Only stat not mentioned in the website summary is that there was one fight, veterans Cody Sylvester and Justin Kirsch squaring off in the 2nd period. Sylvester landed the only punch, a solid right to the side of Kirsch's face that sent Kirsch to his knees and ended the fight. Kind of a needless fight really since neither of those guys is battling for a spot on the team.
Some thoughts on what I saw....
Goaltending:
The backup battle is perhaps getting a little clearer. 16 year old Brodie Burdeny had a game he'd probably rather forget (6 goals on 20 shots in 30 minutes), while 18 year old Matt Hrynkiw played behind the same team and gave up just 1 goal on 14 shots in 30 minutes. I wasn't there on Sunday but I still haven't seen Burdeny have a good game, whereas Hrynkiw has been very good every time I've seen him.
Mack Shields struggled a bit but he's also only 15 and probably facing shooters of this calibre for the first time at this camp. I do like Shields' size though, he's a really big kid who fills the net. If you use your imagination a little (yesterday, a lot) you can picture some physical resemblance to Martin Jones as a 15 year old.
19 year olds Michael Snider and Juraj Holly did not play in the intrasquad. Exhibition games will decide more but I think it's a 3-way battle for two spots, between Snider, Holly, and Hrynkiw.
Defence:
Carter Berg is a lock. This kid can play, a year in Jr A did him well after struggling as a 16 year old with Chilliwack. And I thought Alex Roach looked very good again too, he should be on the team as well. I still don't see much in Justin Slobozian....every time I noticed him it was because he was out of position or fighting the puck. Seems like some other watchers liked him better though. I didn't see much of Keaton Lubin but what I did, he sure does look like a polished player....good pick for a 3rd rounder for sure. Kyle Schmidt continues to be a case of not-quite-enough IMO....I wonder if Schmidt's window of opportunity is closing quickly. I actually kind of liked Eric Baldwin a little bit too but maybe not enough to get a spot on the team.
Right now I'm guesstimating that Berg, Roach, and Lubin make the team in addition to the 5 returning vets.
Forwards:
18 year old Trevor Cheek was probably the best rookie prospect in the game. He has wheels and can really shoot the puck....he's also a signed player so he's a lock for the team. 18 year old John Lawrence should stick with the team for good this time after making it through half a season last year. Corey Scott looked decent but he's also 19 and to make the team at that age he has to be able to play in the top 9 forwards....is he able to do that? I'm not so sure. I also liked 18 year old Brandon Brossoit, he has had some moments too....so did 18 year old Justin Faux. Neil Landry was not as noticeable this time as I thought he was on Saturday. Only problem here is that in a rebuilding year like Calgary is in, you don't want to take too many of these older rookies, you need to give your kids some spots too. So if Cheek and Lawrence are on the team, is there any room left for Scott/Brossoit/Faux/Landry? Maybe one of them?
A trio of the 17 year old prospects - Hartley, Skilliter, and Santini - all were....OK. Maybe not quite enough, and they look like they've been passed by some of the 16 year olds in their development. Probably one of those guys makes the team though. I liked Skilliter the best of the bunch. Joel Schreyer was not bad either, and I liked Presley Kirkness as well, he was one of the few guys who was consistently physical. Probably not enough from either of them to beat out listed prospects though.
For the 16 year olds, Robert Trzonkowski and Chase Clayton had good games and I think they are both locks. I also liked Luke Gordon and Calder Brooks; all four of those 16 year olds were probably better than Hartley/Skilliter/Santini. I don't see them keeping more than 3 or 4 16 year olds total though so with Lubin, Clayton, and Trzonkowski being the leaders in that area, perhaps another year of midget or Jr A will do Gordon and Brooks well.
So, 7 open spots. I've got Cheek, Lawrence, Trzonkowski, and Clayton for sure. Probably one or two of the 18/19 year olds, and one or two of the three 17 year olds, and that's 7.
No comments:
Post a Comment