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Franchise Player
Join Date: Jun 2013
Location: Calgary
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Here were my takes from Day 2 of Development Camp in JULY (Royle had some great write-ups too):
Team Vernon: There were quite a few standouts, namely Klapka, Kerins, Bell, and Honzek.
LW Parker Bell: Royle hit the nail on the head on this one- Bell was perhaps the fastest player out there, and his shot was on full display. Release was incredible, just needs a flick of the stick to get off a hard shot. He's a load to handle, at 6'4", but he's strong on his skates, and has good agility. The only problem, like Royle said, is his stickhandling- he was losing the puck in some of the more complex drills that involved turns and rapid changes in direction.
C Rory Kerins: Looked like a seasoned pro today. He's obviously been working hard to upgrade his skating, and he was everywhere today. Good acceleration and edgework, and he has a good set of hands with a hard, accurate shot. Definitely stood out in a good way, and worked tirelessly today with plenty of jump.
LW Lucas Ciona: He left a little early for some reason, but this kid has come a long way. He has the size, and he won't be outworked. His skating has improved 1000 times over from where it was when he was drafted, but he's still a step behind the top guys, and will never be a burner. I don't think his skating will hold him back anymore, but he needs to continue to work at it. He spent time at the beginning of the session with the skating coach, Danielle Fujita.
LW Samuel Honzek: There were times where I felt that he wasn't giving his all, but even in those times, he was ahead of the pack. Great skater, fantastic shot. He is noticeably big on the ice, but off the ice he's quite thin- there's plenty of room on his frame to build mass. When he fills out, he'll be a beast.
LW Cole Huckins: I like the kid, but he didn't do enough to distinguish himself from the pack. He's big, and skates fairly well for a large man, but nothing else really impressed me. He should've looked better in the 1-on-1 drills.
C Patrick Guzzo: Hard to believe this guy is 6'3", he looked smaller to me. He surprised me with his mobility, and his hands around the net. Solid work ethic, good energy, and a hard shot. 17 points in 40 games in the NCAA as a 21 year-old, which isn't too shabby.
C Oliver Tulk: Hard to not like this kid. He's quite small, but built like a fire hydrant (5'8", 172lbs), and has an unrelenting motor. For a player of his size, I would like to see better skating- he was noticeably slower than some other players, but made up for it somewhat by keeping his legs pumping and working hard. In the 1-on-1 drills along the half-boards, he was smart enough to not try outmuscling his opponents, but rather keep his stick active and stay in position to break up the play, or block the shot- and he was effective in doing that. His main attribute on display was his hard, heavy shot- one of the best on Team Vernon.
RW Adam Klapka: He was one of the best out there, and I guess he should be, given his age (22), and the fact he's played pro hockey. He has obviously worked on his skating, and he was noticeably fast out there, although he still needs work on his agility in small areas, and his quickness in turns. Still, he looked scary with a full head of steam on the attack. His shot was one of the best today, but his accuracy was up and down- he can really pick corners, and find holes in goalies when he wants to.
D Callum Chisholm: He's a huge D (6'4", 229lbs), and is physical. Seemed to move pretty good forward and backward.
D Charles Cote: Noticeably large (6'6"), but slim (192lbs), and a bit sluggish in skating drills. Still, in the 3-on-3 drill, he stuck to his man like white on rice, and was suffocating defensively with his enormous wingspan. Not much to offer offensively, other than a pretty good shot.
D Mikael Diotte: Stood out to me in a good way. He works hard, and is surprisingly mobile for a guy who is 6'3". Seems to have a nice two-way game at this level, but looks to be more of a defense-first, puck-mover. Made a lot of heads-up plays, and knows how to use his size.
D Yan Kuznetsov: Love his size/skating ratio. He moves so well, and is not devoid of puck-skill- he looks like a good handler and passer. I think he'll be a fine bottom-pairing D.
D Donovan McCoy: I'm cheering for him, and I think it was a crime he wasn't drafted- however, he looked like a junior player amongst men today. To me, he looked lost for the most part, and needs to continue working on his 4-directional mobility. Little disappointed with him.
Team Kiprusoff: Stromgren and Coronato were head and shoulders above the rest of the group. The invitees in this group were impressive.
RW Matt Coronato: Another player who has obviously worked hard in the skating department, as he was flying, jersey flappin', all over the ice. His shot, and that of Stromgren, were the two best shots of the day, in either group. You know that sound of a hard, heavy shot by a player who can really fire it, hitting the glass? That loud, resounding "thunk"? Very impressed by those two. Coronato has amazing stickhandling, and hands around the net. He's a sniper who picks corners, and can fool defenders. Excellent passing, and hockey sense.
LW Nick DeGrazia: Pretty lukewarm numbers with the Sudbury Wolves, but he showed pretty well today. He works hard, and showed plenty of offensive skill. Best of all, he skates very well, is hard-nosed, and has some defensive chops. He might make a good bottom-6 player in the NHL someday. Very impressed.
RW Mark Duarte: He plays for one of the worst teams in the OHL, the Soo Greyhounds, and put up 48 points in 65 games, as a 20 year-old. Duarte was one of two players (the other being Nathan pilling) where I had to say, "holy crap, where did this guy come from?!?". I try to temper evaluations, as most of these players are junior-aged, but Duarte was everywhere, and looked like a machine. He moves very well, and his mobility is heightened by his never-ending motor. He has a wide array of impressive shots, and can score from seemingly anywhere- It seemed like he scored on every shot, minus one or two. He's 6'2", and not afraid of getting his nose dirty. Very impressed.
RW Jaden Lipinski: Lipinski is a work-in-progress, and a project of sorts, but the good news is that his skating looked better than I expected, and indeed better than it looked closer to the beginning of the season. 51 points in 66 games for the second-lowest scoring team in the WHL. He was a little vanilla to me today, and often invisible. Needs work on his shot.
C Cade Littler: Love his mobility, needs work on his shot. I was questioning his conditioning a bit, as he slowed down over the course of the practice, and started looking gassed after drills. He's got good hands around the net, and some definite offensive skill.
C Ilya Nikolaev: As Royle said earlier, he might be nursing some kind of injury, as he wasn't really shooting, and he left a bit early. He was as I would expect, with good skill, stickhandling, and speed.
C Oliver Peer: Speedster who can outmanouvre opponents with his footwork. He has an ok shot, but missed the net a lot, and had an issue receiving passes for some reason. Started slow, but got better as the session wore on. Seems to have a good motor, but needs to get plenty stronger as he was outmuscled a few times.
C Nathan Pilling: Pilling had 7 goals and 10 points in 23 games for Moose Jaw, before being traded to the worst team in the CHL, the Edmonton Oil Kings- where he put up a mere 3 points in 12 games. Maybe I'm crazy, but Pilling did everything out there today- he skated hard and fast, exhibited a very hard shot with a soft set of hands, and seemed to do something positive every time it was his turn to perform in a drill. Like Duarte, he seemed to score on an inordinate percentage of his shots. His only flaw was his inability to pull off passes in the 3-on-3 drill, perhaps unmasking a deficit in his hockey sense and/or playmaking abilities. Still, he's highly competitive, plays an in-your-face style, and has high motor.
LW William Stromgren: With Coronato, one of the two best players today in either group. 6'3", skates like a stallion, and owns an overwhelming shot. Great hands around the net. He's very hard on himself, and showed his frustration a few times when he flubbed a pass, or missed a shot.
RD Jake Boltmann: Didn't notice him much, but his skating and shot are above average. Kinda Meh.
LD Tyson Galloway: I remember skating being Galloway's big detriment when he was drafted in the 5th round by St.Louis in 2021, but I think it's now a strength- and combined with his 6'4" frame, it makes for an interesting prospect. He looked like one of the faster players in all the skating drills, and i really admire how much he's improved. His shot isn't the hardest, but it's quick and accurate. His 4-directional mobility is excellent, and his backwards skating makes him hard to play against. It seems to me that he has the skill, but elects to take care of his defense first, and I don't remember him getting beat today. St.Louis elected to not give him a QO, and I think it's based on a lack of progression in his numbers in his years with the Hitmen, but there might be a player here.
LD Quinn Mantei: I was hoping for a better showing from this kid. He's smallish, at 6'0", and pretty speedy, but his shot is average, and perhaps so is his hockey sense. I didn't notice him do anything special.
LD Etienne Morin: Unfortunately, I didn't notice him much either, but perhaps it's because I already know what we have in this player- skating, two-way play, slick puckhandling, offense, offense, offense. His shot has been underrated though, methinks.
LD John Prokop: Seems like an unspectacular, meat-and-potatoes guy with a big frame (6'3"), and some skill. Interestingly enough, Union College used him at D and forward this season, and he led them in scoring with 23 points in 35 games. Moves well, and has good defensive IQ.
The Goalies of this grouping, Arseni Sergeev and Jari Kykkanen, were far superior to those on Team Vernon- Murphy, Radomsky, and Vayrynen, in my opinion.
I would have to acknowledge the coaching of Danielle Fujita and Michael Stone. Both were very focused 1-on-1, both had notes for each player after every drill, and both made the players re-do the drill if they got it wrong.
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