My top 10 is:
1. Alexander Ovechkin: Great strength in all aspects of the game. Reads the play well. Good anticipation. Plays well in both ends of the ice. Excellent Skater. Strong on his skates. Natural goal scorer. Unbelievable Quick wrist shot. Plays with a great amount of grit and determination.Ovechkin is a big, fancy goal scorer and a fancy skater with spectacular stickhandling skills. He has exceptional maturity and understanding of the game for a kid his age. According to a scout, Alex is a player who could be unreal. Good playmaker. He makes defenses get that deer in the headlights look everytime he touches the puck". He also has size, and could grow to 6'4" before he is drafted. Just a great combination of a player. I guess he is a more rounded and filled out version of Joe Thornton.
2. Evgeni Malkin: Highly skilled, smooth skating, playmaking power-forward centerman, but needs to be more consistent in his physical game. Finesse player. A threat when ever he is on the ice. Good on face-offs. Good anticipation. Sees the ice well. Smart Player. Knows where his teammates are all the time. Good playmaker. Creates scoring opportunities for his teammates. Malkin is like a pitbull with a nose for the net. He is a 6'3" 205 lb. He showed his fluid stride, superb vision and creativity, and wonderfully soft hands. And he plays surprisingly well in his own end (he finished the tourney at +11 and was not on ice for an even strength goal against)
3. Rostislav Olesz: Skilled, nasty, big time team leader type. would look nice with garth murray. Rostislav is a perfect mix of skills, size and toughness. He can play the game at top speed and has explosive speed and a threatening arsenal of offensive weapons with nop-notch acceleration, Olesz is a persistent player who doesn't mind working in traffic and scoring dirty goals. He is a pure high-scoring machine with excellent on-ice vision and a sneaky shot. His 59 penalty minutes in 20 games with the Vitkovice juniors signify Rostislav's on-ice aggressiveness. According to HF's Czech writer Robert Neuhauser: "Once on the puck, Rostislav explodes and is very good in one-on-one situation. He also can play hard, fights along the boards and goes in front of the net. His shoots very well and accurately. Also a good passer but prefers to shoot the puck and has a nose for the net. (Rostislav's) individual skill is really great..."
4. Cam Barker: He is a 2 way defenseman. More into the offensive game. The best all around defenseman in his age group. Big and physical with great mobility. Confident with and without the puck, showed great maturity. Sees the ice well, makes a good first pass or can carry the puck out of the defensive zone. Makes sound decisions under pressure. Stands up at the blueline forcing the play - confidence in his mobility. Closes his man out well and finishes his checks. He's a hard guy to play against, he’s strong in the corners and in front of the his net. Put up amazing numbers for a 16 year old dman in the dub. Has good size. I see him as a better all around Seabrooke. At 6-foot-3, 212 pounds, Barker has the size that teams like in a defenseman. He has better than average offensive skills. He hits, he has great positional play, he is very strong on the ice, is able to take guys out with ease, he has very soft hands for a big guy and is very poised and calm when bringing the puck down the ice, has great passing ability and a good shot from the point, creates alot of offense and is able to pinch in once in awhile for some help in the offensive end. This guy was very very impressive for me as he is the complete package on defense.
5. Rob Schremp: He is a very selfish player, but I think when he makes it to the CHL they will fix that. He is an amazing stickhander who is fast on his skates and very agile. He has crazy moves with the puck and can do it all at high speed... Schremp has an accurate shot and when he passes, he does a good job of that... So he can do it all offensively. Schremp has been described as a bit of a floater and a player reluctant to play defense consistently, but his talent level is (at the top) of all offensive categories... He will be a superstar in the OHL." Schremp was the OHL's rookie of the year in 2003 and he racked up impressive numbers, with 26 goals and 74 points in 65 games. He has game-breaking offensive skills and great vision. He loves playing the game and when he's on the ice he lets his instincts take over. He made a name for himself in his early teens when he scored 300 goals in a season.
6. Wojtek Wolski: An offensive threat every time he’s on the ice. Fast with great agility and acceleration. Excellent stickhandler. Creative with the puck, has the ability to beat opposing defenders one on one Excellent down low and protects the puck well. Uses team-mates effectively… Hard accurate shot with a quick release. He is big and skilled. Not sure if he will develop into a power forward but he has good hands and offensive awareness.
7.Lauri Tukonen: A very talented player. Good size, exceptional skater and effortless acceleration, and is very hard to knock off the puck. Blessed with a massive frame, Tukonen likes to be physically challenged and is a punishing hitter who has no trouble handling the rough stuff. Also highly skilled, he is a excellent puckhandler with a lethal shot and solid passing skills. One of his main assets is his good hockey sense and vision. Possesses natural goal-scorer instincts. Despite his terrific offensive arsenal, Tukonen is not one-dimensional as he does come back to help out the defense as well.
8. Evan Mcgrath: A pure offensive player. He is a playmaker. Top end skating ability, excellent lateral movement, great acceleration ... scored a goal by jumping in the play and creating a 2 on 1 situation ... showed good hands on the goal, moving to his back hand and beating the goalie ... doesn't carry the puck as much as he should, would like to see this player make more of an effort on the fore check ...
9. Adam Pineault: All around offensive player. Has a good frame. Needs to add some weight. Will attend BC next year. A future power forward; long powerful strides, good size & strength, very hard to knock of the puck, and a very good shot. Reads the play well, good anticipation and willing to go into the corners and in front of the net. Gives and receives passes well, works hard for the puck and competes every shift. Aggressive on the puck and completes his checks. Needs to mature and play with more discipline. Big power forward defensively aware (always been my favorite kind of player), but this year will tell if he can score massively and especially improve on last year's numbers. Last year's production was good (18 goals in 46 games). The only thing with him is that he may not opt in in 2004 which would be kind of a bumer. He's aggressive with the puck and drives hard to the net.
10. Andrej Meszaros: Has elite passing skills, good lateral mobility and agility. Excellent skater with smooth strides. Stands up at the blueline forcing the play. Has his head on a swivel in his zone - reads the play well. Able to QB a Power-play effectively, makes good decisions with the puck. Jumps into the play – good offensive instincts. Doesn't panic under pressure. Needs to bulk up and add muscle in order to improve his physical play.
