[PGT] Young Stars Tournament

[19Yzerman19]

Well, the tournament's over, so here's a thread for post-mortem heading into main camp.

Mikael Granlund finished with 4 points in 3 games, tied for the tournament lead. The Flames went 2-1, beating EDM and VAN but losing to SJS.

Tourney leading scorers: Granlund (CGY), Kichton (WPG), Theoret (WPG), Shinkaruk (VAN), Guimond (VAN). All with 4 points. Granlund gets the scoring title with 3 goals.

VAN went 3-1, CGY went 2-1, SJS went 1-2, WPG went 2-1, and EDM went 0-3.

Thoughts? Reactions? Surprises? Disappointments? Expectations for who's going to make main camp?

[Miniac]

Originally Posted by 19Yzerman19

Well, the tournament's over, so here's a thread for post-mortem heading into main camp.

Mikael Granlund finished with 4 points in 3 games, tied for the tournament lead. The Flames went 2-1, beating EDM and VAN but losing to SJS.

Tourney leading scorers: Granlund (CGY), Kichton (WPG), Theoret (WPG), Shinkaruk (VAN), Guimond (VAN). All with 4 points.

VAN went 3-1, CGY went 2-1, SJS went 2-1, WPG went 2-1, and EDM went 0-3.

Thoughts? Reactions? Surprises? Disappointments? Expectations for who's going to make main camp?

[FBI]

Those wins and losses don't add up. Was one team 1-2?

[GreenLantern]

Granlund has shown a lot in the limited amount of time he has played against his peers (Including WJ's as well).

Best of luck to him at training camp, would love to see him stick around with the big club.

[19Yzerman19]

Originally Posted by FBI

Those wins and losses don't add up. Was one team 1-2?

Yeah, SJS was 1-2. My bad.

[BlackWallStreet]

Hunter s with 4 points? Wooow =| and he was a scratch the last game...

[19Yzerman19]

Originally Posted by BlackWallStreet

Hunter s with 4 points? Wooow =| and he was a scratch the last game...

Yeah, 1G1A today in VAN's 2-1 win over Winnipeg. But the Canucks played 4 games so even being scratched for one, he was in the same boat with Granlund and all the other players with 4 points whose teams only played 3 games.

If you care about the point totals. Watching the actual games, WPG's prospect pool is substantial at every position. Meanwhile, there was a clear gap between WPG, CGY and VAN compared to the other two squads. Nothing about EDM looked any good - not surprising in terms of the forwards, but I was surprised how mediocre their blueliners were. As for SJS, I'm not at all familiar with their prospect pool so they might not have sent their best, but outside of Hertl and Bigos it looked pretty bare for them as well.

Based solely on the players at this tourney I'd say the groups looked like WPG > CGY >> VAN >>>> SJS > EDM

[djsFlames]

Calgary tourney MVPs:
Granlund, Ramage, Ortio

Honorable mentions:
Ferland, Monahan

IMO

[HighLifeMan]

CALGARY

Markus Granlund - 3+1 and a tournament leading 11 shots on net in three games. It's funny, but I actually believe his game is better suited to the NA game than it is on the larger ice. He has done nothing but impress this summer.

Emile Poirier - The kid can absolutely fly. He creates at minimum 2-3 great scoring chances a game for himself due solely from his explosiveness. In addition to that he displayed a gritty all around game, and the ability to all ways be around the puck. I was extremely happy with his performance this weekend.

Sean Monahan - If you want one word to describe his game it would be "smarts". He thinks the game at an elite level, and competes his rear end off every shift. He scored 2 goals in three games, was strong in the faceoff dot, and despite what some flames fans are saying looked head and shoulders above the majority of players in Penticton.

Michael Ferland - He has dropped roughly 20 pounds off his 6"1' frame and it shows in his skating. He looks far more explosive and engaged on a shift to shift basis. His boardwork is exceptional, and his hands for a big man are top notch. If he continues to take his off ice responsibilities seriously he could be a serious player for Calgary within a few years.

John Ramage - He is another player who's skating looks considerably improved since being drafted. He is a born leader and winner. He is a physical, stay at home defender who has a decent first pass. I like his ability to shoot the puck, but he still struggles in handling it and/or overplays it at certain times. In my estimation he will definitely see NHL ice this season.

HM - Joni Ortio (only played in 1 game but was absolutely fantastic), Max Reinhart, Pat Sieloff

The disappointments for me were Ben Hanowski, Brett Kulak, and Corban Knight. None of them really got anything going, and although they were not liabilities out there I definitely expected more.

[Robbob]

I had a lot of fun watching the first couple in Penticton and then the stream last night. I think you definitely saw glimpses from the last draft class. I also think Kanzig took another step. The coaching staff really put him out in all sort of different scenarios and I thought he did ok.

Other then the first period against the Canucks and the first two against SJ, I thought Calgary really took it to the teams. Would have loved to see the team play Winnepeg as the Edmonton game was almost a waste of time (that team was brutal).

[Cali Panthers Fan]

The team was surprisingly good and it gives me hope. Letter grades for each player as follows:

A+: Granlund, Ortio

A: Ferland, Ramage, Reinhart

A-: Monahan, Culkin

B+: Jooris, Knight, Sieloff, Brossoit

B: Hanowski, Wotherspoon

B-: Kanzig

C+: Elson, Baertschi, Smoskowitz

C: Roy

C-: Taranto

D: Kulak, Penner

F: Gordon, Davies

[Wastedyouth]

Surprised at a B for Hanowski. He was useless out there.

[Alberta_Beef]

I loved Ramage's play and leadership and he was my favourite in the tournament, but he seemed to go to the box an awful lot, I believe most of them were for holding. That certainly concerns me a little bit, but a year in Abby could help break him of that habit.

[TSXCman]

highlight links anyone?

The normal ones I pulled up from the game threads are now private or taken down.

[DeluxeMoustache]

Baertschi I can't fault for playing safe, and when he turned it on he showed he is ahead of the pack.

Ferland is intriguing based on his off season commitment and early results.

Sieloff has poise and promise. I liked Wotherspoon's composure and lateral movement finding lanes (something Phaneuf was very good at at times)

Poirier showed good speed and compete.

Hanowski was unremarkable in the tourney, as last year in limited service.

Monahan and Knight looked fine. Given what they expect from them, not flashy but solid and I can appreciate the potential

If Ortio can put together more play like that consistently, then great.

All in all, great job by the organization restocking the prospect cupboard,

[868904]

Hanowski doesn't get a whole lot of love on this board, but I think he's a decent prospect. He has really good hands and skills, and his skating is nowhere near as bad as some have said. I'd argue he's got some of the best stickhandling skills on the team.

I think he needs to be used properly. He's a big guy, but he's not a grinder and if he's used in that role, he's going to fail. He's sort of in that Andrew Brunette mold. He needs powerplay time and to play with offensive players. Good skill, but a secondary offensive option.

[Alberta_Beef]

Originally Posted by 868904

Hanowski doesn't get a whole lot of love on this board, but I think he's a decent prospect. He has really good hands and skills, and his skating is nowhere near as bad as some have said. I'd argue he's got some of the best stickhandling skills on the team.

I think he needs to be used properly. He's a big guy, but he's not a grinder and if he's used in that role, he's going to fail. He's sort of in that Andrew Brunette mold. He needs powerplay time and to play with offensive players. Good skill, but a secondary offensive option.

I think if he can get a bit more physical and meaner he could be a younger version of Mike Knuble, but for the time being Brunette is an excellent comparison.

[Enoch Root]

Just wanted to say really nice arena in Penticton. Watched the SJ game from the bar, which runs along the one side - pretty civilized way to catch a game.

Also, met several locals and they were all enjoyable to talk to.

Good tournament and good venue. They should have two-zambonied all of the games, however.

[Walter Reed]

Enjoyed the games I saw and it was nice to see the performance of players whom we heard about prior to the draft. Winnipeg's squad was very impressive and the Flames rookies looked promising as well. It was too bad the Jets & Flames didn't get to play each other as it would have been interesting to see who would have won. Based on my observations I believe the Jets iced the strongest team with the Flames a close second. The player who most impressed me was Jets d-man Jacob Trouba, he's a stud and IMO shows potential to make the big club this season. Amazing young player.

[Stay Golden]

How did that 6'6 beast Kanzig look?