Team Canada Summer Showcase (U20 & U18)

[HockeyMind9]

I attended the Team Canada Summer Showcase (both the World Juniors and U18 camps) that was in Calgary and at the same rink. I went every day and watched every practice and every game (with the exception of missing the last 2 periods of the last game).

I am not a scout but I spoke with several scouts at the camp and they generally agreed with my insights.

World Juniors (U20 group)

Oh Captain my captain!:Cole Perfetti and Kaiden Guhle: I fully expect these 2 to lead Team Canada and likely be captains. They looked dominant and made the game look easy at times. Guhle was particularly dominant in the last game where the U18s were mixed in with the Juniors.

Big Boys: Mason McTavish, Zachary L’Heureux, William Dufour: These 3 “big boys” played with a good combination of size, physicality and skill. McTavish also won a reflexes drill while doing dry-land training, was often one of the last remaining in elimination drills and on ice at the end of practice him and Bryce McConnell-Barker were the last two in a “fun” contest where they took a shot from the slot and then also went in for an in-tight deke. If you score you stay in. Those two went about 3 rounds before they both missed in the 4th. I didn’t know much about Dufour, but in noticed I was checking his number a few times on the sheet when he made good plays. He seemed to move very well for a big guy.

Boys just having fun: While I’m talking about McTavish, him and Jake Neighbours looked like they were really having fun in practice often celebrating or cheering nice moves or goals. Looked like they were showing leadership with some of the U18s and trying to make sure they felt comfortable. Neighbours was also goofing around right at the end playing goalie on his knees.

Silky Skills: Kent Johnson, Seth Jarvis and Zachary Bolduc stood out to me as having great hands making nice moves and displayed great vision. You can definitely see Johnson has creativity and high offensive instincts. The points didn’t necessarily come early in camp, but he was making plays and doing well. He was scoring fairly often in the practice drills with quick snapshots. I think a year or two adding more muscle in college will really help him. He grew from being 5’7” ish to 6’1” in just a couple years, so he’s still adjusting to having size as opposed to being the smallest guy. Jarvis looks very confident out there and his size does not hold him back at all. If the roster was based just on this camp (it’s not), he would be a top 6 lock for me.

Let’s get physical: Ryan O’Rourke, Ridly Greig, Zachary L’Heureux, Connor McClennon all seemed to get into the “rough stuff” in the games and often pushing and shoving after the whistle. These guys seemed to be in the middle of it. McClennon might come as a surprise and maybe someone just pissed him off, but he did not back down despite his size. I expect at least a couple of these guys will end up on the team to bring some grit and sandpaper.

Underagers: Shane Wright and Nathan Gaucher were the two 2022 eligibles that were with the U20 group from the start. Gaucher is noticeably large and has a pro-ready frame. He fit in just fine and could definitely develop into a solid power forward. This is going to be a hot take, but I did not see anything special from Shane Wright. He wasn’t bad by any means, but for being talked about as one of the best since Matthews/McDavid, I expected to see a lot more. I tried to watch for him, but found it hard to see anything that stood out as “exceptional”. I was much more impressed with some other 2022s that were in the U18 group (more on that later). Maybe if he was in the U18 group he would have popped more, but he certainly didn’t with the U20s or even in the mixed group game.

Quick hits: Ollen Zellweger’s skating and edge work looked amazing and I really liked what I saw from him. I really liked him going into the draft and continue to. Hendrix Lapierre was sniping in practice and had one of the best releases. I didn’t know much about Miguel Tourigny, but as an undersized undrafted D, I thought he looked pretty good. He worked hard and looked fast.

I have a ton of thoughts on the U18 guys that I will write about later. Let me know if there are any particular players you want to hear about. Planning to write about Bedard, Fantilli, Geekie, Savoie, Mateychuk, Nelson, Haight, McConnell-Barker, Verreault, maybe a few others.

Click to read more...

 

[Dominance]

Awesome stuff, looking forward to your comments on the U18s!

 

[57special]

Would love to hear about Lambos, and how he stacked up to the other Dmen.

 

[HockeyMind9]

Would love to hear about Lambos, and how he stacked up to the other Dmen.

Lambos looked fine. He seemed steady but I personally thought Ceulemans was more dynamic. Lambos got lots of shots through meaning he was getting open and creating a chance, but those shots often went straight into the goalie's chest (although when the goalies are strong positionally, that happens often). I would have liked to see either more zip-on-the-shot or some sort of deception or creativity, but for a solid stable D, I guess you can't complain about keeping a simplified game.

 

[Uncle]

Lambos looked fine. He seemed steady but I personally thought Ceulemans was more dynamic. Lambos got lots of shots through meaning he was getting open and creating a chance, but those shots often went straight into the goalie's chest (although when the goalies are strong positionally, that happens often). I would have liked to see either more zip-on-the-shot or some sort of deception or creativity, but for a solid stable D, I guess you can't complain about keeping a simplified game.

I know you said youd write about him, but how about Nelson. As a North Bay fan the anticipation is killing me!

 

[Sticktape]

Blue font names that aren't hyperlinks to EP pages?! Just kidding. Great write up!

 

[HockeyMind9]

Blue font names that aren't hyperlinks to EP pages?! Just kidding. Great write up!

Haha, I realized after that they definitely DO look like hyperlinks. I really don't post much so don't even know how to use half the functions.

 

[HockeyMind9]

U18
This was the first times I’ve seen basically all of these guys and only heard of Bedard, Savoie, Fantilli and Geekie prior to the camp.

Connor Bedard: At top speeds he’s noticeably faster than everyone else in this group. He displayed great quickness, vision, hands and shot throughout camp. His go-to was often pulling the puck in closer to his body and snapping a quick shot high. Later in camp Fantilli looked to be asking him for shooting tips and they were both practicing this shot. Bedard looks like the real deal and the only knock would be his height, but he isn’t any smaller than Jarvis. Bedard was listed at 185 which is already very solid for his height. He does look like he’s built solid so I would believe the weight listed.

Matthew Savoie: Very high end offensive instincts. For pure offensive output, Savoie might have created more than anyone else (including Bedard). He can skate, shoot, dangle, make sneaky passes, basically everything you would want from a top line offensive forward. I thought he looked small, and he is, but he doesn’t back down from physicality. When players challenged him, he would fight right back or wrestle with them behind the play. In the first mixed game (with the U20s), he was named the player of the game for his team. I would definitely say he’s worthy of a top 5 pick in the coming draft if your team is looking for a high end offensive player.

Adam Fantilli: NHL size, responsible and smart. He made lots of plays where he just gets things done. He uses his body effectively to protect the puck but also has the hands to weave through traffic. When fed passes in scoring positions he often finished on his opportunities. Looks like he has all the tools you would want in a big skilled center that every team is looking for. He should be near the top of what is looking like a very strong 2023 class.

Connor Geekie: The pure raw skill is off the charts. He did a one handed backhand top shelf in one of the practice drills with ease. He has great size and is easily noticeable from his size and flow. His skating seemed fine to me (lots have said that was his weakness). What I’m not sure about is his compete level and attitude. I could be completely off base, but sometimes it looked like he wasn’t moving his legs much and just tried to use his size to muscle guys instead. At the end of a practice, when everyone was picking up pucks, he was screwing around near center until one of the coaches yelled “Geekie, pick up a puck”.

Ty Nelson: Shorter, but stalky and strong for his height. Likes to jump in offensively and can run a PP. Has a big slapshot that he likes to use often. Hopefully he can grow a few inches because I can see teams being hesitant to pick him due to his stature. Normally smaller D that get picked high are elite skaters which is not the case with Nelson (not to say he can’t improve). Definitely got some Ryan Ellis vibes from him. He has a lot of really good tools and can develop into a very solid prospect. For the NHL draft, I wouldn’t be surprised if he dropped a bit though.

Hunter Haight: Never heard of this guy at all, but wow, he is definitely on my radar now. Elite hands and creativity. I’m sure most of the guys have really good hands, but the fact that Hunter put them on display in both the games and practices in traffic at high speeds and pulled them off tells me he has the confidence to try and the skills to deliver. He had a big toe drag around a D and pulled by the goalie in tight, another time he tried going between the legs and a few other dangles in open space. I think it was also him that had a rolling puck behind the net and somewhat attempted a lacrosse goal. He’s a B (or C) rated prospect by Central Scouting, but I can definitely see him moving into an A or at least a high end B.

Denton Mateychuk: I first saw Denton play 2 years ago as an underage with Moose Jaw when I went to a Hitmen-Warriors game to watch Brayden Tracey. Denton’s smooth skating allowed him to jump into the rush and also get back defensively. I continued to see that at this camp. He’s offensive, but picks his spots and doesn’t force anything. He’s also solid defensively and can make a good outlet pass. As of right now he’s my favourite D prospect for the upcoming draft (basically only counting Canadians since I haven’t watched other countries besides a few U18 games).

Antonin Verreault: He was paired with Bedard for most drills and most games and they showed some chemistry. Verreault’s very skilled and can make shifty moves with the puck. He’s very noticeably small and plays like a small skilled forward. I always cheer for small guys to make it, but it’ll be very interesting to see how he holds up against bigger competition and physical games. He will need to add a lot of muscle to be picked in the first few rounds.

Bryce McConnell-Barker: Built solid and plays solid. Overall very strong game and above average shot. One practice he started by scoring on his first 3 or 4 shots while doing the drill. These were essentially shots off the rush where he simply sniped a corner on the goalies who were facing him square on. He looks like the type of player scouts will love. He checks all the boxes and pops in a couple of them.

Nate Danielson: One of the few 2023 eligibles at the camp. Nate has really good size already and noticeable skill that at times stood out among the group of older 2022 eligibles. He also had several opportunities to do drills and play with Bedard. He made a lot of good passes and finished on a ton of chances. Another guy I didn’t know existed but is squarely on my radar now.

Mavric Lamoureux: He was the tallest player in camp at 6’5.5” and it was very easy to spot him. He Seemed smooth and mobile for a D that tall which every year we see teams bet on size and that they can develop them. He also played physical and got into it a few times with Geekie where they were pushing a bit after the whistle and chirping as they headed to the bench. Definitely an intriguing prospect to watch.

Honorable mentions:
David Goyette displayed really nice hands and puck protection. Brandon Lisowsky is a bit on the smaller side but has a great motor and created opportunities with his speed and hustle. Jordan Gustafsson had a really good game where he was great on the forecheck and chipped in a few points. Others I liked at various times but don’t remember details include Rieger Lorenz (great size and skill combo), Cedrick Guindon (I think he sniped a few), Pano Fimis, Markus Vidicek, Sam Alfano. I’m sure there are others that had great camps that I didn’t mention, but overall I was super impressed with the skill level and think the 2022 and 2023 drafts will have strong contributions from Canada.

Let me know if you have any questions or thoughts. I may also write another post with a few off-ice comments just on a few players and their interactions with fans looking to get autographs. One player in particular left a bad impression. Can you guess who?

 

[NA Hockey]

U18
This was the first times I’ve seen basically all of these guys and only heard of Bedard, Savoie, Fantilli and Geekie prior to the camp.

Let me know if you have any questions or thoughts. I may also write another post with a few off-ice comments just on a few players and their interactions with fans looking to get autographs. One player in particular left a bad impression. Can you guess who?

Great thread, thanks for sharing your thoughts. Would love to see more of your detailed write ups on the U20 players

As for the U18's, write ups on the below if you have them:

Nicholas Moldenhauer
Matthew Poitras
Paul Ludwinski

In regards to the player that left a bad impression, I wouldn't want to take a guess as that wouldn't be fair to any of the kids, but would be interested to hear the story.

 

[DatDude44]

U18
This was the first times I’ve seen basically all of these guys and only heard of Bedard, Savoie, Fantilli and Geekie prior to the camp.

Connor Bedard: At top speeds he’s noticeably faster than everyone else in this group. He displayed great quickness, vision, hands and shot throughout camp. His go-to was often pulling the puck in closer to his body and snapping a quick shot high. Later in camp Fantilli looked to be asking him for shooting tips and they were both practicing this shot. Bedard looks like the real deal and the only knock would be his height, but he isn’t any smaller than Jarvis. Bedard was listed at 185 which is already very solid for his height. He does look like he’s built solid so I would believe the weight listed.

Matthew Savoie: Very high end offensive instincts. For pure offensive output, Savoie might have created more than anyone else (including Bedard). He can skate, shoot, dangle, make sneaky passes, basically everything you would want from a top line offensive forward. I thought he looked small, and he is, but he doesn’t back down from physicality. When players challenged him, he would fight right back or wrestle with them behind the play. In the first mixed game (with the U20s), he was named the player of the game for his team. I would definitely say he’s worthy of a top 5 pick in the coming draft if your team is looking for a high end offensive player.

Adam Fantilli: NHL size, responsible and smart. He made lots of plays where he just gets things done. He uses his body effectively to protect the puck but also has the hands to weave through traffic. When fed passes in scoring positions he often finished on his opportunities. Looks like he has all the tools you would want in a big skilled center that every team is looking for. He should be near the top of what is looking like a very strong 2023 class.

Connor Geekie: The pure raw skill is off the charts. He did a one handed backhand top shelf in one of the practice drills with ease. He has great size and is easily noticeable from his size and flow. His skating seemed fine to me (lots have said that was his weakness). What I’m not sure about is his compete level and attitude. I could be completely off base, but sometimes it looked like he wasn’t moving his legs much and just tried to use his size to muscle guys instead. At the end of a practice, when everyone was picking up pucks, he was screwing around near center until one of the coaches yelled “Geekie, pick up a puck”.

Ty Nelson: Shorter, but stalky and strong for his height. Likes to jump in offensively and can run a PP. Has a big slapshot that he likes to use often. Hopefully he can grow a few inches because I can see teams being hesitant to pick him due to his stature. Normally smaller D that get picked high are elite skaters which is not the case with Nelson (not to say he can’t improve). Definitely got some Ryan Ellis vibes from him. He has a lot of really good tools and can develop into a very solid prospect. For the NHL draft, I wouldn’t be surprised if he dropped a bit though.

Hunter Haight: Never heard of this guy at all, but wow, he is definitely on my radar now. Elite hands and creativity. I’m sure most of the guys have really good hands, but the fact that Hunter put them on display in both the games and practices in traffic at high speeds and pulled them off tells me he has the confidence to try and the skills to deliver. He had a big toe drag around a D and pulled by the goalie in tight, another time he tried going between the legs and a few other dangles in open space. I think it was also him that had a rolling puck behind the net and somewhat attempted a lacrosse goal. He’s a B (or C) rated prospect by Central Scouting, but I can definitely see him moving into an A or at least a high end B.

Denton Mateychuk: I first saw Denton play 2 years ago as an underage with Moose Jaw when I went to a Hitmen-Warriors game to watch Brayden Tracey. Denton’s smooth skating allowed him to jump into the rush and also get back defensively. I continued to see that at this camp. He’s offensive, but picks his spots and doesn’t force anything. He’s also solid defensively and can make a good outlet pass. As of right now he’s my favourite D prospect for the upcoming draft (basically only counting Canadians since I haven’t watched other countries besides a few U18 games).

Antonin Verreault: He was paired with Bedard for most drills and most games and they showed some chemistry. Verreault’s very skilled and can make shifty moves with the puck. He’s very noticeably small and plays like a small skilled forward. I always cheer for small guys to make it, but it’ll be very interesting to see how he holds up against bigger competition and physical games. He will need to add a lot of muscle to be picked in the first few rounds.

Bryce McConnell-Barker: Built solid and plays solid. Overall very strong game and above average shot. One practice he started by scoring on his first 3 or 4 shots while doing the drill. These were essentially shots off the rush where he simply sniped a corner on the goalies who were facing him square on. He looks like the type of player scouts will love. He checks all the boxes and pops in a couple of them.

Nate Danielson: One of the few 2023 eligibles at the camp. Nate has really good size already and noticeable skill that at times stood out among the group of older 2022 eligibles. He also had several opportunities to do drills and play with Bedard. He made a lot of good passes and finished on a ton of chances. Another guy I didn’t know existed but is squarely on my radar now.

Mavric Lamoureux: He was the tallest player in camp at 6’5.5” and it was very easy to spot him. He Seemed smooth and mobile for a D that tall which every year we see teams bet on size and that they can develop them. He also played physical and got into it a few times with Geekie where they were pushing a bit after the whistle and chirping as they headed to the bench. Definitely an intriguing prospect to watch.

Honorable mentions:
David Goyette displayed really nice hands and puck protection. Brandon Lisowsky is a bit on the smaller side but has a great motor and created opportunities with his speed and hustle. Jordan Gustafsson had a really good game where he was great on the forecheck and chipped in a few points. Others I liked at various times but don’t remember details include Rieger Lorenz (great size and skill combo), Cedrick Guindon (I think he sniped a few), Pano Fimis, Markus Vidicek, Sam Alfano. I’m sure there are others that had great camps that I didn’t mention, but overall I was super impressed with the skill level and think the 2022 and 2023 drafts will have strong contributions from Canada.

Let me know if you have any questions or thoughts. I may also write another post with a few off-ice comments just on a few players and their interactions with fans looking to get autographs. One player in particular left a bad impression. Can you guess who?

Musty and Goyette are gonna be nasty in Sudbury, especially in their draft year

 

[Evgeny Oliker]

Where can I find the rosters and stats for the u20 summer showcase?


Thanks

 

[GoBoltz56]

Curious about your opinion on Cossa. I know he got shelled in that last scrimmage, but how was he playing in the other scrimmages?

 

[HockeyMind9]

Great thread, thanks for sharing your thoughts. Would love to see more of your detailed write ups on the U20 players

As for the U18's, write ups on the below if you have them:

Nicholas Moldenhauer
Matthew Poitras
Paul Ludwinski

In regards to the player that left a bad impression, I wouldn't want to take a guess as that wouldn't be fair to any of the kids, but would be interested to hear the story.

I wasn't particularly watching Moldenhauer a ton, but in the last couple days he made some nice plays and did well with the mixed group. Poitras I believe had a few nice shots in practice. Ludwinski was similar to what I wrote about Lisowsky, but to be completely honest, I may have mixed the two up with their similar names.

Musty and Goyette are gonna be nasty in Sudbury, especially in their draft year

Don't know much about Musty but based on where he was drafted, him and Goyette should be great. Goyette and Verreault were messing around with fancy stick handling after practice and it was crazy how easy they made some of the things look. Like flipping the puck up with the stick between their legs then continuing to bounce the puck.

Where can I find the rosters and stats for the u20 summer showcase?


Thanks

World Juniors. If you hover over where it says Summer Showcase you can see the roster and schedule. From the schedule you can click to see the game summaries.
2022 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship | 2021-22 National Junior Team

U18
Program Of Excellence U18 Summer Showcase Roster

Curious about your opinion on Cossa. I know he got shelled in that last scrimmage, but how was he playing in the other scrimmages?

I think he looked fine. A lot of the games were high scoring (several of the U18 games were too). Since a lot the players hadn't played in over a year, I'm guessing they were just getting guys back up to speed and skill development and not really focusing on defensive systems or anything. The day before the game Cossa got shelled, he practiced for 2 practices in a row and the goalies often went out 15 minutes before the players to work with the goalie coaches. It's possible he was a bit tired by the end of the week. Probably not a good reason, but I wouldn't be worried about him. I still expect he'll be the starter by the time the tournament rolls around.

 

[newfy]

I attended the Team Canada Summer Showcase (both the World Juniors and U18 camps) that was in Calgary and at the same rink. I went every day and watched every practice and every game (with the exception of missing the last 2 periods of the last game).

What did you think of Sebrango? I'm surprsied he wasnt one of the guys mixing it up physically

 

[HockeyMind9]

What did you think of Sebrango? I'm surprsied he wasnt one of the guys mixing it up physically

He seemed to hit my radar more and more as the camp went on (which is definitely a good sign). He looked good and definitely did bring a physical edge. He had 3 penalties over the last 2 games. IIRC, 2 were while he was playing physical and penalties you don't mind seeing guys take and one was hooking. When you look at the roster, the guys that are listed over 200 lbs were pretty much the guys that were visibly big and filled out. For example, Brandt Clarke is 6'2", 187 and Sebrango is 6'1" 200lbs. It's only 13 lbs difference, but you can tell Sebrango is bigger than Clarke out there.

 

[newfy]

He seemed to hit my radar more and more as the camp went on (which is definitely a good sign). He looked good and definitely did bring a physical edge. He had 3 penalties over the last 2 games. IIRC, 2 were while he was playing physical and penalties you don't mind seeing guys take and one was hooking. When you look at the roster, the guys that are listed over 200 lbs were pretty much the guys that were visibly big and filled out. For example, Brandt Clarke is 6'2", 187 and Sebrango is 6'1" 200lbs. It's only 13 lbs difference, but you can tell Sebrango is bigger than Clarke out there.

Thanks. I think with how solid he was in the AHL last year, I would bekinda surprised if he didnt make the team. But theres no shortage of physical, defensive types for this team. I think he may have a leg up as a better skater than most, if not all of them though

 

[HockeyMind9]

Great thread, thanks for sharing your thoughts. Would love to see more of your detailed write ups on the U20 players

As for the U18's, write ups on the below if you have them:

Nicholas Moldenhauer
Matthew Poitras
Paul Ludwinski

In regards to the player that left a bad impression, I wouldn't want to take a guess as that wouldn't be fair to any of the kids, but would be interested to hear the story.

I debated whether I should write this since I don't want to judge and these are just kids with a lot of pressure and I'm sure I don't know the whole story...

I was talking to a guy that was trying to get autographs (at the hotel, rink and at the end of camp at the airport). There were 3 people at the hotel trying to get Shane Wright's autograph and he signed 1 autograph between the 3 of them. At the rink Shane avoided all fans (although Team Canada staff were definitely not encouraging fan interactions due to covid). Most other players were very friendly and happily signed whatever was put in front of them, posing for distanced selfies and chatting about the camp and the draft. Some of those friendly players included McTavish, Sillinger, Bedard (signed multiple items, has a long signature and seemed very happy to meet fans), Johnson, Savoie, Cossa, and most of all, Perfetti. Perfetti again signed multiple items on multiple occasions and would ask if we wanted him to write his Saginaw number or world jr number and overall very friendly. Guenther signed but said one only (there were 2 people getting autographs, so hardly a crowd). I wasn't at the airport, but what I was told was all the players signed (lots of time where they're waiting and have nothing else to do anyway), except for Wright. He was not going to sign at all for the guy there until Perfetti told him he should and then he signed one.

While I know it isn't their job to sign autographs and certainly signing one is more than fair, it does seem a little concerning when they actively avoid signing any and can't take the 1 minute to make a fans day when the fan has been waiting significantly longer to meet them. I'm hoping this is not a reflection of overall attitude towards fans and "giving back". Charity work and community service is huge for a lot of franchises and I hope that Shane can get on the Wright path when it comes to giving back and fan interactions when he's in the NHL.

 

[majormajor]

I debated whether I should write this since I don't want to judge and these are just kids with a lot of pressure and I'm sure I don't know the whole story...

I was talking to a guy that was trying to get autographs (at the hotel, rink and at the end of camp at the airport). There were 3 people at the hotel trying to get Shane Wright's autograph and he signed 1 autograph between the 3 of them. At the rink Shane avoided all fans (although Team Canada staff were definitely not encouraging fan interactions due to covid). Most other players were very friendly and happily signed whatever was put in front of them, posing for distanced selfies and chatting about the camp and the draft. Some of those friendly players included McTavish, Sillinger, Bedard (signed multiple items, has a long signature and seemed very happy to meet fans), Johnson, Savoie, Cossa, and most of all, Perfetti. Perfetti again signed multiple items on multiple occasions and would ask if we wanted him to write his Saginaw number or world jr number and overall very friendly. Guenther signed but said one only (there were 2 people getting autographs, so hardly a crowd). I wasn't at the airport, but what I was told was all the players signed (lots of time where they're waiting and have nothing else to do anyway), except for Wright. He was not going to sign at all for the guy there until Perfetti told him he should and then he signed one.

While I know it isn't their job to sign autographs and certainly signing one is more than fair, it does seem a little concerning when they actively avoid signing any and can't take the 1 minute to make a fans day when the fan has been waiting significantly longer to meet them. I'm hoping this is not a reflection of overall attitude towards fans and "giving back". Charity work and community service is huge for a lot of franchises and I hope that Shane can get on the Wright path when it comes to giving back and fan interactions when he's in the NHL.

Charity work and community service, at least to my mind, have absolutely nothing to do with signing your name on a piece of paper. I find signatures to be a peculiar ritual, not any kind of public benefit.

 

[Obvious Fabertism]

It’s COVID times, limiting fan interaction is not something I would ever hold against players right now no matter vaccination status. It’s a draft year and their livelihood and health on the lines, the league itself has mandated against it now as well.

My personal stance on autographs is also that they are at best a nice memory for a kid but also more often just a piece of sellable memorabilia for an adult, and players have the right to control the distribution of this asset, especially when they are still amateurs themselves.

 

[HockeyMind9]

Yeah, all totally fair comments. My comparison with community service was just in the sense that it's the difference in mentality to quickly sign an autograph (everyone was masked, kept a distance, etc) vs actively ignoring fans. In general, it's making time for fans when you're a public figure whether it's signing an autograph or volunteering your time in some other way. For myself, when I've gotten autographs when I was younger or now, I keep them for myself or give them to my younger cousins who are huge fans but don't live in the city.

 

[BadgerBruce]

A 17 year-old amateur hockey player who does not interact with fans is probably just painfully shy. I say this because I’ve seen it before— heck, even before my time, when Gordie Howe played as a 17 year-old first year pro in Omaha, he would leave the dressing room after games through a window rather than face the autograph-seeking fans. He was just painfully shy, not mean-spirited at all, and as the years rolled by he became more comfortable interacting with fans, eventually reaching the point where he was very much at ease.

In my own lifetime, I’ve known lots of teenage athletes who just aren’t comfortable interacting with fans. Heck, one of my own children has grown up to be an admirable, responsible man, but in a room full of strangers he’s going through personal Hell and won’t say a word.

 

[HockeyMind9]

A 17 year-old amateur hockey player who does not interact with fans is probably just painfully shy. I say this because I’ve seen it before— heck, even before my time, when Gordie Howe played as a 17 year-old first year pro in Omaha, he would leave the dressing room after games through a window rather than face the autograph-seeking fans. He was just painfully shy, not mean-spirited at all, and as the years rolled by he became more comfortable interacting with fans, eventually reaching the point where he was very much at ease.

In my own lifetime, I’ve known lots of teenage athletes who just aren’t comfortable interacting with fans. Heck, one of my own children has grown up to be an admirable, responsible man, but in a room full of strangers he’s going through personal Hell and won’t say a word.

Great perspective and funny anecdote about Gordie! Hopefully my comments haven't come off as attacking any of the players, more just wanted to share a story and people can take what they want from it.

 

[BadgerBruce]

Great perspective and funny anecdote about Gordie! Hopefully my comments haven't come off as attacking any of the players, more just wanted to share a story and people can take what they want from it.

Don't mention it — I’m often guilty of assuming the “celebrity status” fans confer on players means those kids are actually fully developed as people. I remember Orr scoring as a rookie and skating to the bench with his head down because he didn’t want attention.

By the way, the Howe story … one of the fans who would hang out by the dressing room door was a female with the nickname “Spaghetti Legs.” Howe was probably wise to flee out the window!

 

[wetcoast]

Charity work and community service, at least to my mind, have absolutely nothing to do with signing your name on a piece of paper. I find signatures to be a peculiar ritual, not any kind of public benefit.

Especially today when signatures are often commodities and a business.

Most hockey players, and it seems hockey guys are better at it than most other sports but it's just a perception, seem to really value community and "giving back."

Although truth be told there is no way to measure this and I have heard reports of guys in baseball doing this that have bad reps, like Gary Sheffield, who did give back but behind the scenes.

 

[Trojans86]

I attended the Team Canada Summer Showcase (both the World Juniors and U18 camps) that was in Calgary and at the same rink. I went every day and watched every practice and every game (with the exception of missing the last 2 periods of the last game).

I am not a scout but I spoke with several scouts at the camp and they generally agreed with my insights.

World Juniors (U20 group)

Oh Captain my captain!:Cole Perfetti and Kaiden Guhle: I fully expect these 2 to lead Team Canada and likely be captains. They looked dominant and made the game look easy at times. Guhle was particularly dominant in the last game where the U18s were mixed in with the Juniors.

Big Boys: Mason McTavish, Zachary L’Heureux, William Dufour: These 3 “big boys” played with a good combination of size, physicality and skill. McTavish also won a reflexes drill while doing dry-land training, was often one of the last remaining in elimination drills and on ice at the end of practice him and Bryce McConnell-Barker were the last two in a “fun” contest where they took a shot from the slot and then also went in for an in-tight deke. If you score you stay in. Those two went about 3 rounds before they both missed in the 4th. I didn’t know much about Dufour, but in noticed I was checking his number a few times on the sheet when he made good plays. He seemed to move very well for a big guy.

Boys just having fun: While I’m talking about McTavish, him and Jake Neighbours looked like they were really having fun in practice often celebrating or cheering nice moves or goals. Looked like they were showing leadership with some of the U18s and trying to make sure they felt comfortable. Neighbours was also goofing around right at the end playing goalie on his knees.

Silky Skills: Kent Johnson, Seth Jarvis and Zachary Bolduc stood out to me as having great hands making nice moves and displayed great vision. You can definitely see Johnson has creativity and high offensive instincts. The points didn’t necessarily come early in camp, but he was making plays and doing well. He was scoring fairly often in the practice drills with quick snapshots. I think a year or two adding more muscle in college will really help him. He grew from being 5’7” ish to 6’1” in just a couple years, so he’s still adjusting to having size as opposed to being the smallest guy. Jarvis looks very confident out there and his size does not hold him back at all. If the roster was based just on this camp (it’s not), he would be a top 6 lock for me.

Let’s get physical: Ryan O’Rourke, Ridly Greig, Zachary L’Heureux, Connor McClennon all seemed to get into the “rough stuff” in the games and often pushing and shoving after the whistle. These guys seemed to be in the middle of it. McClennon might come as a surprise and maybe someone just pissed him off, but he did not back down despite his size. I expect at least a couple of these guys will end up on the team to bring some grit and sandpaper.

Underagers: Shane Wright and Nathan Gaucher were the two 2022 eligibles that were with the U20 group from the start. Gaucher is noticeably large and has a pro-ready frame. He fit in just fine and could definitely develop into a solid power forward. This is going to be a hot take, but I did not see anything special from Shane Wright. He wasn’t bad by any means, but for being talked about as one of the best since Matthews/McDavid, I expected to see a lot more. I tried to watch for him, but found it hard to see anything that stood out as “exceptional”. I was much more impressed with some other 2022s that were in the U18 group (more on that later). Maybe if he was in the U18 group he would have popped more, but he certainly didn’t with the U20s or even in the mixed group game.

Quick hits: Ollen Zellweger’s skating and edge work looked amazing and I really liked what I saw from him. I really liked him going into the draft and continue to. Hendrix Lapierre was sniping in practice and had one of the best releases. I didn’t know much about Miguel Tourigny, but as an undersized undrafted D, I thought he looked pretty good. He worked hard and looked fast.

I have a ton of thoughts on the U18 guys that I will write about later. Let me know if there are any particular players you want to hear about. Planning to write about Bedard, Fantilli, Geekie, Savoie, Mateychuk, Nelson, Haight, McConnell-Barker, Verreault, maybe a few others.

Thanks for doing this. Overall, do you think MxTavish will live up to a 3oa? How was he compared to others? Any other insights?

Thanks in advance