockey IQ during the USHL Classic, and a few reminders that he was still very raw as well.

Despite not being able to score much yet, it seems the issue is not one of a lack of talent, but more likely a matter of some bad luck over a small sample. The forwards are very young, with four first year eligibles among the season opening lineup, in addition to two more who won’t be draft eligible until 2021. The four first year eligible include Colby Ambrosio, Mark Estapa, Carter Mazur, and Nick Capone. Estapa and Ambrosio are good shooters. The latter has a knack for hitting the twine and will likely be an offensive leader for Tri-City this year, while the former looks like more of a depth, energy player for now. Capone chose the USHL over strong overtures from the QMJHL and is ready for a full season in the league after two partial years previously. He has fantastic power forward size and plays a rough game to boot. He is a strong skater for his size and shows the hands to win puck battles in the corners. He has yet to find the scoresheet, but he is the type of player who can have a big impact on the game even without scoring.

Waterloo Black Hawks (Prediction – 1^st in the Western Conference)

Three games, three wins with only four goals allowed (although only eight scored), and Waterloo is easily the early favorite in the Western Conference. Rookie goalie Gabriel Carriere has played in all three games for the Black Hawks, ignoring the lure of the OHL for the lure of Hockey East. He has been steady, but not spectacular. That said, if he keeps his numbers even close to his current .947 save percentage, NHL teams will be forced to consider the third year eligible from Ottawa.

The blueline in front of Carriere that has been so far so good at keeping opponents to the outside, is mostly young and small. It includes two first year eligible and four players who are 6-0” or smaller. The Venn diagram of young and small is basically a circle within a circle, as all three first year eligible are on the small side. Ethan Szmagaj would have been draft eligible last year were he born three days earlier, and he held his own as a USHL rookie at the time. More of a first pass than an offensive driver, he shows some grit along the boards and the quiet effectiveness of a potential late round selection. The other first year eligible also has a year of USHL experience under his belt as Nic Belpedio (brother of Minnesota’s Louie) played a solid season with Muskegon.

Szmagaj and Belpedio aside, scouts will flock to Waterloo this year as the forward units have a number of intriguing draft eligible players. The biggest name among that group is Ryder Rolston (son of Brian) who played with the USNTDP U18s last year, but was not draft eligible as a late birthday, so gets another year in the league before getting the chance to hear his name called by an NHL team. Like his father, he is a brilliant skater and plays a responsible two way game. He is an opportunistic player with a big wrist shot. He has the tools and the big game background to be one of the first players from the league to be drafted next June. The other notable first year eligible include Patrick Guzzo, Dane Montgomery, and Wyatt Schingoethe. Guzzo is a big center who can skate and was a former USHL first round pick. Montgomery is undersized, but quick, and has a nice wrist shot. He currently straddles the line between being responsible, but barely in control. Schingoethe had a great season as a 16 year old last year, trailing only Daniil Gushchin and Stephen Halliday in points in his age group. He has exceptional hockey IQ and is the type of player who can lengthen offensive zone time and can punctuate the attack with a great wrist shot, but I would like to see a touch more burst to his first few steps.

Team USA (Prediction – 7^th in the Eastern Conference)

For the purposes of this introduction, I will be completely ignoring the U17s. Sorry, fellas, we’ll talk about you next year. The U18s are not nearly as deep as last year’s team, but there is still a ton of talent here. With the exceptions of forwards Hunter Strand and Matthew Beniers, both with November birthdates that push their draft eligibility off to 2021, the rest of the lineup will be draft eligible next June. Unlike last year, where all but two draft eligible players were selected, there will be a few more from this year’s class who will enter college without NHL affiliation. I was only able to see the first Team USA game at the USHL Classic, so I won’t be so bold as to predict which players will and will not be drafted, but I saw enough to highlight some elements from some players that stuck out. Also of note, forward Ty Smilanic, who some see as the top draft prospect from this class, missed the Classic due to injury. He played the following weekend, so this isn’t a long term issue, but I will not be commenting further on him at this time.

The goaltending situation for the Program is currently blurry, with Noah Grannan and Drew Commesso splitting the net at the Classic. I saw Grannan, and he was fine and reports on Commesso were also generally positive, but neither will be following in the footsteps of Spencer Knight or Jake Oettinger as first round picks. In fact, there were reports that the Program may consider bringing in a goalie from somewhere else to augment their group when it comes time for international play.

There are several interesting blueliners in this group and Eamon Powell was most impressive to there eyes, with his dynamic skating ability and propensity to lead the rush and activate in the offensive end. He is an impressive puck handler and has a good right-handed point shot to boot. On the other hand, he is smallish and can be a bit rough in his own end. Jake Sanderson (son of Geoff) has a more traditionally desirable tool kit from a scouting perspective. He is tall and rangy, is central at both ends, and has plus edge work. Brock Faber plays a quieter game, within the team structure, and not chasing a play at either end. He has good strength and is a goalie’s friend in his own zone, working to keep the crease clear. A shout out also to big Daniel Laatsch, who can fire one from the point.

Once we get past the late birthdays up front, the most interesting draft candidate among the forwards looks like Luke Tuch, who looks a fair bit like older brother Alex, now with the Vegas Golden Knights. He is big and beefy and has good hands and decent quickness. Hunter McKown also impressed from the fourth line, thanks to his plus speed, and great hands. He has ankle breaking puck skills. Center Chase Yoder is an exceptional skater, although there are open questions about his offensive ability. Landon Slaggert is a muscular winger following in the footsteps of his older brother Graham. Landon is more likely than his brother to be drafted, as he has plus hands, and plays a much chippier game. Dylan Peterson is very big and skates well for his size with a discernable second gear. Thomas Bordeleau led the team in scoring last ear and has the early lead in goals this season. He is smallish, but plays with jam and skill. Many more views are needed.

Youngstown Phantoms (Prediction – 4^th in the Eastern Conference)

I really like the new orange uniforms, although I would appreciate them more if they put the player numbers on the shoulders. Whose idea was it to only have player numbers on the back? The first place I looked to on this team was in net, as they were debuting Chicago draft pick Dominic Basse, a gigantic puck stopper who spent his draft year playing midget hockey at the Selects Hockey Academy. His first game stepping up two levels to the USHL was brutal, though. He gave up way too many goals, including a few bouncers. To his credit, his first game after the USHL Classic was much better, stopping 22 of 24 in a victory against Muskegon. Even with that rebound, he may end up playing second fiddle to crease mate Colin Purcell. Purcell spent some time last year with the NTDP program, but spent most of his year playing Tier 1 hockey in the Cleveland area. Just as big as Besse, Purcell plays a much calmer game, is sharp from post to post, and keeps a stiff back, allowing him to cover more of the top of the net. Purcell is the early favorite to be the first goalie drafted out of the USHL, including the USNTDP stoppers.

The Phantoms’ postseason chances will be aided by a veteran blueline, with only one regular under the age of 19, unless 16-year old Austin May works his way into the regular rotation. While there are unlikely to be any future NHLers in this blueline crew, there is a ton of size, with three regulars standing at least 6-3”, while UMass (Amherst) commit Jayson Dobay brings offensive wherewithal.

While scouts will not be looking for miracles from the defensemen, the forwards have a lot to recommend them. Looking to the future, there is Japanese wunderkind Yusaku Ando, who comes to Youngstown from an elite hockey school in Western Canada. He turned 16 around one month ago and scored three goals in his first five USHL games. For the current draft, remember the name of Ben Schoen. He is small, but a gifted playmaker. He is the go-to player for his team and controls the game like a veteran from the half-wall. He has great offensive instincts and vision and could be a sleeper if he adds some muscle to help him withstand physical play.

Also fighting for scouting attention on the Phantoms are a pair of second time eligible forwards in Trevor Kuntar and Reilly Funk. This is Kuntar’s third year in the USHL, and the Harvard commit is starting this season hot. He is a solid skater with a plus top speed and a good shot. He can also flash high end puck skills, such as the play leading up to a goal scored late against Tri-City. Funk is new to the USHL, having played in the MJHL for the past two seasons. He has a great frame (6-3”, 190), which he uses to good effect along the boards. He skates well for his size and attacks the net on offense. He is coordinated and athletic and has a knack for creating room for himself with the puck with a shoulder check. With eight points in his first five games at the new level, he has put the league – as well as NCAA recruiters (he is without a college commitment) - on notice.

Top ten draft eligible players in the USHL

Ty Smilanic, USNTDP
Sean Farrell, Chicago
Jake Sanderson, USNTDP
Carson Bantle, Madison
Luke Tuch, USNTDP
Ryder Rolston, Waterloo
Colin Purcell, Youngstown
Joel Maatta, Sioux City
Thomas Bordeleau, USNTDP
Ben Shoen, Youngstown

Bonus, second time eligible draft prospects

Reilly Funk, Youngstown
Justin Hryckowian, Cedar Rapids
Ben Meehan, Cedar Rapids
Kristof Papp, Madison
Trevor Kuntar, Youngstown

2018 Hlinka Gretzky Cup Review

Vince Gibbons — Tue, 18 Sep 2018 12:17:57 +0000

This year I was fortunate enough to fill my August with a bit of high end hockey as the Hlinka/Gretzky tournament made its North American debut in Edmonton and Red Deer. While I didn’t get to the Edmonton games I watched the medal round on TV and watched a very entertaining pool in Red Deer in which the Russians outclassed the rest. I will only comment on players that I have seen live at the tournament so I will not have anything about the young Swedes who took the tournament by storm (Lucas Raymond, Alexander Holtz, Tobias Bjornfot), the Slovaks lead by Maxim Cajkovic or the Swiss who had a weaker roster than usual. I will speak on Canada though as I watched them in an exhibition game and all through the medal round.

Team Canada

Dylan Cozens uses his size very effectively all over the ice. He is particularly dangerous along the wall where he can engage physically and make skilled plays towards the net. His speed is impressive on the rush and he uses his frame to protect the puck when he drives the net. High end vision and playmaking as well as being a good right shot round out his offensive skills. He is also good in the faceoff circle making him a very attractive guy near the top of most draft boards. His controversial goal in the semifinal against the USA shows his ability to find space and open ice and his ability to get off his shot off under pressure.

Alexis Lafreniere, despite being one of the youngest 2001 born players in the tournament, stood out as one of the most dynamic. There is elite playmaking, vision and skating. He can control the puck in all circumstances and handles puck pressure extremely well. The poise he displays with the puck on his stick is a treat to watch. He led the tournament in scoring and is likely first overall in the 2020 draft.

Kirby Dach has a good frame and was very successful slotting out on the wing despite being a natural center. The vision and playmaking skills at top speed are what impress the most with Dach. His shot has been an underutilized part of his game but he has a great one and it was on display in this tournament. He protects the puck extremely well and is capable of beating players one on one. He has good hands and his vision is exceptional.

Bowen Byram has shown more dynamic qualities to his game then in my viewings from last season. He was willing to make plays with the puck on his stick while holding the blue line that I had not seen in him last season. He created a number of opportunities for his teammates by making smart puck plays, looking off defenders and then making a tape to tape pass. In addition to that he is a minute munching defender who controls his gaps very well and closes out his opponents well in his own zone. He is stable and reliable in his own zone and can carry the puck out or deliver a perfect pass to his outlet guy. His confidence in his offensive game this year over last was the most noticeable.

USA

Josh Groll earned more minutes game by game with his very effective North/South game. Groll was relentless on the fore-check, creating opportunities by throwing his body around recklessly. He was quick to loose pucks and created constant pressure that few defenders were able to handle. As the tournament wore on he established himself on the PK with his good puck pursuit and active stick. He showed good chemistry with another surprise performer in Nicholas Robertson.

Robertson was able to show his good finishing qualities and nose for the net leading the American squad with 4 goals. His effort around the ice made him an in your face player throughout the tournament. His first step quickness made him elusive along the wall where he was able to cycle the puck almost at will with his linemates. While the USA may have had more skilled players on the roster, Robertson was able to carve out a top six role for himself through his play. On the PK he battled hard to get out to the points to take away shots.

Mitchell Miller impressed as an undersized puck moving defender with a bit of an abrasive side. His most noticeable skills were his passing and vision as he was able to move the puck around the offensive zone really well. He showed some great vision setting up a few goals on the powerplay. In his own zone he competed hard despite being a bit overmatched physically and finished his checks when he had the chance. He got caught up a couple of times but he was quick to hustle back where his skating showed well. His anticipation was very noticeable in pinching off zone exits. He used speed to put opposing wingers under pressure as they tried to exit the zone, which created turnovers that he quickly turned to the offensive by moving the puck.

Arthur Kaliyev showed some very good one on one skills with the puck. A few times he blew by defenders wide leading to great scoring opportunities. His scoring totals don’t reflect the number of chances he created as he played both distributor and finisher for his line. He is able to use his size well and can control loose pucks with his long reach. He skates well for a player of his size and uses that size effectively as he goes to the net.

Russia

Vasili Podkolzin was for my money the most dynamic player in the tournament. He was a constant threat to score with his high speed zone entries catching defenses flat footed throughout the entire tournament. His agility was impressive as he could go inside out or outside in on defenders while carrying the puck. Despite leading the tournament in goals his vision was impressive as he led teammates into open space with passes or put pucks just beyond defenders reach enabling his teammates to get possession. He created 2 on 1s down low by dragging the defender wide and putting the puck into the slot for a trailer. He was dangerous on the cycle as he could stop, start and shed contact very well. His release was very quick and his shot was very accurate. He scored from distance, on one-timers, off the rush, a breakaway, or carrying the puck out from behind the net. He showed a complete offensive tool kit. On the other side of the puck he was exposed a bit for not picking up his man but he was pretty good in the neutral zone rushing the puck carrier or forcing deep dump ins with his pressure.

Yaroslav Likhachyov has great hands and puck handling skills. He carries the puck through the neutral zone extremely well and can make quick plays and reads as he always seems to have his head up. He is able to cradle loose pucks very well as he reacts so quickly to the play in front of him. He has very good agility and speed that defenders in his age group really struggled to handle. He will take the puck to the net and still can make plays as he approaches the net. His passing skills are high end as he consistently made saucer passes onto his teammates’ tape.

Daniil Gutik was a force to be reckoned with throughout this tournament. Few teams save Canada had players with his combination of size and skill set. He was very dangerous along the wall and getting the cycle game started. His linemates were the beneficiaries of his good work down low as he was able to constantly move pucks out to the slot. He has great control of his body and absorbs contact while maintaining possession of the puck. He made a few high skill plays like a give and go off the boards then driving to the net that show he has good hockey sense. He used his body effectively but was not a big hitter.

Finland

Patrik Puistola was the most dangerous forward that Finland had on the roster. He went long stretches of games being contained but when he got his opportunities - especially off the rush - he was a deadly finisher. He has a long lean frame that he uses well to generate puck speed when shooting from distance. His skating is fine for his skill set by he doesn’t really have that dynamic speed or puck handling that would make him an elite forward.

Leevi Aaltonen was the most consistent Finnish forward for generating offense. He showed flashes of high end speed and agility on a few chip and chase plays along the wall. He also drives the net well but he does shy away from contact. He is a natural shooter and is willing to release the puck from anywhere to get it on net. I like the approach in some cases but his teammates weren’t driving to the net without the puck too much so it often went for naught.

Mikko Kokkonen is a smooth skating puck carrying defenseman that I thought struggled throughout the tournament. In part this is a weaker Finnish age group than the past few seasons so he had less to work with. He lost his cool a couple times and took bad and untimely penalties that pushed a one goal deficit to two. That being said, when he had space he was dangerous both with his excellent rising wrist shot from the point, or his ability to move the puck up through the neutral zone. His ability to dance along the offensive blue line is great to watch as he can make the opponent over-pursue or rotate, both of which creates passing or shooting lanes that he is able to exploit.

Czech Republic

Michal Teply impressed with his puck possession skills and his dogged effort in on the forecheck. There is not a lot of high end skill in his game but his size, frame and competitive edge made him the most noticeable player on most of his shifts. Along the wall he can use his body effectively to control the puck or separate his man from it. His hockey sense was impressive being on the right side of his man, knowing who to pick up on the back check, but also in his ability to get to open space and then use that space to create opportunities.

Martin Has is a large lean defender who has some nice offensive tools. He has a real seeing eye shot that beats the first defender over and over. His passing from the offensive blue line is good as well as he can play the top of an umbrella and feed passes all over the ice. His wrist shot has a lot of power and he is able to pick his spots through traffic. He is pretty effective defensively and can use his size to stick check and close gaps quickly. He needs to work on his skating but he can move around the ice ok for a man of his size.

This is by no stretch an exhaustive list of players who performed well at the Hlinka/Gretzky Cup but more a list of the players who stood out the most in my viewings and who have earned the standing of prospects to follow through the course of the upcoming year. Not all of these players have high end offensive upside but there was something noticeable about them most nights in the rink that stood out in a positive way that should garner more attention as their respective seasons begin.