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Tuesday, May 29, 2012

POE Camp Re-cap

Many readers have sent messages in wondering how the POE spring camp went so he is a brief report on some of the players who stood out.  Year after year POE has been one of the top bantam programs in western Canada and start basically brand new each season.

Forwards
The three returning forwards of Kody McDonald, Trevor Ayre and Tyson Jost was great all weekend long as were Robert Johnson and Joel Murga.  Last season, Murga played with Seafair in the PCAHA and was 3rd in team scoring behind Ryan Wilkinson and top pick Glenn Gawdin.  The 5'10 140lb Murga put up 10-17-27 in 41 games and should add some very good secondary scoring to the POE squad this year.  Johnson played last season with the Kamloops Jardine Blazers and finished with 9-4-13 in 53 games.  Tyson Jost is the top returning scorer on the team coming up this year.  Jost had 48-72-120 in 62 games last season while both McDonald and Ayre had over 70 points each.

Some other forwards who showed well but a step below the others were Michael Fidanza from Kamloops who last year had 0-6-6 in 52 games.  Zach Thompson, Marcus Mitchell and Matteo Giomo also had decent camps this past weekend.  Mitchell played last season on the POE B2 squad and is a big forward with some power forward potential.  Mitchell had 24 points in 23 games last season.  Giomo is from Comox Valley.

A couple of American born 99's were decent but might be a year away yet.  Blake Bonner from Texas and Luke Ormsby from Washington State look like they have a shot at making the team.

Defense
The top two defenseman on the ice this weekend were quite easily Noah Turanski and Paul Georgeopoulos.  Georgeopoulos was by far the hardest hitter at camp, taking every opportunity he had to punish someone.  He could make some major noise this year.  Turanski could be the most complete defenseman POE will have this year.  Turanski played last year with Vernon in the OMAHA.  Matt Krawiec who played last season with Red Deer in the AMBHL and Ralph Jarrett from Grand Prairie were also very good.  Krawiec had 0-7-7 in 33 games for Red Deer last season while Jarrett 1-7-8 and 52 pims last season for Grand Prairie.  Danny Gatenby, the brother of high bantam 2012 draft pick Joe Gatenby is progressing nicely and is a late 98 birthday making him one of the youngest for the draft this coming year. 

Goalies
In goal, the three goalies really stood out above the rest.  Nathan Spark and Austin Poulin who are likely the AAA goalies for next year we think as well as Nic Tallarico all played well.  Tallarico, coming off an outstanding Challenge Cup in Vancouver battled hard but Spark and Poulin are big goalies who cover a lot of the net.

Sunday, May 27, 2012

Source For Sports Tournament - Brandon 98/99 Champions

1999 Elite Champions - Manitoba Falcons


Scoring Leaders

# Name Team GP G A PTS SOG SOG % PPG SH PIM MVP GW AVG PTS


77 Stelio Mattheos F Falco 5 11 8 19 11 100.0 2 0 14.0 0 2 3.80


11 Hayden Ostir F Falco 5 6 11 17 6 100.0 3 0 4.0 0 0 3.40


8 Isaac Sandomirsky Wheat 6 8 6 14 8 100.0 0 0 4.0 0 1 2.33


19 Logan Foster Wheat 6 3 10 13 3 100.0 1 1 8.0 0 1 2.17


21 Nick Henry F Falco 5 3 10 13 3 100.0 0 0 8.0 0 0 2.60


25 Eamon Milligan Wheat 6 4 7 11 4 100.0 1 0 8.0 0 0 1.83


12 Darren Gisti F Falco 5 4 6 10 4 100.0 0 0 4.0 0 2 2.00


87 Cody Glass F Falco 5 1 8 9 1 100.0 0 0 4.0 0 0 1.80


2 BRIAN HARRIS Pemb 5 4 4 8 4 100.0 1 0 2.0 0 1 1.60


9 Brennan Ostir F Falco 5 2 6 8 2 100.0 0 0 2.0 0 0 1.60
 
 
99 Open Division - Ninety Nine Stars

Scoring Leaders
# Name Team GP G A PTS SOG SOG % PPG SH PIM GW AVG PTS



15 Wyatt Bear Stars 5 8 2 10 8 100.0 1 0 6.0 2 2.00


15 Bradley Marshell Wolf 5 8 2 10 8 100.0 0 0 0.0 0 2.00


9 Derek Harasymko Stars 5 6 3 9 6 100.0 0 2 0.0 1 1.80


91 Leif Mattson Stars 5 4 4 8 4 100.0 0 1 2.0 1 1.60


71 Riley Darragh Light 4 2 6 8 2 100.0 0 0 0.0 0 2.00


5 Skai Mclean Light 4 6 2 8 6 100.0 1 0 6.0 0 2.00


8 Noah Basarab Stars 5 2 5 7 2 100.0 0 0 2.0 0 1.40


10 Kyle Wiltshire Light 4 4 3 7 4 100.0 0 0 18.0 0 1.75


11 Riley Mckay Wolf 5 2 5 7 2 100.0 0 0 4.0 0 1.40


13 Travis Bennett Stars 5 4 2 6 4 100.0 1 1 16.0 0 1.20
 
1998 Division - Notre Dame Prospects

 
Scoring Leaders
# Name Team GP G A PTS SOG SOG % PPG SH PIM + / - MVP GW AVG PTS



10 Nico LaBossiere Boys 5 9 6 15 9 100.0 1 0 10.0 0 0 1 3.00


22 Malcom Huemmert AB ICE 5 6 8 14 6 100.0 1 0 4.0 0 0 0 2.80


91 Tyler Graber AB ICE 5 11 2 13 11 100.0 1 0 8.0 0 0 1 2.60


8 Caleb Griffin NotreD 6 7 6 13 7 100.0 1 0 2.0 0 0 2 2.17


73 Luke Dunlop AB ICE 5 4 7 11 4 100.0 0 0 2.0 0 0 1 2.20


2 Shane Sherban NotreD 6 5 6 11 5 100.0 0 0 0.0 0 0 1 1.83


12 Branden Klatt NotreD 6 2 9 11 2 100.0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 1.83


5 Mason Mullaney Crusad 6 5 5 10 5 100.0 2 0 0.0 0 0 0 1.67


15 Linden McCorrister Boys 5 8 2 10 8 100.0 2 0 4.0 0 0 1 2.00


11 Ryan Porter AB ICE 5 4 5 9 4 100.0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 1.80
 
 
Vancouver Attack - Quest for the Cup Champions
RK # NAME Team GP G A PTS PIM PP SH GWG PPGA



1 98 Nick Bizzutto VANCOUVER ATTACK - 98 5 7 5 12 4 0 0 0 2.40


2 14 Jason Village RAVENS BLACK - 98 5 5 4 9 4 0 0 0 1.80


22 Ryan Bowen PROSPECTS - 98 5 5 4 9 6 1 0 0 1.80


89 Mitchell Glaholt VANCOUVER ATTACK - 98 5 4 5 9 2 1 0 2 1.80


5 17 Mateo Toledo RAVENS BLACK - 98 5 4 4 8 8 0 2 0 1.60


21 Luke Warkentin VANCOUVER ATTACK - 98 5 1 7 8 2 1 0 0 1.60


7 17 Spencer Gerth VANCOUVER ATTACK - 98 5 1 6 7 0 1 0 0 1.40


8 18 Ben Evanish SEMIAHMOO SPITFIRES - 98 5 5 1 6 4 0 0 1 1.20


9 Michael Regush VANCOUVER ATTACK - 98 5 3 3 6 2 0 0 1 1.20


10 Xavier Norris RAVENS BLACK - 98 5 3 3 6 2 1 0 0 1.20

Saturday, May 26, 2012

Brandon AAA Tournament 98/99 Current Leading Scorers


99 Elite Leading Scorers
Stelio Mattheos F Falco 4 10 6 16

Hayden Ostir F Falco 4 4 10 14
Logan Foster Wheat 4 3 9 12
Nick Henry F Falco 4 2 10 12
Isaac Sandomirsky Wheat 4 7 4 11
Eamon Milligan Wheat 4 3 6 9
Darren Gisti F Falco 4 4 5 9
Cody Glass F Falco 4 1 7 8
BRIAN HARRIS Pemb 4 4 3 7
LOGAN CHRISTENSEN Pemb 4 2 4 6
Riley Sawchuk F Falco 4 3 3 6
Brennan Ostir F Falco 4 2 4 6
McKenzie Welke Wheat 4 4 1 5
Nicholas Doyle D Falco 4 1 4 5
Ian Briscoe Falco 4 4 1 5
Jake Kustra Wheat 4 1 3 4
Austin Johnston D Falco 3 2 2 4
Dino Antondonias F Falco 4 2 2 4
Josh Brook Falco 4 2 2 4
Parker Gavlas Falco 4 0 4 4
Carson Welke Wheat 4 0 3 3

99 AAA Leading Scorers
Riley Mckay Wolf 3 2 5 7
Riley Darragh Light 3 2 4 6
Bradley Marshell Wolf 3 5 1 6
Tyde Hutchinson Crusad 3 3 2 5
Chantz Petruic Crusad 3 3 2 5
Kyle Wiltshire Light 3 2 3 5
Clayton Bright Light 3 1 4 5
Skai Mclean Light 3 4 1 5
Taz Mckay Wolf 3 2 3 5
Noah Basarab Stars 3 1 3 4
Wyatt Bear Stars 3 4 0 4
Leif Mattson Stars 3 1 3 4

98 Elite Leading Scorers
Malcom Huemmert AB ICE 3 5 4 9
Tyler Graber AB ICE 3 9 0 9
Luke Dunlop AB ICE 3 2 6 8
Riley Woods Woods Sask 2 2 4 6
Caleb Griffin NotreD 3 4 2 6
Ryan Porter AB ICE 3 2 3 5
Brett Merk Sask 2 3 2 5
Shane Sherban NotreD 3 2 3 5
Jared Legien NotreD 3 3 2 5

Friday, May 25, 2012

Brandon AAA Hockey Tournament - Day 1

Updates to come at the end of each game with brief thoughts. Alberta Ice and the Crusaders are currently underway with the Ice leading 1-0 in the first on a Ryan Porter goal.

Notre Dame Prospects 7 - Manitoba Tundra 1 (98 Born) Early 3rd

A team full of some of the potential Notre Dame Hounds for next season skated past the Tundra 5-1. Caleb Griffin led the way with 2 goals. Conor Maclean had the other goal for Notre. Caleb Griffin played last season with the Regina Oilers in the SBAAHL and had a pretty successful rookie bantam season with 8-12-20 in 22 games. He could be a go-to player for the Hounds next year. Maclean was with Notre Dame last season and had 15 points in 32 exhibition games. Brendan Osadec had the lone goal for the Tundra. Osadec played in the St. Paul minor hockey association. Brady Third scored 2 times and added a helper. Third should score well next year. The 6'0 150lb Third had 16 points in 22 SBAAHL games with Estevan next year. Rumoured Hounds Nolan Reid and Taylor Ross are with the 98 Jr. Blades.

Alberta Ice 6 - Crusaders 4 (98 Born) Final
Tyler Graber scored two goals, Luke Dunlop had 1-2-3 and Ryan Porter had 1-1-2 to lead the way for the Alberta Ice who were outshot 33-30 in the game. Dunlop played last season with Leduc in the ERBHL AA bantam league and scored 18 goals and 30 points in 31 games. Dunlop should produce next year in the AMBHL with Leduc. The 5'10 157lb Graber played with the Red Deer Black team in the AMBHL and had 5-4-9 in 32 games while Porter was with SSAC in the ERBHL and had 25 points in 32 games played. For the Crusaders, it was Paul Jewhurst with 1-1-2 and Zach Hagerman with 1-1-2 to lead the way. Jewhurst played with Melville in the Bantam A league the AA team will to him for some scoring next year. Hagerman played last season with Moose Jaw in the SBAAHL and had 7 points in 24 games.

Manitoba Falcons 6 - Manitoba Storm 1 (99 Elite) Final
One of the favourites to win the 99 Elite group had no problems in the first game of the tournament this morning. Hayden Ostir scored twice as did Ian Briscoe in the win. D- Josh Brook had 1-1-2 and Cody Glass with a pair or assists. Cody Glass led the Winnipeg Peewee league in scoring last year with 53 points in 27 games. Briscoe was 4th in league scoring one of the leaders in goals with 27 while Ostir 30 points in 23 games with the Winnipeg Railcats. The storm lone goal came from Ryan Heino. Heino is from the Yellowhead minor hockey area. The Falcons outshot the Storm 46-26.

Notre Dame Prospects 7 - Manitoba Tundra 1 (98 Born) Early 3rd
A team full of some of the potential Notre Dame Hounds for next season skated past the Tundra 5-1. Caleb Griffin led the way with 2 goals. Conor Maclean had the other goal for Notre. Caleb Griffin played last season with the Regina Oilers in the SBAAHL and had a pretty successful rookie bantam season with 8-12-20 in 22 games. He could be a go-to player for the Hounds next year. Maclean was with Notre Dame last season and had 15 points in 32 exhibition games. Brendan Osadec had the lone goal for the Tundra. Osadec played in the St. Paul minor hockey association. Brady Third scored 2 times and added a helper.  Third should score well next year.  The 6'0 150lb Third had 16 points in 22 SBAAHL games with Estevan next year.  Rumoured Hounds Nolan Reid and Taylor Ross are with the 98 Jr. Blades.



Thursday, May 24, 2012

WEHP Announce Prelim Top 10 Team Rankings

WEHP announce the preliminary top 10 team rankings for the 2012-2013 season.  We realize that rosters are far from being set but the rankings take in to account number of potential draft picks, returning players and likely new players coming up from AA or peewee players coming up.  As the rosters become more clear prior to the start of the season, the rankings are subject to change.

1.   BWC Bruins - Strong from the net out with Shugrue and carried on through the defense core with Fabbro, Barberis, Ginnetti.  Jaeger White joins the team from Medicine Hat.
Kingpin:  Jaeger White
Defense:  Dante Fabbro/Matt Barberis
99 Born:  Henry Rhyu


2.   SSAC Southgate Lions - Some of their best players last season were first year bantams in Quenneville and Benson.  Both goalies return as well.
Kingpin:  Tyler Benson
Defense:  David Quenneville
99 Born:  Josh Paterson

3.   Winnipeg Hawks - The Hawks were 24-5-1 and won the Division 2 or 98 born division.  Nolan Patrick, Loschaivo, Brakel and Barley lead up front while Kubic could be the top 98 born goalie this year.
Kingpin:  Nolan Patrick/Ryan Kubic
Defense:  Adam Thurlbeck
99 Born:  NA

4.   Calgary Bisons - Matthew Phillips as though he will take the next step in his development and lead the Bisons up front.  Kyle Olson is one of the top 99 born players in western Canada.  Ryley McKinstry is very solid on defnse.
Kingpin:  Matthew Phillips
Defense:  Ryley Mckinstry
99 Born:  Ayden Roche-Setoguchi

5.   POE - At this point it isn't exactly know to the "public" who will be on this squad.  Jost, Ayre and Mcdonald are three high scoring players and the defense coming in are very good.
Kingpin:  Tyson Jost
Defense: TBD
99 Born:  TBD

6.  Airdrie Xtreme - The Xtreme had a bit of a rebuilding season last year but will return to near the top this time around.  Tanaka, Dube, McConnell are key returnees.  Kurtis Chapman should be one of the best in goal next year.
Kingpin:  Kurtis Chapman
Defense:  Adamu Tanaka
99 Born:  Gary Haden

7.  Lloydminster Heat - Kale Clague will enter his 3rd year of bantam hockey and should dominate.  Petrie, Shaw, Johnson add depth.  99 born star Zane Franklin should make a big impact for a first year player.
Kingpin:  Kale Clague
Defense:  Kale Clague
99 Born:  Zane Franklin

8.  NSWC Winterhawks - Once again the NSWC team will be one to be taken very seriously.  Hannoun, Anholt, Benjafield, Kwan and Colebourne give them a nice nucleous.  Add in 99 born star players Bellerive, Kneen and Almeida for even more depth.
Kingpin:  Dante Hannoun
Defense:  Ryan Pouliot/Marcus Kwan
99 Born:  Jordy Bellerive

9. Langley Eagles -  Led by Luke Gingras up front.  Kaelan Anderson, Dennis Cholowski and a cast of very talented 99 born players should make them a top 3 PCAHA team or close.
Kingpin:  Luke Gingras
Defense:  Dennis Cholowski
99 Born:  James Malm

10.  Notre Dame Hounds - The Hounds should have a bounce back season with several of the Balgonie Prairie Storm top 98's heading there next year.  The other recruits are also very good.
Kingpin:  TBD
Defense:  Nolan Reid
Goalie:  TBD

Honorable Mentions
OHA, Calgary Bronks, Brandon, Winnipeg Monarchs, Calgary Royals and Calgary Northstar Sabres, Abbotsford

Brandon AAA Hockey Challenge

The tournament season continues tomorrow with the Brandon AAA Hockey Challenge taking place.  The tournament will feature a 98 division as well as a 99 division and a 99 elite division.

The 98 division will feature Team Tundra, Alberta Ice, Crusadors, Boys of the North, Sask Growwwl, MB Lightning and Team Notre Dame.  On the surface, it looks like the Boys of the North led by Dylan Thiessen and the Notre Dame prospects teams will be the ones to beat.

In the 99 Elite Division, it will be the Manitoba Storm, Wheatland Wild, Quest, Pembina Valley and the Manitoba Falcons.  This division is heavily stacked in favour of the Wheatland Wild and the Manitoba Falcons.  Both teams feature many of the top players on our '99 born list.

The 99 Division will have the Crusadors, Lightning, Stars and Man-Sask Wolfpack.

Action begins tomorrow, stay tuned for updates through the weekend.

Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Wednesday Update

Vancouver CANAM SuperSeries
**Update - POE is now confirmed for the Canadian Division.  If a western Canada would still like to join, please contact as soon as possible.  They can be included in the USA Division and crossover to play the Canadian teams.

BWC and NSWC will join forces to host a the Vancouver CANAM SuperSeries from September 14-16.  Currently there are 6 teams, with 3 teams in the "Canuck Pool" and 3 teams in the "US Pool".  However, the committee is working on adding another team in each division.

The proposed format for the 8 team tournament will be Can-US crossover for 4 games and then a 1vs1, 2vs2, 3vs3, 4vs4 for the 5th game.  Each team would play 2 games on Friday and Saturday and then once on Sunday.  They periods would be 17 minute periods with a flood between the 2nd and 3rd periods.

It should be noted that ALL Western Canadian teams in the tournament are using this to help make their final cuts.

Canadian Division
NSWC
BWC
OHA
POE (Tentative)


USA Division
Dallas
LA Jr. Kings (merged with LAHC)
Orange County (merged with Anaheim Jr. Ducks
Phoenix Bobcats or Colorado (need confirmation)


-San Jose if needed.


Calgary '99 Spartan Cup
The Alberta Alliance won the Calgary Spartan Cup this past weekend with a 6-3 win over the Alberta Selects in the final. The Alliance worked 7 PP's in the game compared to the 0 PP's the Selects received.  The score was 4-3 heading in to the 3rd period but the Alliance were once again awarded a PP and converted to put the game out of reach at 5-3.  The Selects did push hard though in the 3rd and likely were the better team 5 on 5 outshooting the Alliance 14-5 but the Alliance got some help from the crossbar and some big saves.

The Bronze medal game saw the Jr. Steelers upset the Alberta 99's 6-3.  Goalie Dylan Myskiw was the clear difference maker for the Jr. Steelers in the win.

Tournament Allstar Team
F-Matthew Wedman - Alberta Alliance
F-Cameron Lochard - Alberta Alliance
F-Zane Franklin - Alberta Selects
D- Ian DuBourdieu - Alberta 99's
D- Brayden Gorda - Alberta Selects
G- Conner Lee - 


MVP - Jeremy Klessens
Top Defenseman - Landon Bishop
Top Goalie - Dylan Myskiw

Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Scouts for the 2012-2013 season needed!

I am currently accepting applications for scouts for the 2012-2013 bantam hockey season.  We will be accepting applications from all regions within the WHL boundries.

Lower Mainland - PCAHA
BC Interior - OMAHA
Northern Alberta - Edmonton area
Southern Alberta - Calgary Area
Saskatchewan - SBAAHL/GSHL
Manitoba - Winnipeg and area
Manitoba - Rural
USA - Arizona, California, Washington St. etc..

Please indicate the area you live in and the amount of hockey and amount of reports you anticipate handing in over the course of the season.  Once I receive application and choose a scout in the specific area, I will remove the posting for the area.

Thank you so much for your help in making Western Elite Hockey Prospects grow!  I look forward to hearing from all of you.

**Please note that I have received numerous applications already for various regions of the bantam area.  I will get back to those selected next Monday.

regards,

Tyler Neisz
tneisz@hotmail.com
Western Elite Hockey Prospects

Monday, May 21, 2012

May 18, 2012 Newsletter is ready - Season 3 , Edition 2





Rankings
In this edition of the newsletter, we ranked the top 170 1998 born prospects. The focus will now solely shift to this age group as we follow the progression of the players through spring and summer hockey and all the way up until the bantam draft.  The list has been increased from 150 to 170 for the 2nd newsletter of the season

Also included is the preliminary list of the top 110 1999 born prospects. The group will be followed through major tournaments throughout the spring and summer and the list will be work on as we progress through the off season.  This list has been increased by 10 due to various reports and viewings so far this spring.

We also introduce you to the top 30 USA born prospects once again. This time the focus is now on the 1998 group and there are some very good ones once again. We will introduce you to them through interview and various tournament reports this summer as well.

Interviews
I had a chance to speak with an Alberta forward whose game is progressing at a nice rate after coming over from Ontario.  We think  he will keeping rising up the rankings as the 2013 draft draws closer.

We speak with one of the top goalies for the 2013 draft at this point who looks to model his game after Jonathan Quick.

The latest in the increasing number of top Californian talents is profiled.  He has always wanted to play in the WHL and will be one to watch south of the border.

I interview one of the top up and coming power forwards in the 99 age group.  He prides himself on being a great leader.  The BC forward has a bright future.

Lastly, we interview a high scoring forward from Saskatchewan who led his league in goals by quit a bit last season.  He should make noise as a first year player in the SBAAHL.

Tournaments
We list the main spring/summer hockey tournaments and coming up

Monday Tournament Update

Challenge Cup -99 born
The semi finals are set at the Vancouver Challenge Cup for 99 born players.  To nobodies surprise the Vancouver Selects Blue will be one of the teams as they will face the BC Blackhawks and it will also be BC Pirates vs. the '99s.

Vancouver Selects Blue
Record:  3-0-0  31GF  1GA
Top 5 ranked forward on our latest list James Malm was fantatsic in the tournament - leading all scorers with 9-2-11 points.  His 9 goals were 4 more than any other division 1 player.  His teammates Nolan Jackson (11 points), Travis Walton (10 points), Brendan Semchuk (8 points) and Michael Rasmussen (7 points) also had big tournaments.  All 5 of those players are fairly high on our '99 born draft rankings.  Jonathan Smart and Scott Walford have led the way for points from defense with 5 each.  It is interesting to note that every single selects player has picked up a point thus for except for Kyle Hoover.  Selects goalies have stopped 42/43 shots shots with Jordan Hollett getting the brunt of the work.

BC Blackhawks
Record:  2-1-0  14GF  5GA
The Blackhawks lone loss of the tournament game against the powerhouse Selects Blue by a score of 5-1.  Andrew Kemp led the way in scoring for the Blackhawks with 3-4-7.  Kemp played the 11-12 with Richmond and was one of the leaders on that team.  Jordan Sandhu, the brother of WHL draft pick Tyler Sandhu, Eric Bourhill, Jonathan Stein and Jamie Wallace all put up multiple goal outputs in the tournament.  Goalie Tyler McLennan stopped 53/58 shots in his 2 games while Connor Bosa stopped all 18 he faced in 1 start.

BC Pirates
Record:  2-1-0  8GF  4GA
The Pirates only loss came against the Hawks who were upset by the BC 99's.  The Pirates were led by a female player named Amy Potomak from NSWC who had 2-3-5.  Josh Bourne and Brett Didyk had the other multiple goal efforts for the Pirates int he tournament.  Goalie Jordan Naylor has played every minute of every game stopping 68/75 shots and also has a SO.  Naylor is from the BWC program and could battle for the backup spot behind Tyler Shugrue this season.

BC 99's
Record:  1-2-0  8GF  11GA
Lucas Barker led the way for the 99's with 3-1-4 in the 4 games played.  Barker played last season for Campbell River.  Ben Manville was the only other multiple goal getter, he had 2.  Manville is from New Westminster.  Bradley Cooper stopped 9/11 shots and Beck Warm 36/45 shots. 

Challenge Cup 98 born
The finals are set in the 98 born age group with the Vancouver Vipers taking on the Calgary Jr. Hitmen.  The Vipers advanced by once again defeating the Selects Blue as has been the case most of the spring.  The Jr. Hitmen advanced by virtue of a win against the Select Black by a score of just 3-1.

Vancouver Vipers
The Vipers have quite easily rolled through the opposition at the Challenge Cup going 5-0-0 while scoring 28 and allowing just 1 goal.  Top 5 rated Jaeger White has come back strong after suffering an injury at the Mainland Tournament at the beginning of the month.  White has had a 9 point game in the tournament and leads all '99 born scorers with 6-9-15 in 5 games.  Dante Hannoun has been very good once again with 2-9-11.  Hannoun is also ranked currently in our first round and should be a high scoring player with NSWC next season.  Dylan Thiessen who joined the Vipers from Winnipeg had 6 goals in 5 games and isn't afraid to use his big frame.  Jake Kryski, Luke Gingras and Kenny Kylyshbek were also very strong in the tournament.  Defensively, Devon Purhar racked up 6 assists.  Matt Barberis and Dante Fabbro were huge forces as well.  In goal Tyler Shugrue, who we expect to be one of the first goalies taken in 2013, stopped all 37 shots he faced.  It is interesting to note that every single Vipers forward scored a goal and every single roster player picked up at least 1 point.

Calgary Jr. Hitmen
The Jr. Hitmen also rolled to a perfect 5-0-0 record and outscored their opponents 36-7 in the process.  Leading the way for the Hitmen was first round rated prospect Parker Aucoin who had 8-6-14 and highly ranked Matthew Phillips who had 8-3-11 in the 5 games played.  Dillon Dube, Brayden Dunn and '99 born Kyle Olson all had over a point per game in the tournament.  Defensively, one of our highest rated Albertan dmen Ryley Mckinstry picked up 6 points in 5 games.  Kyle Dumba stopped 36/38 shots he faced and will look to follow in his brother Matthew's footsteps and be a high bantam pick.  Josh Belisle stopped 28/33.  As was the case with the Vipers, every player on the Jr. Hitmen picked up a point and also every forward scored a goal. 

Other Players
-Tak Anholt was very impressive for the North Shore Selects basically carrying his team on his back for most of the tournament.  Anholt had 3-8-11.  Tak was part of the powerhouse NSWC team last year.
- Ty Westgard played in division 2 but led his team to a first place finished and racked up 7-5-12 in 5 games.  Westgard played last season with Semiahmoo B2 and could be a good scorer for the top team this season.
- Spencer Gerth and Christian Bosa were strong players for the Vancouver Attack in the division 2 grouping.  Gerth will be one of the players that should help Langley be one of the top teams this season in the PCAHA.  Bosa was with the B2 team last year but AP'd with the top team and should help out the likes of Gingras, Malm and Gerth as well.
-  Ben Brar and Marshall Skapski were good for the Vancouver Selects Black.  Both are to play with Abbotsford B1 next season.  Brar is a pretty good goal scoring and Skapski is a defenseman to watch.  Nicholas Wicks was strong too.  Wicks is a small winger who played with South Delta.  Nic Tallarico was strong in goal, he is in our rankings.
-  Beck Malenstyn, who played last season with OHA had 5 goals in 5 games.  Davis Koch, his teammate from OHA was strong and as was Semiahmoo's Michael Regush.  The Selects didn't get a single goal from their defense in the tournament and the leading scorer from defense was Sahvan Khaira with just 2 assists.  Dennis Cholowski, Cody Paivarinta and Tyler Wickman all went without point.  Jeremy Kelleway was strong stopping 34/36 shots.
-  South Delta forward Cavin Tilsley was a bright spot on the Jr. Giants with 2-5-7.  By far the leading scorer on his team this spring.

City of Bridges Tournament - Saskatoon
In the small '98 born tournament, that featured just 4 teams, it will be the Saskatoon Jr. Blades taking on the Green Machine in the final.  The Jr. Blades have gone 4-0-0 and outscored the opposition 38-3.  The Green Machine are 3-1-0 with 19 goals scored and 7 against.  The only loss for the Green Machine was against the Jr. Blades 6-1.






Saturday, May 19, 2012

Saturday Final - Late

Calgary Jr. Hitmen 13 - South Island Orca 2 (98 Age Group)
- The Calgary Jr. Hitmen up their record to 3-0-0 with a huge win over the South Island Orca.  Dillon Dube had a huge game with 4 goals and 2 assists.  Nolan Kurylo scored 3 times.  Parker Aucoin and Matthew Phillips each scored twice and Phillips added two assists for a 4 point game.  Phillips and Aucoin each led the team with 9 points in 3 games.  Forbes and Tanaka tallied for the Island Orca.

Vancouver Selects Blue 6 - North Shore Selects 1 (98 Age Group)
Beck Malenstyn scored twice, giving him 5 goals in 4 games.  Davis Koch had 1-2-3 and now leads the team with 2-5-7 in 4 games.  Michael Regush also scored for the Selects Blue who are now 3-1-0.  Justin Lee scored the lone goal for the North Shore Selects.  Tak Anholt continues to lead the team in scoring with 5 points in 3 games.

Vancouver Vipers 5 - Island Stars 0 (98 Age Group)
Dylan Thiessen scored 2 goals, giving him a tournament leading 6 goals in 4 games.  Jaeger White added a single and now has a tournament leading 14 points.  Dante Hannoun who we currently also have in the first round picked up 1-4-5, giving him 11 points in 4 games.  Every Vipers forward has scored at least 1 goal thus far.  Every single player has picked up at least one point as well.  One of our top ranked goalies for the draft Tyler Shugrue picked up his second SO and has stopped all 39 shots in the tournament.

Ice Hawks 3 - Kelowna Jr. Rockets 2 (98 Age Group)
Jordan Deyrmenjian scored two goals in leading the Ice Hawks to the win. 

City of Bridges Tournament Result
Green Machine 5 - Sask Can 98's 0
Junior Blades 11 - Northern Predators 0
Sask Can 98's 4 - Northern Predators 3
Junior Blades 6 - Sask Can 98's 1

Challenge Cup - Saturday
Vancouver Selects Black 4 - Ice Hawks 1 (98 Age Group)
Ben Brar scores twice in leading the Selects Black to the win.  Brar played this past season with Abbotsford and as a late birthday is really starting to come on now.  Dman Marshall Skapski, the 3rd in the line of brothers to come through the bantam ranks now had 1-1-2.  Skapski is the younger brother of Kootenay Ice goalie Mack Skapski and 96 born Mitch Skapski.  All three Skapski brothers play different positions.  Nic Tallarico was once again very strong for the Selects Black.  Tallarico played last season with North Delta.  Joshua Barrett stopped 19/23 shots for the Ice Hawks.

Jr. Giants 3 - South Island Orca 1 (98 Age Group)
Cavin Tilsley picked up 1-2-3 to lead the Jr. Giants and Naythan Lange was once again very strong in goal.  Lange has stopped 76/82 shots and has a 1.96 GAA now in the tournament.  Cam Thompson replied for the Orac who also had Tyler Reenie stop 16 of 19 shots.

Hawks 2 - BC Pirates 1 (99 Age Group)
- Tyson Lin assisted on both Hawks goals and Ethan Dejong was strong in a highly competitve game.  Lin leads the Hawks with 6 points in 2 games and is rated within the top 2 rounds currently.  Matteo Paller Chow was once again in goal and has stopped 34 of 36 shots so far.  Brett Didyk had the lone goal for the Pirates.  Jordan Naylor was once again strong in goal stopping 16 of 18 shots.

Calgary Jr. Hitmen 4 - Vancouver Selects Blue 2 (98 Age Group)
-  The Selects Blue drop their first game of the tournament, falling to 2-1-0 while the Jr. Hitmen are now 2-0-0.  The matchup was between two of the top 98 born spring hockey teams and featured many of the top draft picks to come in the 2013 WHL Bantam Draft.  It was Parker Aucoin and Matthew Phillips once again carrying the way for the Jr. Hitmen in this one.  Parker Aucoin followed up the Phillips hattrick with his own 3 goal effort this morning.  Matthew Phillips added the other goal and one assist.  Kyle Dumba, the brother of Matthew Dumba stopped 29 of 31 shots for the win.  Kailer Yamamoto and Davis Koch replied for the Selects Blue in the defeat.  Brody Wilms was the starter for the Selects Blue in this one. 

Vancouver Vipers 5 - Kelowna Jr. Rockets 0 (98 Age Group)
The Vipers have run their record now to 3-0-0, having outscored their oppenents 20-1 now.  Jaeger White once again led the Vipers with 1-2-3 and is the run away scoring leader with 4-9-13 in 3 games played.  Dylan Thiessen, Dante Hannoun and Luke Gingras were amongst the other scorers for the Vipers.  Tyler Shugrue was once again in net and has stopped all 29 shots so far in the tournament.  We expect Tyler to be one of the first goalies taken in next years draft - at least at this point.

Vancouver Selects Black 3 - Island Stars 2 SO (98 Age Group)
- The Selects Black even their record at 1-1-0 and the Island Stars are down to 0-1-1.  Nick Pearce and Nick Wicks scored for the Selects Black who once again had Nic Tallarico in goal.  Matteo Giomo had both goals for the Island Stars.  Giomo played this past season with Comox Valley. 

North Shore Selects 3 - Jr Giants 2 OT (98 Age Group)
- The North Shore Selects are now 1-1-0, while the Jr. Giants drop to 0-1-1.  Tak Anholt once again paced the attack for the North Shore Selects with 2-1-3 and now has 5 points in 2 games.  Anholt we expect to go fairly high in the draft next season.  Caleb Fantillo and Matt Rogers replied for the Jr. Giants.  Naythan Lange was once again pretty strong for the Jr. Giants in the loss.

Ninety Nines 5 - Island Selects 2 (99 Age Group)
- Bradley Cooper stops 9 of 11 shots and Lucas Barker scores 3 times in evening the Ninety Nines record at 1-1-0 in the tournament.  Austin Marling and Marty Westhaver reply for the Island Selects. 


Saturday Results
Spartan Cup - Calgary
Alberta 99's 6 - Red Deer Rustlers 4
Alberta Alliance 13 - Calgary Jr. Hitmen 0
Saskatoon Jr. Blades 7 - Alberta Chain 1
Alberts Selects 8 - Winnipeg Jr. Steelers 1

Action continues at 9:00 AM local time this morning.

Late Friday Night Result
Challenge Cup
Vancouver Selects Blue 9 - South Island Orca 1 (98 Age Group)
- The Selects Blue continue their stingy play, allowing just 9 shots in which starting goalie Jeremy Kelleway stopped 8 of 9.  Beck Malenstyn and Kailer Yamamoto once again carried the offensive load with each player scoring twice.  Taylor Ward also scored twice for the Selects Blue.  Ward played last year with the OHA program.  Michael Regush had a big game with 1-4-5. 

A Division action in the 98 and 99 age groups continue this morning at 8:00 AM local time. 

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City of Bridges Tournament -98 born
The four team City of Bridges Tournament is set to get underway this afternoon in Saskatoon and Aberdeen.  The 98 age group features the Saskatoon Jr. Blades, Northern Predators, Sask - Can and Green Machine will take part.  Action begins at 12:15 with the Green Maching and Sask-Can 98's.

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Friday, May 18, 2012

Challenge Cup - Day 1

Challenge Cup
Vancouver Vipers 12 - Ice Hawks 1 (98 Age Group)
- One of the pre tournament favourites, the Vipers up their record to 2-0-0 with a convincing 12-1 victory.  Top 5 ranked Jaeger White had a huge game with 9 points, including 3 goals.  His linemate, Jake Kryski had 3-2-5 as well.  White and Kryski should do considerable damage next year with BWC.

Vancouver Selects Blue 15 - Island Elite 0 (99 Age Group)
The favourite to win the 99 age group got off to a huge start with a 15-0 win over the Island Elite squad.  Goaltending Kolby Matthews stopped just 3 shots for the shutout.  Leading the way offensively was James Malm with 3-1-4, Michael Rasmussen with 2-2-4, Nolan Jackson 2-3-5 and Brendan Semchuk with 2-1-3.  All four players are very high on our 99 born rankings.  Buckham, Parm Dhaliwal, Ethan Genge along with defenseman Capstick, Mendal and Bailey Dhaliwal all had singles.

Island Stars 2 - Pacific Stars 1 (99 Age Group)
Bryce Schiebel stopped 10/11 shots he faced and Jackson Doucet along with Tanner Sidaway scored the goals in the win.  Trevor Townsend add the lone goal for the Pacific Stars.  Stars goalie Matthew Trulsen stopped 18/20 shots.

BC Pirates 4 - Island Selects 0 (99 Age Group)
- Jordan Naylor turns aside all 18 shots he faced in leading the Pirates to an opening victory.  Cam Gauer led the attack offensively with 1-1-2.  Gauer played last season with NSWC A2.  Ethan Grey, Blake Bonnar and Nick Wilson also scored.  Top Washington State '99 born Luke Ormsby picked up 1 assist.

 Hawks 6 - 99's 1 (99 Age Group)
Matteo Paller Chow stopped 14 of 15 shots for the Hawks and Tyson Lin picked up 2-2-4 in leading the Hawks to the win.  Lin, who played with Vancouver Tbirds last season is ranked currently in our top few rounds.  Evan Walls had 1-1-2.  It should be noted that top '99 born player Henry Rhyu did not play in this game.  Nolan Welsh had the lone goal for the 99's.  In goal was Beck Warm who stopped 16 of 22.

BC Blackhawks 8 - Alberta Wolfpack 0 (99 Age Group)
Connor Bosa stopped all 18 shots he faced for the Blackhawks.  Leading the way offensively with 2 goal games were Eric Bourhill and Andrew Kemp.  Kemp also had 2 assists for a 4 point opening game.  Jordan Sandhu also had a multiple point effort with 1-2-3.  All three players are in our top 110 for '99 born prospects. 

Vancouver Selects Blue 2 - Jr. Giants 0 (98 Age Group)
-Naythan Lange turns aside 44/46 shots for the Jr. Giants as the Select Blue outshot the Jr. Giants 46-6.  Beck Malenstyn and Kailer Yamamoto scored the goals for the Selects Blue.  We expect Malenstyn to be a very high pick in the 2013 bantam draft and a key player for OHA once again next season.  Yamamoto is from Washington State.  Brody Wilms got the start in net for the Selects Blue.  Jesse Lansdell, Kohen Olischefski and Alec Johnson did not play.

Vancouver Vipers 3- Vancouver Selects Black 0 (98 Age Group)
- Tyler Shugrue stopped all 29 shots he faced in earning the shutout for the Vipers who are one of the favourites to win the 98 age group.  Scoring for the Vipers was Dylan Thiessen with 2 and Luke Gingras with the other marker.   Thiessen played aged advanced in the Winnipeg AAA league last season and was one of the top point producers.  Gingras is from Langley and is someone to watch as well for next season.  We believe both Thiessen and Gingras to be top 2 round picks next season.  Dante Hannoun, another highly regarded '98 born prospect had 3 assists.  He'll be one of the top point producers in western Canada next season.  Benjafield and Mokhtari both NSWC players did not play. 

Kelowna Jr. Rockets 3 - Island Stars 0 (98 Age Group)
- Aris Anagnostopoulos stopped all 23 shots he faced in picking up the shutout for the Jr. Rockets.  Eamonn Miller, Spencer Mclean and Joel Scrimbit all scored for Kelowna.  John Hawthorne started in goal for the Island Stars and stopped 16 of 19 in his 45 minutes.  It should be noted that the tournament is 3- 15 minute periods.

Calgary Jr. Hitmen 8 - North Shore Selects 2 (98 Age Group)
The Jr. Hitmen get 3 goals from Matthew Phillips who is having a fantastic spring hockey season.  Phillips is currently ranked in our top 2 rounds and looks primed to take over the leadership on the Calgary Bisons next season.  Parker Aucoin who played last year for the Calgary Northstar Sabres had 1-2-3.  Aucoin we feel has a good chance at being a top two round pick.  Jake Ashton and Kyle Olson each had 1-1-2.  Olson is from the Calgary Bisons and is a rare '99 born playing with the 98's.  Tak Anholt and Jamie McIntosh scored the goals for North Shore Selects.  Anholt was with NSWC last season and should have a good season coming up.

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The '99 Vancouver Vipers win their second game of the day with a 10-2 win over PSE Detroit Red Wings. 

The '99 Vancouver Vipers defeat the East Coast Selects this afternoon in Toronto by a score of 4-3.  Our #1 ranked '99 born prospect Jordy Bellerive scored 3 goals and Chase Stevenson scored the other.

The Vipers play again later this afternoon against the PSE Red Wings.

More updates on all tournament as the day progresses.

Huge Tournament Weekend Underway

One of the biggest hockey tournaments of the spring/summer season is set to get underway early this afternoon in Vancouver.  The Challenge Cup featuring teams from every minor hockey age group will take place at various rinks throughout the Vancouver area.  We will put a heavy focus on the 98 and 99 age groups with some comments from players and a steady stream of updates and thoughts as the weekend progresses.

In the 98 born division, the favourites look to be the Vancouver Selects Blue, Calgary Jr. Hitmen and the Vancouver Vipers.  The top teams from Saskatchewan, Manitoba and northern Alberta aren't taking part in the 98 born division.  In fact, most of the teams in the Division 1 side are all from BC except for the Calgary Jr. Hitmen.

The 99 born division 1 will also feature mostly BC based teams.  The lone rep from Alberta will be the Alberta Wolfpack.  The Wolfpack aren't a strong 99 born team.

---------------------------

The Canada Spartan Cup will take place in Calgary this weekend with top 99 born teams taking part.  Most of the teams taking part will be Alberta teams with all the top players from Alberta featured.  However, the Saskatoon Jr. Blades and Winnipeg Jr. Steelers are there as well.

We will also have updates on this tournament as results come available.

--------------------------

Lastly the Toronto Prospects Tournament is taking place this weekend.  The 99 Vancouver Vipers are there led by Jordy Bellerive and several of his NSWC teammates.  Also joining them will be several of the top BWC players in that age group and a few others.

We will let you know who is happening there as well.

* The newsletter will still be sent out over the weekend.

Thursday, May 17, 2012

May 18, 2012 Newsletter is now ready




Rankings
In this edition of the newsletter, we ranked the top 170 1998 born prospects. The focus will now solely shift to this age group as we follow the progression of the players through spring and summer hockey and all the way up until the bantam draft.  The list has been increased from 150 to 170 for the 2nd newsletter of the season

Also included is the preliminary list of the top 110 1999 born prospects. The group will be followed through major tournaments throughout the spring and summer and the list will be work on as we progress through the off season.  This list has been increased by 10 due to various reports and viewings so far this spring.

We also introduce you to the top 30 USA born prospects once again. This time the focus is now on the 1998 group and there are some very good ones once again. We will introduce you to them through interview and various tournament reports this summer as well.

Interviews
I had a chance to speak with an Alberta forward whose game is progressing at a nice rate after coming over from Ontario.  We think  he will keeping rising up the rankings as the 2013 draft draws closer.

We speak with one of the top goalies for the 2013 draft at this point who looks to model his game after Jonathan Quick.

The latest in the increasing number of top Californian talents is profiled.  He has always wanted to play in the WHL and will be one to watch south of the border.

I interview one of the top up and coming power forwards in the 99 age group.  He prides himself on being a great leader.  The BC forward has a bright future.

Lastly, we interview a high scoring forward from Saskatchewan who led his league in goals by quit a bit last season.  He should make noise as a first year player in the SBAAHL.

Tournaments
We list the main spring/summer hockey tournaments and coming up

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Spartan Calgary Cup


The 1st annual SPARTAN HOCKEY CANADA CUP will be held from May 18th to May 21st in Calgary, Alberta at the Team Canada Training Facility (WinSport Arenas – Canada Olympic Park).
The CANADA CUP will see some of Alberta and Western Canada’s top 1999 born and 2003 born players compete for the prestigious CANADIAN SHIELD.

The 2012 draw has brought some strong talent from Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba to compete in both age divisions. The 1999 level will see the Alberta Selects, Alberta Chain, Alberta 99s and Calgary JR Hitmen compete in out of pool play against the Winnipeg JR Steelers, Saskatoon JR Blades, Alberta Alliance Hockey and the Red Deer Rustlers. All of these teams contain players that are capable of competing at an Elite level and the competition should be fierce over the course of the 4 days. Teams are guaranteed 6 games with 3 -20 minute stop time periods.

Another reminder is that the Vancouver Challenge Cup will take place this weekend.  We will be their to follow the 98 and 99 age groups as well.

This weekend promises to be a weekend full of exciting action in the 98 and 99 age groups!

Monday, May 14, 2012

Top 10 Teams to watch for 2012-2013

In no specific order listed are 10 teams we think have a good chance to do some damage next season.  Teams such as the Saskatoon teams who hold a draft prior to the season aren't known in terms of roster as well as some of the rural Manitoba teams as well.  OHA, Notre Dame, POE and the other prep schools aren't known as of yet either.  POE will hold their camp next week but we do know many who are trying out and/or returning.

Burnaby Winter Club
It remains to be seen if they will be the #1 ranked team and return to westerns or not at this point.  Gone are the likes of first rounders Matt Barzal, Ty Schultz, Ty Ronning, Adam Musil and top goalie Nick McBride.  However, one of the top forwards in western Canada will be making the move to BWC in Jaeger White who will be coming over from Medicine Hat.  White had a successful first year in bantam, placing amongst the rookie scoring leaders in the AMBHL.  Add to that a potential Top 5 defenseman for the 2013 in Dante Fabbro and other highly skilled players such as Kyle Uy, Jake Kryski, Ken Kylyshbek with dmen Cameron Ginnetti and Matt Barberis, the core looks good.  Tyler Shugrue will take over the goaltending duties from Nick McBride.  Rookie forwards Henry Rhyu and Alexander Horner should also add some depth.

North Shore Winter Club
Like BWC, NSWC will lose some of its star power but not nearly to the extent of BWC.  NSWC loses 3rd overall bantam pick Jansen Harkins and a few of their top defenseman.  Gone also is one of the highest selected goalie in Taz Burman.  NSWC will look to an influx of players from the powerhouse Peewee squad led by highly touted Jordy Bellerive.  He will be joined by Justin Almeida, Angus Crookshank, Brett Stapley and Nolan Kneen.  The kingpin of the offence though will be centered around highly skilled Dante Hannoun with Tak Anholt and Quinn Benjafield adding some good secondary scoring as well.  Kwan, Colebourne and Pouliot give NSWC a good defensive foundation.

Langley Eagles
Look for Langley to take a major jump in the standings next year in the PCAHA and replace the likes of Cloverdale and Semiahmoo near the top.  Langley will look to Luke Gingras and D- Dennis Cholowski to lead the way.  Kaelan Anderson should also help.  They will also see an influx of several first year talented players like Alec Capstick, James Malm who are top 10 in the '99 age group.  Jordan Hollett is a first year goalie who could very well be the starter. 

POE
A powerhouse each season now, POE will return some highly skilled forwards such as Ayre, Jose and McDonald.  Word is that Noah Turanski will also make the move to POE.  It isn't known who else will be on the squad yet but several of the players who we know are trying are very good and will make POE very good once again.

Airdrie Xtreme
Aidrie had a very young squad last season and got better and better as the season went on.  They had 6 first year players who many performed very well.  They should be led up front by Jordan McConnell and Dillon Dube, both of whom were amonst the Aidrie scoring leaders last season.  Defensively, Adamu Tanaka and Ryan Seefried both return.  Kurtis Chapman was tremendous as a first year goalie with a .908 save percentage.  Brandon Schuldhaus and Noah Philp will add some depth to the offence and should score.  Look for '99 born Gary Haden to have a good chance to crack the roster and perhaps put up points too. 

Winnipeg Hawks
The Winnipeg Hawks will be made up from the squad who absolutely dominated the Winnipeg Bantam B2 division going 24-5-1, scoring over 4.5 GPG and allowing under 2.0 GPG.  Leading the way will be first round rated prospect Nolan Patrick who in an injury shortened season had 40 points in just 17 games.  Patrick is indeed from the famous NHL Patrick family.  Vince Loschaivo, Connor Barley, Chase Brakel and Linden McCorrister were all amongst the leading scorers to name a few.  In goal, it may not get any better in western Canada than Ryan Kubic who is amongst our top rated prospects.  Adam Thurlbeck, Skyler Thorsteinson and Liam Schioler anchor a great defensive core.

Brandon Wheat Kings
The Brandon AA Wheatkings went 27-0-1 in the Winnipeg minor AA league last year and will look to star forwards Ty Lewis and Tanner Kaspick to lead the way.  Ty Lewis ran away with the AA scoring race with 54-39-93 in 28 games, that was a 41 point lead over 2nd place Brendan Kokorudz.  Lane Tufts was 3rd in league with 39 points and also with Brandon.  Tanner Kaspick played age advanced hockey this past season in the Winnipeg AAA league and finished with 24 goals, placing him 3rd in the league in scoring.  Defensively, Blake Jameson and Clark Nachtigal add some capable defensive play.  Liam Shamray should handle the goaltending duties.

Balgonie Prairie Storm
The Prairie Storm are coming off a fantastic season in which they compiled a 21-2-1 league record.  They also had 3 first round draft picks in Troy Murray, Jayden Halbgewachs and Brennan Riddle who all move on to the midget leagues now.  However not all is lost in Balgonie for next season.  Returning is Taylor Ross who put up 11-7-18 in 11 games during an injury shortened season.  Nolan Reid is perhaps one of the top defenseman from Saskatchewan and Jeff Faith was also a very steady defenseman for the Prairie Strom as a afirst year.  Jared Legien and Ryan Roberts should also add good depth as returning players.  They will also get a huge boost from first year player Eamon Milligan.  Milligan led the Regina and area Peewee league in scoring with 66 goals.

SSAC Southgate Lions
The power house program from south Edmonton will once again have a very strong team led by Tyler Benson, David Quenneville and both 98 born goalie return which invaluable experience.  Quenneville won defenseman of the year in the North Division while Benson was 2nd in league scoring with 34-50-84.  Stuart Skinner is going to be a very closely watched goalie heading in to next season as a first year he posted a 2.59 GAA and a .910%.  Skinner is also already over 6'0 tall.  Rookie players such as Jacob Thomas and Merrit Oszytko are other 98's who can add depth.  However, the biggest influx of talent will come from Peewee provincial champion Edmonton Oil Kings.  Josh Paterson, James Hamblin and Matthew Wedman should add instant offence.

Calgary Bisons
The Bisons lose some star talent in Nick Merkley and Braylon Shmyr but will now look to the likes of Kyle Olson and Matthew Phillips to lead the team next year.  Ryley Mckinstry, Josh Patrician and Kevin Pierce should give the Bisons and nice start on the blueline.  Jake Ashton should make the team next year and could add some extra offensive punch along with Joren Petanaude.  The Bisons will also have a good influx of 99 born talent to draw upon.

Feel free to add teams to the list of who to consider for top teams.  There are many other teams who are right there at this point and could be considered.

Friday, May 11, 2012

WEHP Announce Top 5 98 and 99 born player Rankings

Western Canada 1998 Born
1.  Tyler Benson - Forward - 5'11 165  SSAC (AMBHL)  33GP  34-50-84
2.  Kale Clague - Defense - 5'11 150  Lloydminster (AMBHL)  33GP  11-23-34
3.  Dante Fabbro - Defense - 5'9 150  BWC (PCAHA)
4.  Jaeger White - Forward  - 5'9 154  BWC (PCAHA)  32GP 28-23-51
5.  Brett Howden - Forward - 5'11 155 Springfield (MB BANT)

Western Canada 1999 Born
1.  Jordy Bellerive - Forward - 5'9 165  NSWC (PCAHA)
2.  Alec Capstick - Defense  " "  Langley (PCAHA)
3.  Kyle Olson - Forward " "  Calgary Bisons (AMBHL)
4.  James Malm - Forward " "  Langley (PCAHA)
5.  Tyson Lin - Foward ""  VCR TBirds (PCAHA)

Western USA 1998 Born
1.  Joey Anderson - Forward - Roseville, MN
2.  Patrick Khodorenko - Forward - LA Selects
3.  Ryan Lindgren - Defense - Shattuck St. Mary's
4.  Blake Barger - Forward - LA Jr. Kings
5.  Kiefer Bellows - Forward - MN

*The rest of the Top 155 for 98 born and Top 100 for 99 born as well as the Top 30 western USA can be viewed in the newsletter.

Tuesday, May 8, 2012

North American Hockey Classic - Looking for a team?


The North American Hockey Classic is to take place in Winnipeg, MB from June 14-17 for Super Elite '98 and '99 born teams.  The '98 age group is currently full but there is a chance a '99 born team can still be put together for players who aren't currently on a spring/summer hockey team.  If this is something that interests any of the '99 born families who read the blog/newsletter, please forward me your information and where you played last season etc.  From there, we will review the application and determine if we have enough players to make up a "Western Elite Hockey Prospects Team".

The North American Hockey Classic is featuring the top teams from each province this season.

**Looks like we have two top forwards already as of 11:30AM MST.

1999

Vancouver Vipers
Western Canadian Selects
Vancouver Selects
North American Stars
Minnesota Blades
Minnesota Machine
Sask Jr Blades
BC Pirates
Minnesota Icemen
Manitoba Falcons

Contact:
http://www.northamericanhockeyclassic.com/hockey-teams.php?year=2012&cat=2
Brian Frykas - Tournament Chairman - hockeypuck@mts.net
or
Tyler Neisz - Western Elite Hockey Prospects - tneisz@hotmail.com

Please contact me regardless as to your interest level.

Monday, May 7, 2012

Sponsorship/Advertising Oppurtunity

We are currently accepting sponsorship/advertising opportunity in both in the newsletter and here on the website for the 2012-2013 season.  Obviously since we are a hockey related and more so a 98 and 99 born hockey related website and newsletter, interested parties should take that in to consideration if placing an advertisement for a camp, company or whatever else it is you feel could benefit.

We have had a 3 year relationship with the POE hockey program which has been continued in to this year.  So we will not be accepting any other prep school programs due to obvious reasons.

If you are interested in advertising and having your company logo and wording in the newsletter and website, please contact soon as we anticipate spots to fill up fairly quick and we only have so much room.

best regards,

Western Elite Hockey Prospects
contact: tneisz@hotmail.com

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Saskachewan Predators1998 AAA Top Guns Tournament

The 1998 AAA Top Guns tournament took place this weekend in Canmore, Alberta with 6 teams from the Saskatchewan and Alberta regions.  The tournment round robin was tightly contested with 5 of the 6 teams finished at .500 or above and all in contention until the bitter end.  In the end, it was the Saskatchwean Predators defeating the Saskatchewan Grrrowl 4-2 in the Championship final. 

In the final, it was Prince Albert's Drew Warkentine scoring 3 goals which also included an EN goal.  He was subsequently named MVP.  For the Grrrowl, Tanner Nagal  from Swift Current scoring both goals.  Nagal had a pretty successful season in the SBAAHL with 11-5-16 in 24 games.  Riley Woods also had a good game with a pair of assists.  Woods played this past season with the Regina Senators picking up 13-8-21 in 24 games. 

Tournament Scoring Leaders
1.   Jordan McConnell - Airdrie Selects  5GP  8-7-15
- McConnell played 2011-2012 with the Airdrie Xtreme of the AMBHL and had 11-11-22 in 33 games.
2.   Slater Dykema - Red Rock Hatters  5GP  7-5-12
- Dykema played 2011-2012 with the Medince Hat Hockey Hounds of the AMBHL and had 11-7-18 in 33 games.
3.   Michael Doneff - Red Rock Hatters 5GP  4-7-11
- Doneff played 2011-2012 with Medicine Hat Hockey Hounds of the AMBHL and had 8-6-14 in just 19 games.
4.   Kaidin Hodgson - Red Rock Hatters  5GP 3-8-11
- Hodgson played with the Redcliff Bantam "A" Grizzlies in 11-12 picking up 9 pts in 8 games.
5.   Barrett Sheen - Airdrie Selects  5GP  5GP  5-6-11
-  Sheen played with the SCAHL's Airdrie "AA" Lightning and had 19-18-37 in 32 games in 11-12.
6.   Tanner Nagal - Saskatchewan Grrrowl  6GP  8-1-9
-  Nagal played with Swift Current in the SBAAHL had had 11-5-16 in 24 games during the 11-12 season.
7.   Riley Woods - Saskatchewan Grrrowl  6GP  2-7-9
- Woods played with the Regina Senators picking up 13-8-21 in 24 games in 11-12.
8.   Tanner Fiddler - Saskatchewan Predators  6GP  5-4-9
-  Fiddler played with the Prince Albert Jr. Raiders of the SBAAHL and had 7-6-13 in 23 games.
9.   Owen Guenter - Airdrie Selects  5GP 3-5-8
-  Guenter played this past season with the Okotoks Oilers of the AMBHL putting up 7-2-9 in 32 games.
10. Cole Keenleyside - Saskatchewan Grrrowl  6GP 4-3-7
-  Keenleyside played with the Swift Current Kabos Raiders of the SBAAHL picking up 5-7-12 in 15 games.

Kelowna Heat Blast Tournament - semi-finals set

Update:  Vancouver Selects 8 - BC Blackhawks 1 will meet the Manitoba Falcons in the final


The Kelowna Heat Blast tournament featured all the top teams from each for the western provinces, giving us a good look at some of the top talent in that age group this weekend.  The Western Canada pool featured two of the top teams from Alberta, the Saskatoon Jr. Blades and the Manitoba Falcons.  While the BC pool had the normal power-house teams Vancouver Selects Blue and the Vancouver Vipers joined by the BC Blackhawks and the '99 Hawks.

The BC Division teams weren't as powerful as they have been in seasons past with the Vipers going 1-3-0 and the Selects Blue just 2-2-0.  While in the western Canada division, the Alberta Alliance went 4-0-0, Manitoba Falcons 3-0-1 to lead the way.

However, it will be the BC Division winner playing the western Canada division winner in the finals this afternoon.  The BC Division will see the BC Blackhawks vs. the VancouverSelects in the first semi-final while the Alberta Alliance will play the Manitoba Falcons.

Players who have been stand-outs
BC Blackhawks
The Blackhawks are led by a pair of very strong defenseman in Nick Marsh and Nick Watson.  Up front, the Blackhawks will look to Jordan Sandhu, Eric Bourhill and Jamie Wallace.  Conner Bosa can be reliable in goal for the Blackhawks.

Vancouver Vipers
The Vipers are led by our #1 overall ranked '99 prospect Jordy Bellerive and his team-mate with NSWC Justin Almeida.  Brett Stapley can be very good as well.  Nolan Kneen anchors the defense while Dorin Luding.

Alberta Alliance
The Alberta Alliance has gone a perfect 4-0-0 in the tournament and outscoring their oppenents 24-7.  They have been led by Ryan Peckford and Trey Fix-Wolansky.  Landon Bishop, Josh Paterson and Arjun Atwal.    Many of the players on Alberta Alliance are from the Alberta Peewee provincials finalists Edmonton Oilkings and St. Albert.

Manitoba Falcons
The Falcons have many of the top players in the 99 age group from the province of Manitoba.  They have gone 3-0-1 and outscored their opponents 20-8.  The tie came against Jordy Bellerive and the BC Blackhawks 1-1.  The Falcons have been led by Stelios Mattheos who has 5-5-10 so far in the tournament while Connor Gutenberg has also been very effective with 4-3-7 and Josh Brook has put up some good numbers as well.  Defensively, Brayden Pachal from Estevan and Austin Johnston have led the way.  It should be noted that Mattheos, Alaire and Doyle all played bantam hockey last year.

We'll keep you up to date with results via twitter or on the website.

**There have been a few posters asking about a Saskatoon Jr. Blades roster for 99 born and who has looked good.  Some of the players who have been standouts are....Forwards - Riley Sawchuk, Jake Leschyshyn, Erik Gardiner, Dino Antonaidis and Brody Vogel.  Defenseman - Evan Thomas has been strong and goalie Tye Morin.

Saturday, May 5, 2012

Post Draft: WEHP Ranking compared to actual per position

Forwards
1.   Matt Barzal - WEHP Ranking 1st
2.   Jansen Harkins - WEHP Ranking 3rd
3.   Giorgio Estephan - WEHP Ranking 5th
4.   Glenn Gawdin - WEHP Ranking 6th
5.   Adam Musil - WEHP Ranking 2nd
6.   Brad Morrison - WEHP Ranking 8th
7.   Tyler Soy - WEHP Ranking 7th
8.   Nick Merkley - WEHP Ranking 4th
9.   Braylon Shmyr - WEHP Ranking 21st - mid 2nd
10. Ty Ronning - WEHP Ranking 15th , early 2nd
11. Jayden Halbgewachs - WEHP Ranking 10th
12. Keegan Kolesar - WEHP Ranking 11th
End 1st Round
Not a big surprise at all to see Shmyr or Ronning go in the first round.  They both have outstanding skill and weren't in the top 8 forwards.  However, they definitely were part of the next group of skilled forwards who had a chance to land in the mid to late first round range.

13. Regan Nagy - WEHP Ranking  12th
14. Cole Plotnikoff - WEHP Ranking 45th - 5th rd
15. Curtis Miske - WEHP Ranking 25th - early 3rd
16. Jakob Stukel - WEHP Ranking 14th
17. Matt Bradley - WEHP Ranking 30th, 3rd rd
18. Terrell Draude - WEHP Ranking 16th
19. Andrew Koep - WEHP Ranking 20th
20. Matteo Gennaro - WEHP Ranking 26th - early 3rd
21. Jesse Roach - WEHP Ranking 36th - 4th rd
22. Aaron Boyd - WEHP Ranking 38th - 4th rd
23. Nick Chyzowski - WEHP Ranking 22nd
End 2nd Round
24. Chris Seto - WEHP Ranking 13th
25. Braden Purtill - WEHP Ranking 19th - mid 2nd
26. Matthew Campese - WEHP Ranking 17th - mid 2nd
27. Dakota Boutin - WEHP Ranking 32nd - mid3rd
28. Colt Conrad - WEHP Ranking 9th - mid 1st
29. Wyatt Sloboshan - WEHP Ranking 24th - end 2nd
30. Cameron Hebig - WEHP Ranking - 39th - mid 4th

Result - 25 of our top 30 went.  Roach, Boyd, Boutin and Hebig all went in the 30's while Plotnikoff was our biggest miss of the forward group.

Thoughts:
There was a consensus separation this year amongst the top 8 forwards, the order wasn't exactly known due to several factors.  One factor is a defenseman thrown in the middle of the group as Prince Albert selected Brendan Guhle of Sherwood Park.  Guhle was a fast riser this year and was definitely peaking as the draft got closer but it wasn't thought by our people that he would rise that high, especially in the top 10.  I digress....11 of our top 12 went in the first 13 picks and 14 of the first 16.  Cole Plotnikoff was selected substantially higher than we had him rated and Curtis Miske who we had at 25 but much higher earlier on in the season climbed in to the top 16 as well.  In regards to the rest of the top 30 forwards taken in the draft, no real surprises or off the charts picks.  Our lowest rated forward who cracked the top 30 was Plotnikoff as mentioned at 45.  Aaron Boyd and Jesse Roach went quite abit higher than we had both of them but several teams suggested that they may take those players in the 2nd round, some liked them as low as 5th rounders too.  The biggest slip was Colt Conrad being selected as the 28th overall forward, we thought he had a good chance at going first round.  Only time will tell how it shakes down.  The top two Saskatoon forwards were just that as were the top 6 Saskatchewan forwards as a whole. 

Defenseman
1.  Brendan Guhle - WEHP Ranking 8th - End 1st
2.  Troy Murrey - WEHP Ranking 29th - Late 3rd
3.  Kevin Davis - WEHP Ranking 12th - Early 2nd
4.  Chaz Reddekopp - WEHP Ranking 7th
5.  Evan Fiala - WEHP Ranking 13th - Early 2nd
6.  Ty Schultz - WEHP Ranking 6th
7.  Brennan Riddle - WEHP Ranking 11th, Early 2nd
8.  Thomas Lenchyshyn - WEHP Ranking 2nd
9.  Parker Wotherspoon - WEHP Ranking 3rd - mid 1st
END 1st Round
Just 5 of our top 9 defenseman went in the first round.  Kootenay must really see something in Troy Murray the brother of Ryan Murray.  He is a good player, we just didn't have him nearly that high, either did most teams.  Many scouts were flipping the pages looking for his name to cross him off the list.  Davis, Riddle and Fiala were all thought to be early 2nd rounds and went in the first round, so not a huge suprise at all there.  Many teams see different attitribues in defenseman and that was the case in the first round.  Guhle rising that high was a surprise, although we though of him as a first round pick.
10. Tate Olson - WEHP Ranking 1st
11. Ethan Bear - WEHP Ranking 9th
12. Keoni Texeira - WEHP Ranking 1st American born***
13. Brady Reagan - WEHP Ranking 5th
14. Joe Gatenby - WEHP Ranking 4th
15. Tanner Brown - WEHP Ranking 14th
END 2nd Round
Every player who was selected in the 2nd round was rated in either the first or second round.  Keoni Texeira, our top American born defenseman was selected as was our top overall defenseman in Tate Olson.  So our top 9 defenseman go in the top 15 overall.  All told, we had 13 of the top 15 selected from our list. The two who weren't on our list were Keoni Texeira but we had him as the top American born player and would have him as the top defenseman overall for the draft.  The biggest surprise was Troy Murray as mentioned earlier.  Our 10th ranked defenseman Ryan Gardiner went 18th.

Goalies
1.  Patrick Dea - WEHP Ranking 8th
2.  Nick McBride - WEHP Ranking 1st
3.  Travis Child - WEHP Ranking 2nd
4.  Taz Burman - WEHP Ranking 10th
5.  Zach Sawchenko - WEHP Ranking 3rd
End 2nd Round
Patrick Dea had a very strong Alberta Cup, we actually thought he should be moved to 4th overall right after the Alberta Cup but didn't have time to adjust for the final rankings.  Taz Burman was a slight surprise being selected so high. 
6.   Logan Flodell - WEHP Ranking NR
7.   Tyson Verhelst - WEHP Ranking 4th
8.   Nik Amundrud - WEHP Ranking 20th
9.   Evan Sarthou - TOP American Goalie
10. Brandon Kegler - WEHP Ranking 13th

Friday, May 4, 2012

May 4, 2012 Newsletter is ready. New Season Launched!


Rankings

In this edition of the newsletter, we ranked the top 150 1998 born prospects. The focus will now solely shift to this age group as we follow the progression of the players through spring and summer hockey and all the way up until the bantam draft.

Also included is the preliminary list of the top 100 1999 born prospects. The group will be followed through major tournaments throughout the spring and summer and the list will be work on as we progress through the off season.

We also introduce you to the top 30 USA born prospects once again. This time the focus is now on the 1998 group and there are some very good ones once again. We will introduce you to them through interview and various tournament reports this summer as well.

Interviews
I had a chance to speak an Alberta born prospects who we have ranked as a first rounder. He has his goals set very high and should be one of the top scorers in the AMBHL next year and a top player to watch.

I also spoke with a Calgary area prospect who is starting to make major noise in the scouting world as his game keeps getting better and better. At this point we feel he is a top two round prospects.

I speak with maybe the next big thing to come out of the lower mainland region of BC. His has some bloodlines as well and is scoring at a clip that is going to have bantam in bantam hockey notice this '99 born next year.

Interviewed is perhaps the top defenceman in Saskatchewan for 98 born players. He looks like a first rounder at this point in time.

Lastly we speak with a goalie who could be the next to make some noise coming out of the province of Alberta.

Tournaments
We list the main spring/summer hockey tournaments and coming up

A pair of major spring tournaments this weekend

There are a pair of major spring hockey tournaments this weekend.  It will give us another look at many of the top players in the 98 and 99 age groups heading in to next season. 

The Kelowna Heat Blast 1999 born Platinum division will feature 8 teams, divided in to 2 separate pools.  The BC pool will have the Vancouver Vipers, Vancouver Selects Blue, BC Blackhawks and '99 Hawks.  The Western Canada pool will have Alberta Alliance Hockey, Alberta Selects, Manitoba Falcons and the Saskatoon Jr. Blades.

These teams are loaded with most of the team players who will make their appearance on our first newsletter which will be released today.

We will do our best to keep you all posted on who is doing well and the results of the tournament.

......................

Also starting today is the One Hockey event in Delta, BC.  The teams we will be focusing on will be the 98 born class.  There will feature 7 teams at this event.  Manitoba/Saskatchewan 98's, Southern Alberta 98's, Northern BC, Interior BC, HockeyNow.ca, Northern Alberta 98's.

Top Players to watch at the event
Matthew Phillips, G - Kurtis Chapman and F- Michael Clarke from Southern Alberta
Noah Turanski D - Interior BC
Alex Rotundo, G- Stuart Skinner from Northern Alberta

We will also keep you posted and keep an eye on many who are not currently on our top 150 list for 98 born players.

Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Bantam Draft Newsletter is ready - April 22nd Edition




* Prince George has since moved up from 11th to 7th via trade with Everett on Wednesday.

The Final newsletter of the 2011-2012 bantam hockey season is now ready.

First off, we would like to thank Yahoo Sports for contacting us and running a bit of a preview of the bantam draft!  You can check it out here:

In this edition, we present the final rankings of the season.

Also included is a 27 page comprehensive Bantam Draft Preview section.  In the section, we present our annual mock draft and reasons whey we feel that team will take the player listed.  We also list the past 3 first round picks for each team picking in the first round this season.  A full scouting report is included for each of the players in the first round plus several other players who may have a chance to be selected in the first round.  Also included is a section where we list who has the hardest shot, best defensive defenseman, offensive defenseman and other various attributes.  A player is selected for each per province.

The final preview for the 99 born list is included.  On May 6, the full top 100 list will be included.

Also, the Top 30 American born list is finalized.  Indicated is where we feel the player could go in the draft.

Video on some of the top picks

#1 Overall ranked Matt Barzal

#2 Overall ranked Adam Musil
(Ty Ronning #7, Ty Schultz #77 jersy numbers)


#3 Overall ranked Jansen Harkins


#8 Overall ranked Tyler Soy
(#19 Chris Seto, #13 Jakob Stukel, #7 Parker Wotherspon are all first rd possibilities shown)



4th overall - Nick Merkley(#4 sweater) vs. 5th overall - Giorgio Estephan (#9 sweater black) in the AMBHL Final (full game video)