Calgary Jr. Hitmen win Alberta Champions Cup

The Calgary Jr. Hitmen simply had too much depth for the NSD Raiders in the finale of the first major spring/summer hockey tournament.  The NSD Raiders got some great play from their top line of Sam Steel, Alex Rotundo and Nolan Volvan all tournament long but in the end it wasn't enough to win the tournament.  NSD took a 1-0 lead after the 1st period on a goal by tournament scoring leader Nolan Volcan.  The Jr. Hitmen would score 3 goals in each of the second and third periods.  Leading the way for the Jr. Hitmen was Dillon Dube scoring his 7th and 8th of the tournament and Matthew Phillips scoring his tournament leading 11th.  Parker Aucoin and '99 born Kyle Olson also had 3 point games.  Kyle Dumba continued his strong play in goal, stopping 24/25 shots he faced.  On the other side, Fort Saskatchewan's Tyler Hart turned away 18/24 shots in the loss. 

Tournament Scoring Leaders
1.  Nolan Volcan 5GP  5-13-18  NSD Raiders
2.  Sam Steel  5GP  8-9-17  NSD Raiders
3.  Alex Rotundo  5GP  8-8-16  NSD Raiders
4.  Matthew Phillips  5GP  10-4-14  Calgary Jr. Hitmen
5.  D- Nolan Reid  5GP  5-8-13  Saskatoon Jr. Blades
6.  Parker Aucoin  5GP  4-9-13  Calgary Jr. Hitmen
7.  Kyle Olson  5GP  3-7-10  Calgary Jr. Hitmen
8.  Dillon Dube  5GP  6-3-9  Calgary Jr. Hitmen
9.  Brayden Camrud  5GP  5-3-8  Saskatoon Jr. Blades
10.Kole Lind  5GP  3-5-8  Saskatoon Jr. Blades

Vancouver Vipers Win the Super Series - in Langley
The Vanvouver Vipers continue to roll in spring hockey as they have yet to lose after defeating the Pacific Knights in the final at the super series in Langley.  Not sure why they didn't play the Selects Blue in the final but nonetheless.  The Vipers had Jaeger White back in the lineup who played with a fractured wrist and put up a multiple point game.  Jake Kryski and D - Matt Barberis had multiple point games as well.

Tournament Round Ups

Vancouver Selects Super Series
Vancouver Selects Blue 5 - Pacific Knights 2
Scoring for the Selects Blue were; Tak Anholt, D - Dennis Cholowski, Michael Regush, Taylor Ward and Davis Koch.  For the Pacific Knights it was; Matt Bradley with both.

Vancouver Vipers 5 - Vancouver Selects Blue 2
Jaeger White remains injured for the Vipers and hasn't taken part in the series.  Davis Koch continued his strong play with 1-1-2 for the Selects Blue and D- Cody Paivarinta also scored.  Cholowski and Pouliot added assists.

Vancouver Vipers 7 - USA West 4
Langley forward Luke Gingras once again had another huge offensive game scoring 3 times.  One of our top ranked 98 born forwards heading in to next season Dante Hannoun with 2-3-5 and Quinn Benjafield also scored for the Vipers.  USA West got goals from Strayhan, Shrout, Williams and Anderson.

USA West 4 - Pacific Knights 4
USA West was led by Porter with 2 goals, Bagwell and Strayhan also scored for USA West.  Anderson chipped in with 3 assists and Shrout along with Yoon had 2 assists.  Bradley, Hooch, Stepaniuk and Ree all scored for the Pacific Knights.

Alberta Champions Cup - 98 and 99 Age Groups
1998 Gold
It will be an all Alberta final in the 98 age group as the NSD Raiders, featuring top players from the Edmonton area facing the Calgary Jr. Hitmen.  The NSD Raiders have been led almost solely by three players in the tournament.  Nolan Volcan currently leads all scorers with 4-13-17 while Sam Steel 8-8-16 and Alex Rotundo 8-7-15 are right behind.  The Jr. Hitmen have spread their scoring around much more but are led by Matthew Phillips 9-3-12 and Parker Aucoin 3-7-10.  The Jr. Hitmen have also got 4 goals from Dillon Dube and Nolan Kurylo and 3 goals each from Brayden Dunn and 99 born Kyle Olson. 

The other power-house team in the tournament was the Saskatoon Jr. Blades.  They were led by D - Nolan Reid with 4-5-9.  We currently have Reid as a first round rated prospect and big things will be expected from him next season.  Highly touted Swift Current product Kole Lind 2-5-7 also has been very productive.  Kolby Johnson from West Central and Brayden Camrud from Saskatoon put up 3 goals each. 

1999 Gold
The Alberta 99's will take on the SaskCan 99's in the 99 age group final.  Daniel Rybarik has put 8 pts in 2 games and his team-mate Riley Romashenko has 7.  Nolan Steer and Brett Leason have also both been very strong.  For SaskCan, Connor Dewar 5-2-7, Connor Tuffs 3-3-6 and Kris Bzdel 2-3-5 have led the way. 

Other players who have been strong include Vancouver's Jaime Wallace who leads the group in scoring with 5-6-11 in 3 games.  Alec Mcleod leads the group in goals with 6-4-10 in 4 games.  Jeremy Klessens who led the SCAHL in goals this past season with 51 has scored 5-3-8 in 3 games. 

Spring Hockey/Alberta Cup

Calgary Champions Cup
Friday Action

Calgary Jr. Hitmen 8 - Vancouver Selects Black 0
The Calgary Jr. Hitmen were way too much for the Vancouver Selects Black in the opening game of the Champions Cup on Friday.  The Selects Black are basically the "B" team for the Vancouver Selects program as the Select Blue are in Langley taking part in a 4 team super series.  The Jr. Hitmen are made up of mostly all the top Calgary and area top 98 born players, so it gives a bit of a taste as to who will be some of the players to watch for the 2013 bantam draft.  Leading the way for the Jr. Hitmen were Dillon Dube 2-1-3, Steven Lawrence 1-2-3 and Brayden Dunn 0-3-3.  Dube played his rookie bantam season with Airdrie and did quite well with 18 points in 21 games.  Lawrence played with the Calgary Bronks and had 13 points in 24 games while Dunn played with the Calgary Northstar Sabres and had 15 goals and 25 points in 30 games.  Adamu Tanaka of the Airdrie Xtreme and Kyle Yewchuk of the Northstar Sabres were a pair of dmen who had 2 points each.  Kyle Dumba, the brother of possible top 10 NHL pick this summer Mathew Dumba had the shutout.

Saskatoon Jr. Blades 7 - Okotoks Oilers 0
The Saskatoon Jr. Blades who feature many of the top 98 born players from the province of Saskatchewan would storm out to a 7-0 lead after the first period and cruise to the easy victory.  The Jr. Blades would outshoot the Oilers 39-11 in the game.  Leading the way for the Jr. Blades was Balgonie Prairie Storm first round ranked defenseman Nolan Reid with 1-3-4.  Reid had 6-16-22 in 23 games for Balgonie this past season and was 2nd in 98 defenseman scoring behind Dawson Davidson's 43 points.  Davidson isn't playing spring/summer hockey though.  A pair of Saskatoon forwards in Cage Ramsey and Brayden Camrud each had a pair of goals.  Top 2 round ranked Kolby Johnson had a 3 point game. 

Notre Dame Prospects 4 - SaskCan 98's 3
Marial Beny and D - Eric Soar each had 2 points in leading the Notre Dame Prospects to a 4-3 win over SaskCan 98's.  Beny played this past season with Melville and had 12 pts in 22 games, playing mostly 3rd line duty.  D - Soar played with Moose Jaw and had 4 points in 24 games played.  G - Colby Entz stopped 23/26 shots he faced in the win.  The SaskCan team is players from Saskatoon and surrounding area and they got goals from three separate players as Dawson Barilla, Cody Illerbrun and Cole Young all scored.  All three players played in the GSHL last season with Saskatoon based teams.

NSD Raiders 5 - 98 Nationals 4
The NSD Raiders squad are led by 3 of the best 98 born forwards in Alberta and they didn't disappoint in game 1 of the Champions Cup.  Nolan Volcan 2-1-3, Sam Steel and Alex Rotundo each had 1-1-2 in the win.  Rotundo's goal was the eventual game winner.  Steel had 50 points this past season, Rotundo had 40 and Volcan had 31 in 31 games with MLAC.  Volcan led all MLAC scorers as a first year player.  The Nationals got good games from Jared Power and Brayden Juett each with 1-1-2. 

PFO 3 - Vancouver Selects Black 1
Defenseman Connor Deighton had 2 goals and his fellow defenseman Dylan Huot had 2 assists and that was all PFO would need in securing the win.  Both Deighton and Huot had nearly a point per game from defense last year in the ERBHL and could be players to watch next year for St. Albert in the AMBHL.  Sean Richards scored as well.  He played with Spruce Grove this past season.  Ben Brar had the lone Selects goal.  Brar played with Abbotsford in 11-12 season. 

Day 1 Round-Up
NSD Raiders forwards Sam Steel, Alex Rotundo and Nolan Volcan are proving to be far too much in this tournament.  Their biggest challenge is thought to be the Saskatoon Jr. Blades who feature most of Saskatchewan's top 98 born players.  However, NSD rolled over the Jr. Blades 7-0 yesterday.  Nolan Volcan 2-6-8, Sam Steel 4-4-8 and Alex Rotundo 4-3-7 continued to dominate.  Matthew Phillips of the Calgary Jr. Hitmen has taken his late season surge in to the spring hockey tournament with 3-3-6 and '99 born forward Kyle Olsen continues to show why he'll be a player we watch closely for the next two years as he has put up 5 points in 2 games thus far playing against players older than him once again.  D- Ryan Roberts who is playing with the Notre Dame Prospects has 3-2-5 and he played this past season with the stacked Balgonie squad.  Nolan Reid continues to prove why he'll be one to watch this season with Balgonie heading to the '13 bantam draft.  All and all, a pretty good showcase for many of the top 98's in Alberta and Saskatchewan.

99 Born Age Group Round-Up
The 99 age group is represented once again primarily by many of the top players from Alberta with some B.C. and Saskatchewan players as well.  South Delta's Eric Bourhill is playing with the BC Blackhawks and has 4 goals through 2 games so far.  His team-mates Andrew Kemp and Jamie Wallace are tied with Bourhill for the scoring lead early with 6 points each.  The Alberta 99's have played just one game so far but some of the main stars have already started to show that they may be forces in the AMBHL.  Gary Haden who lit up the SCAHL last year had 4 assists and he could be a main player for the Airdrie Xtreme next season.  Daniel Rybarik had 2-3-5 and Riley Romashenko with 1-3-4.  Kamloops peewee star Korbyn Chabot has put up 4 goals already in 2 games.  Nolan Steer picked up a hatrick already for the Alberta 99's.  Steer had 47 goals in 32 games in the SCAHL and was 2nd in goals behind Jeremy Klessens 51.  Klessens is also in this tournament playing with Red Deer.  Connor Tuffs from the SaskCan 99's has been strong with 4 points so far.  Tuffs played with Tisdale of the Centre Four Hockey League last year.  Connor Dewar has 4 goals in 2 games as well for SaskCan 99's. 

World Selects Invitational 98/99 Born
The World Selects Invitational is nearing its completion for both the 98 and 99 age groups.  There were a handful of players in the 99 age group which played its games in Bolzano, Italy that took part in the event.  Top B.C. talents Jordy Bellerive and  Justin Almeida sutied up for the "PRO HOCKEY" team and fared pretty well with Bellerive going 6-0-6 and Almeida going 2-1-3.  Bellerive led his team in goals and points.  The rest of the 99 born western Canada kids played with the Western Canada Selects, with all the players hailing from Alberta.  Brayden Labant turned in an allstar performance in Italy, finishing amongst the tournament scoring leaders and leading his team with 6-4-10.  Dawson Bruneski with 3-1-4, Brayden Nicholetts with 1-3-4 and defenseman Brayden Gorda had a goal and forward Kendall with 1-1-2.

In the 98 age group, the lone participant was Tyler Benson.  Benson of course led all AMBHL rookies in scoring and finished 2nd in AMBHL scoring overall.  Benson has a very good chance at going first overall, at least at this point for the '13 bantam draft.  Benson more than held his own with 3-6-9 in the 6 games played.  He suited up with an Eastern Canada Selects team. 

Alberta Cup
This years Alberta Cup could go down as one of the more competitive showcases in years.  Of the 12 games played so far, 6 of them have ended in a tie.  Even more surprising is some of the teams who are out of contention for the title....Calgary South are out and that has to be considered a surprise as they featured players made up of the Calgary Royals and the Calgary Bisons.  Both the Bisons and Royals were at the top of the standings all year long in the AMBHL South.  Instead the teams that finished 3rd and 4th in that division, the Bronks and Northstar Sabres have moved on to the semi's.  Also, Edmonton South is out which is surprising as they are primarily made up of players from the league champs SSAC Southgate Lions.  So neither one of our top two ranked playes from Alberta in Giorgio Estephan or Nick Merkley will be winning an Alberta Cup this year!

Many of the players who were expected to do well offensively have so far.  Nick Merkley, who we feel will be a top 6 selection in the WHL Bantam Draft, coming up next Thursday, leads the tournament through 3 games in scoring with 3-3-6.  His team-mate Braylon Shmyr who should go in the top couple rounds also has 6 points.  Giorgio Estephan, the other top 6 rated selection has 4 points and elite scorer Mason McCarty who has been buried on a sub-par Okotoks team has shown what he can do playing with elite talent and has 3 goals.  Players that have shown well are Zac Whitby, Mark Rassell, Matt Fonteyne, Brendan Guhle, Carson Franks, Austin Wagner, Xavier Burghardt and Patrick Dea.  Jordan Boulton has also impressed defensively as have Shane Bear and Aaron Kellogg.

Vancouver Selects Super Series
There is a 4 team super series going on in Langley, BC featuring some of the top BC talent the 98 age group has to offer.  As well a team of many of the top 98's in the western states are there as well.

Vancouver Vipers 7 - Pacific Knights 1
D - Matt Barberis led the way with 2-1-3 and Luke Gingras picked up 3 assists in the win.  Big things are expected out of Barberis on the BWC team next season.  Gingras will be a main 98 born to watch in the PCAHA with Langley.  Spencer Berry, Nathan Jackson, Dante Hannoun, Jake Kyrski and Carter Stephenson scored for the Vipers.  Pacific Knights lone goal came from D - Clint Colebourn.

Vancouver Selects Blue 5 - US West Selects 0
Kailer Yamamoto led the way with 2-1-3 for the Selects Blue.  Yamamoto played with the Wenatchee Jr. Wild in 2011-2012.  Owen Seidel, Ryan Bowen, Beck Malenstyn and Davis Koch added singles.  Michael Regush and Cody Paivarinta added 2 assists each.

Alberta Cup Day 2

Central in Wash Caps Replica Jersy advance

Central 1 - Edmonton North 1  End 1st
First Period
The first period featured no penalties and more good play from Central goalie Carson Franks.  Franks was very strong in Central's first game as well and is really opening some eyes.  Aaron Kellogg from Edmonton North had a few very good rushes and has shown very well today and throughout the tournament.  He was player of the game in Edmonton North's first game.  Up front, Brayden Burke has been all over the place and Cole Gammer has played well.  Biggest hit of the period was layed out by Team Central's Clay Lang.  Shots on goal in the first were 9-4 for Edmonton North.

Second Period
The second period was much more free flowing with more chances but goalies Kwiatkowski and Franks continue to play strong.  A nice bounce back game from Kwiatkwoski today after a bit of a struggle yesterday afternoon.  Central got off to a 1-0 lead before the midway mark of the 2nd period on an absolute rocket shot over the glove of Kwiatkowski and just under the bar.  About 6 minutes Andrew Marshall was the recipient of some good work by Aaron Kellogg who has been great once again.  Kellogg pinches in and fed Marshall between the circles for a 1-1 tie.  Kwiatkowski would stop a Team Central breakaway late in the 3rd via Quinton Greenwood, who returned after an apparent injury in the first period.  Edmonton North is in a must win situation in this one.  D - Kole Bryks was strong as were Fonteyne and Differenz for Central.

Third Period
Central goalie Carson Franks continues his absolute dominant Alberta Cup in goal for Team Central as he has been the difference in the opening 2-2 tie against Northeast in which he stopped 33/35 shots and again today stopped 41/42.  Edmonton North didn't play bad today by any means as Aaron Kellogg was all over the ice as was Brayden Burke, Cole Gammer and Dylan Stewart but they couldn't solve Franks.  The other star of the Central squad Matt Fonteyne would start the scoring by netting the game winner on an absolute deadly wrist shot that Kwiatkowski had no chance on.  The play would be dominated the rest of the way by Edmonton North and they pulled their goalie with over 3 minutes to play but couldn't solve Franks.  Andrew Perry from Red Deer scored the EN goal to end it.

Stars as awarded in the building
Edmonton North - Tyler Kwiatkowski
Central - Carson Franks

WEHP 3 Stars
1.  Carson Franks
2.  Matt Fonteyne
3.  Aaron Kellogg


Northwest 2 - South 3 Final
First Period
This is the final game of the 2nd round of games for each team.  Jared McAmmond was the lone goal scorer  in the first period.  McAmmond played this past season for Grand Prairie and scored 9 goals in 33 games.  The goales are Jaedon McConnell for Northwest and Xavier Burghardt for the South.  Burghardt played this season past for Medicine Hat and had a 3.69 GAA and a .892%.  McConnell was an AP goalie for Leduc and played in the ERBHL AA league.  South is in need of a win if they hope to advance to the playoff rounds.

Second Period
Xavier Burghardt of Team South standing tall, having stopped 32 of 33 shots so far.  This could possibly be the 5th tie in 8 games to start the Alberta Cup.

Third Period
A crazy third period in which South in desperate need of a victory came out firing and scored 3 goals in a 3:16 span to gain the win.  D - Tristan Thompson who played in Airdrie this year and who should go in the first half of the draft on Thursday started it off.  Thompson had 8 goals this season and not only can he provide some offence from the backend but also is a very tenacious, gritty defender.  Then Mason McCarty took over scoring a couple goals in less than two minutes, his 2nd the eventual game winner.  McCarty was the rookie of the year in the AMBHL last season.  This year, he had a good season despite missing a 1/3 of the season with injury.  Curtis Peck scored to narrow the gap but too little, too late despite a frantic finish.  Peck had 15 goals and 38 points this season for St. Albert.  Xavier Burghardt stopped 41/43 for South in leading them to the win.

Stars of the game.
Team South - Xavier Burghardt
Northwest - Jared McAmmond


Edmonton South 2 - Calgary North 2 Final
First Period
Edmonton South score two goals in a 32 second span on goals by SSAC players Quinn Greenly and Giorgio Estephan early in the first period.  In between the pipes are a pair of Nicholas' in Nicholas Patterson of Calgary North and Nicholas Schneider of Edmonton South.  Schneider played this past season with Spruce Grove and posted a 3.88 GAA with a .897% while Patterson played with the Northstar Sabres and posted a 4.07 GAA and a .881%.  Estephan hasn't let scouts down thus far in Lethbridge and is still expected to be a top 6 pick in next Thursday's bantam draft.

Second Period
In a period where we saw Edmonton South given ample opportunity to extend its lead to 3-0, it was the Calgary North squad scoring twice and tieing it up 2-2.  Edmonton South was given 3 PP's and have 4 in the game compared to Calgary North not yet having a PP.  Scoring for Calgary North was Zac Whitby with his 2nd of the tournament and 4th point and Austin Wagner also scored his 2nd of the tournament to tie it up.  Whitby played this past season with the Calgary Bronks and had a great year scoring 26 goals and 50 points.  Wagner played the season with the Northstar Sabres and led them in goals with 17.  Edmonton South could be out if they lose, depending on what happens in the next game.

Third Period
A 2nd consecutive tie for Edmonton South while Calgary North remain undefeated at 1-0-1.  Edmonton South thought they won the game late in the 3rd period but the puck was ruled in via a high stick.  Of note, top 6 ranked for the bantam draft, Giorgio Estephan has 1-2-3 in 2 games thus far.  Quinn Greenly leads all Edmonton South goal getters with 2.  For Calgary North, Mark Rassell, Zac Whitby and Austin Wagner have all been very impressive so far.

Players of the game:
Edmonton South - Giorgio Estephan
Calgary North - Nicholas Patterson

Bantam Draft Preview Newsletter Ready

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: http://ca.sports.yahoo.com/blogs/jrhockey-buzzing-the-net/whl-bantam-draft-broken-down-scouts-180737287.html#more-10309

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.

Hockey Manitoba Announce Top 40 POE

U-16 PROGRAM OF EXCELLENCE
2012 TOP-40 CAMP ROSTER
NAME POS HOMETOWN 2011-12 TEAM
Brown, Tyler Goalie Winnipeg Winnipeg Warriors
Dola, Hayden Goalie Winnipeg Beach Interlake Lightning
Martyniuk, Troy Goalie Winnipeg Winnipeg Hawks
Petit, Mario Goalie Ile Des Chenes Eastman Selects
Verhelst, Tyson Goalie Brandon Brandon Wheat Kings
Compton, Braden Defense  Brandon Brandon Wheat Kings
Dwyer, Mackenzie Defense Winnipeg Winnipeg Sharks
Dyck , Mitchell Defense Winkler Pembina Valley Hawks
Gardiner, Ryan Defense Winnipeg Winnipeg Sharks
Groot, Braden Defense Stonewall Interlake Lightning
Lawrence, Jesse  Defense Brandon Brandon Wheat Kings
Lenchyshyn, Thomas Defense Steinbach Eastman Selects (Midget)
McDonald, Lawson  Defense Winkler Pembina Valley Hawks
Nevin, Desmond   Defense Steinbach Eastman Selects
Oliver, Cole Defense Melita Southwest Cougars
Shearer, James Defense Brandon Brandon Wheat Kings
Taraschuk, Mark Defense Winnipeg Winnipeg Warriors
Anderson, Ashton Forward Rivers Yellowhead Chiefs
Armour, Garrett  Forward Winnipeg Winnipeg Hawks
Boyd, Aaron Forward Winnipeg Winnipeg Hawks
Capanella, Marco  Forward Brandon Brandon Wheat Kings
Conrad, Colt  Forward St. Alphonse Pembina Valley Hawks
Court, Zach  Forward Winnipeg Winnipeg Monarchs
Esteves, Gianluca  Forward Winnipeg Winnipeg Monarchs
Greening, Matthew  Forward Dauphin Parkland Jr. Rangers
Ivanyshyn, Jordan  Forward Winnipeg Winnipeg Warriors
Jeanson, Tyler  Forward Graysville Pembina Valley Hawks
Keane, Jackson  Forward Winnipeg Winnipeg Monarchs
Kilbrei, Travis  Forward Arborg Interlake Lightning
Kolesar, Keegan  Forward Winnipeg Winnipeg Hawks
Lycar, Kirkland  Forward Elma Eastman Selects
MacGillivray, Joel  Forward Winnipeg Winnipeg Monarchs
MacLeod, Liam Forward La Salle Pembina Valley Hawks
Nell, Meyer  Forward Boissevain Southwest Cougars
Petkau, Scott  Forward Steinbach Eastman Selects
Purtill, Braden  Forward Winnipeg Winnipeg Sharks
Roullette, Shane  Forward Winnipeg Winnipeg Hawks
Stallard, Jordan  Forward Brandon Brandon Wheat Kings
Williams, Ethan  Forward Winnipeg Pursuit of Excellence (BC)
Wirth, Michael  Forward Morden Pembina Valley Hawks
Zimmer, Rylee  Forward Russell Notre Dame Hounds (SK)

Edmonton South - Northwest

Edmonton South 3 - Northwest 2  End 2nd
First Period
A period which saw a bit of everything from big saves by both goalies - Dea for Northwest and Kegler for Edmonton South and good chances as well as strong defensive play.  Edmonton South got the ball rolling with a PP goal from Josh Hayward on a feed from Zachary Smith.  Northwest tied it up not too long after on a PP goal by Josh Perrott who was left wide open all alone at the side of the net.  The biggest hit of the period came when Giorgio Estephan who we have as a top 6 rated prospect entered the zone on a 2 on 1 and was hammered to the ice by Brendan Kallis.  Ethan Lazaro and Matteo Gennaro were both impressive for Northwest while Devon Brooks and Tristan Starzynski have been strong for Edmonton South.

Second Period
A pretty even 2nd period with both teams having their share of chances.  Mark Matsuba was strong defensively for Northwest and Giorgio Estephan was much more of a factor in the period as well.  Also impressive in this game has been Matteo Gennaro as mentioned earlier and Garrett Sutherland has also shown some good speed and work ethic.  Edmonton South went up 2-1 on a Tristan Starzynski on a goal mouth scramble type of goal.  Matteo Gennaro then tied it up for Northwest on a rebound after the initial shot by Jacobsen...Good work by Jacobsen resulted in the goal.  The period scoring was rounded out by Quinn Greenly banging home a Giorgio Estephan rebound.

Time for a break!!!  9 hours of hockey is good for one day....I will be back later to update the scores, perhaps offer some more thoughts.


Shots
Edmonton South 26 Northwest 25

Calgary North - Team South set to go

Team South 4 - Calgary North 6 Final
First period
It looked early like Calgary North was going to run away with this one as they absolutely dominated the first 15  minutes or so of the period.  Mark Rassell, Zac Whitby, Jordan Xavier and Austin Wagner were all over the ice creating chances and scoring on many.  Mark Rassell's hard work would pay off soon after some huge saves by South Goalie Ternes as he sets up Whitby for a 1-0 lead.  Soon after, Austin Wagner works hard in behind the South goal and comes out from to shovel it in for a 2-0 lead.  Then it was right after that when talented Okotoks forward Mason McCarty's hard work set up Eric Theander who banged home a rebound on the 2nd shot of the period for South and its 2-1.  Then Cgy North bounced right back Rassell would tip home a goal.  Team South would cap the period off with a couple as Cameron's hard work leads to a Harrison marker and then D - Torrens fires home a seeing eye shot from the point that eludes Morris.  Both goalies were a bit shaky in the period.  Morris for Calgary North didn't see a lot of action but seemed to be fighting the puck a bit.  The speed of the Calgary North forwards such as Xavier, Rassell and Whitby look too much to handle at times.  Mason McCarty worked hard for Team South as did Austin Cameron.

Second Period
The Calgary North squad continued to use their speed to their advantage in the 2nd period.  Bryson Traptow would give the Calgary North squad a 4-3 on a great individual effort and then just a few minutes later Ursulak gave Calgary North a 5-3 lead on a play in which Mitchell Brennan would intercept a South rush and feed it up ice to give Calgary a 3 on 0 break.  Bright spots so far have been the play of Shane Bear, Kurtis Rutledge and Austin Strand on the Calgary defense core.  Mason McCarty continues to work hard for the South as does Harrison.

Third Period
In the early going, the play was significantly slower as a result of several PP's awarded to Calgary North and as the ineffectiveness of the PP's as well.  The South was doing a good job at standing up at the blueline and turning away Calgary North.  D - Shane Bear skated miles in the early part of the 3rd and Mark Rassell continued to buzz but Ternes was very strong.  Elynuik scores on the PP shortly after a shot from the point.  The game would get a bit chippy for the remainder of the 3rd as Cameron took a hit to the head pim and a few others called.  The South would add a late goal by Zach Giroux to make the final 6-4.  Both goalies were shaky throughout but also made some good saves.

Shots on goal
Calgary South - 38
South - 38

Players of the game as awarded in the building
Calgary South - Kade Jensen
South - Mason McCarty

WEHP 3 Stars
1.  Mark Rassell
2.  Shane Bear
3.  Mason McCarty




shots
south 15/27  calgary 12/29

Team Central - Northeast Underway

Central 2 - Northeast 2 Final
First Period
The first period started off very fast and physical and finished fast and physical right until the end of the period.  The scoring started when River Beattie showed some good patience down low and out waited Franks to make it 1-0 Northeast.  Just about 3 minutes later, Matt Differenz jammed one past Klassen to make it a 1-1 after the first.  Several hard hits both ways.  One of the biggest came from Brad Makofka on Northeast's Jordan Boulton, which sent Boulton to the ice.  Reid Bosse, River Beattie and Andrew Koep were very strong for Northeast in the first period.  For Central, Matt Fonteyne showed good speed and goalie Carson Franks made some tremendous saves and has a quick glove hand.  We may have overlooked him in our draft rankings.  Looks like he could be a draft pick.
Shots on goal:  Northeast 9 - Central 7

Second Period
The clean, defensive hockey continues in the 2nd period as not a single penalty was called.  The lone goal came on a nice individual effort by Van Tetering as he walked around a Northeast defenseman, I believe it was Reagan or Guhle, out-waited Klassen and tucked it in for a 2-1 Central lead.  The lead can be accredited in large part to the play of Carson Franks in the Central goal.  He has been steady, composed and has shown a very quick glove hand.  Not too many odd many rushes and when there have been chances, the defense on both sides have been quick to get back and disrupt the play.  Jordan Boulton from Northeast has been very steady and plays a strong defensive game.  He won't wow you with his offensive skill but steady as they come in his own end.  Big forward, Robbie Fulton has also been very effective so far for Northeast.
shots on goal after 2:  Northeast 22 - Central 14

Third Period
The third period saw a bit more of a wide open style with several 2 on 1's and more speed through the neutral zone.  Team Central dominated play early and created multiple PP's but it is was Northeast tieing it up on a lucky one on a shot from Berube that deflected off of a Central skate and through the 5 -hole on goalie Franks to tie it up at 2-2.  The rest of the period would see some odd man chances, mostly for team central and Greenwood and Fonteyne were able to utilize their speed on multiple occasions.  Reid Bosse had a strong period for Northeast.

PP's
Central 0/5
Northeast 0/0

Players of the game awarded in the building
Central - Carson Franks
Northeast - Grayson Pawlenchuk

WEHP 3 Stars
1.  Carson Franks
2.  Jordan Boulton
3.  River Beattie

Alberta Cup Underway

Edmonton North 3 - Calgary South 7 Final
Period by period updates here or check on the right to the twitter log for live updates.
First Period
Edmonton North dominated the play early in the period as Gammer, Burke, Dykstra created many chances but it wasn't until near the midway point of the period until Edmonton was able to score.  Anthony Sirianni took a rebound shot from Josh Harris and put it 5-hole past Zach Sawchenko.  Then the turning point seemed to come when Calgary South defender Savi Scalise layed a huge hit on Dykstra in the Calgary zone and Dykstra had to be tended to as a result.  Just a short time later, Top 6 rated prospect Nick Merkley would take the puck down the right wing and put one past Kwiatkowski to tie it at 1-1.  Then just a few minutes later, Savi Scalise stepped up between the circles and put one past Kwiatkowski on one he'd like to have back.  Edmonton North got a strong period from Kole Bryks who had a few good rushes and played a strong physical game.  Merkley, Forrest and Scalise very strong for Calgary South.

Second Period
Edmonton has come out strong early again in the 2nd period and Sawchenko has been outstanding. However the early pressure eventually paid off as Brayden Burke would take a pass from Stewart skate in to the zone and thread a beauty pass to Andrew Marshall for an early tap-in.  As was in the case in the first period, Calgary took a while to get their legs and eventually did which resulted in a PP to which Max Lajoie would flutter a dump in shot on Kwiatkowski that eluded the goalie to give South the lead once again.  Then Braylon Shmyr would use tremendous speed to come in all alone on a breakaway and make no mistake to make it 4-2 after 2.  For Edmonton North, Burke continues to use his speed and be very effective.  It should be noted that Aaron Kellogg has been playing forward in this game.  Kellogg was a defenseman for Fort Saskatchewan this season.

Third Period
Calgary comes out strong early in the 3rd, scoring under a minute in as Giacomin scores on a nice feed from Ferguson.  If anybody knows if this is a relation to the great Eddy Giacomin, please let me know!?  The mid portion of the 3rd period would see some pretty cluttered play with not much going on.  Then late in the 3rd period a flurry of late goals started first from Rebalato who took his own rebound and fired one past Kwiatkowski to make it 6-2.  Just seconds later it was 6-3 as Cole Gammer from Edm North drove the net hard and put one past Sawchenko.  Edmonton North then pull their goalie and just shortly after Shmyr takes a breakaway and scores in to an EN for his 2nd of the game to make the final 7-3.

The players of the game as awarded in the building were Aaron Kellogg from Edmonton North and Nick Merkley from Calgary South.

WEHP 3 Stars
1.  Nick Merkley - Calgary South
2.  Kole Bryks - Edmonton North
3.  Savi Scalise - Calgary South

Also should be noted that Brayden Burke was very good for Edmonton North in this game.  Parker Ward also showed some tremendous speed but lacks a bit of finish.  The Edmonton North defenseman were activated throughout the game and it looked like high risk, high reward style of game.

Edmonton North 46 - Calgary South 36 (I question the number of shots though)
Kellogg and Merkley selected players of the game.

Alberta Cup Preview

Northwest Zone
-Primarily made up of players from the St. Albert and Spruce Grove teams.
Offence
The offence is led by Matteo Gennaro, Ethan Lazaro and Conner Lukan.  The 6'0 159lb Gennaro led all Northwest zone scorers in the AMBHL regular season with 23-21-44 in 31 games.  His St. Albert team-mates Lazaro and Curtis Peck will be watched closely as well.  Spruce Grove forwards Conner Lukan and Justin Jacobsen are a pair of 5'9 forwards who each bring something different.  Lukan had a team high 27 goals this season which was 13 more than 2nd place finisher Justin Jacobsen.  Jacobsen had the 2nd most PIMS in the entire AMBHL with 136 this season.

Defense
The defense could very well be the zones strong suit, featuring as many as 5 drafts picks coming up on May 3.  The core is led by Mark Matsuba who was amongst the defenseman scoring leaders in the AMBHL as well as big 6'2 Dylan Overdyk and Tyson Helgensen from POE.  Helgensen may have been a bit over-shadowed this year playing on such a talented defense core in POE.

Goalies
Patrick Dea is one of the highest ranked goalies for the entire bantam draft.  Big things will be expected from Patrick.  The 5'10 Dea had a fantastic .920 save percentage this season.

Summary
Potential Draft Picks - Minimum of 7

Northeast Zone
- Primarily made up of players from Sherwood Park, Lloydminster and Carmose teams.
Offence
The offence is led by a pair or potential 2nd round rated prospects in Lloydminster sniper Andrew Koep and Camrose 6'2 Curtis Miske.  Koep was one of just 3 AMBHL players to top 40 goals this season along with Merkley and Estephan.  While Miske is intriguing due to his size and raw offensive ability.  Miske put up 45 points in 33 games and led all Camrose scorers.  Grayson Pawlenchuk is another who will be watched but was a bit up and down this season.  Pawlenchuk is from Sherwood Park.

Defense
The defense core is led by a trio of Sherwood Park players who all have a decent chance of going in the top 2-3 rounds.  Brendan Guhle is perhaps the best of them all though and he continues to get better and better and is being talked about as a very possible first round pick.  Cameron Reagan is an offensive defenseman that could be one of the better at his trade in Alberta while Jordan Boulton is a smooth skating stay at home defenseman that scouts are really going to want to watch closely as he is being rated all over the map.

Goalie
Zachary Klassen is just one of 4 goalies with over a .920 save percentage in the AMBHL this year.

Summary
Potential Draft Picks - Minimum of 6

Edmonton North
- This is a team made of players primarily from Fort Saskatchewan, Edmonton CAC and , Edmonton KC Edmonton MLAC hockey clubs.

Offence
An offence with quite a bit of talented is highlighted by the players from the CAC program.  Dylan Stewart, Brayden Burke, Cole Gammer, Andrew Marshall and Matt Dykstra all have a good chance at being drafted.  PJ Morrocco, Joseph Nardi and Anthony Siranni all had decent seasons with their respective teams.  However, the group is highlighted by Stewart who is a 6'0 170 forward with seemingly all the tools and we think he should be gone within the first 3 rounds.  Brayden Burke and Andrew Marshall are very talented pure offensive talents to watch.

Defense
The defense has 7 players listed on it with the smallest being 5'10 160 Pinchuk.  Justin Greer, Aaron Kellogg, Kole Bryks, Clayton Eisler all have a great chance at being drafted.  Greer and Kellogg are two that will be watched closely to see if they can get in to the top 3 rounds.  Aaron Kellogg is a player who played on such a bad team this season in Fort Saskatchewan and a good Alberta Cup could really help his cause.  Greer is a 6'1 200lb player with size and offensive ability already.

Goalies
Eric Szudor is a 6'2 goalie who played a stuggling Edmonton KC team and is someone who we would like to see in terms of placing.  He faced over 40 shots most nights and kept his team in many games.  Tyler Kwiatkowski from Edmonton CAC had a bit of an up and down season but could still garner a look on draft day.

Summary
Potenial draft picks - Mininum of 9

Edmonton South
- Team made up of players from Edmonton SSAC and Leduc hockey clubs.
Offence
Just two Leduc representatives on the squad in Tristan Starzynski and Justin Young.  Both players were 20+ goal scorers and Justin Young has become a prospect who could make some major noise on draft day in terms of climbing way up.  The zone though is easily highlighted by top 6 rated prospect for the bantam draft in SSAC and AMBHL leading scorer Giorgio Estephan.  Estephan led all AMBHL scorers this year in goals and points and we project him as a top 6 selection on May 3rd.

Defense
The defense is fairly small and doesn't feature many potential draft selections.  Devon Brooks from SSAC though has really come on as the season has progressed and will be a player to watch.  Zac Smith is another defenseman to watch, he played with MLAC this season and went a bit un-noticed.

Goalies
6'0 184lb Brandon Kegler had a great season and could vault up the draft rankings with a solid Alberta Cup. 

Summary
Potential Draft picks - Minimum of 5

Central
- Players from Red Deer, Leduc, Airdrie represnted.  Probably the most diverse rural team.
Offence
The offence is led by 5'7 149lb Matt Fonteyne who played the season with Leduc.  Fonteyne had 29 goals and 51 points.  Chase Olsen who is from Olds but played the season with Red Deer White had over a point per game and could be drafted.  We will be watching Olsen pretty closely.  Chandler Klein of Lloydminster had a successful season as well.  Andrew Perry is a 5'10 200lb forward who has some good tools.  The offence doesn't have any true high end talents however.

Defense
The defense is led by Gordon Ballhorn who played with Leduc this past season and gritty Jesse Freeborn who played with Red Deer.  Freeborn and Ballhorn should be go somewhere in the 4-6 round range.  A bit more was expected of Freeborn this year and a good Alberta Cup could really help his cause.

Goalies
Travis Child is the teams top rated/ranked player heading in to the bantam draft.  The big 6'2 Child is ranked in our top 3 goalies for the entire draft and should go in the 2nd round somewhere.

Summary
Projected draft picks - 4 minimum

Calgary North
- Made up of players from the bottom two Calgary teams this year, the Northstar Sabres and Bronks.
Offence
The offence has some talent but none that are likely to go in the top 3 rounds of the draft.  The highest ranked players and ones to watch would be Mark Rassell and Zac Whitby from the Bronks along with Jordan Xavier and Austin Wagner from the Sabres.  Rassell, Whitby and Xavier were all near 30 goals this season but are all fairly small which may hold them back a bit.  A player who isn't small at all is 6'2 Hudson Elynuik who projects as a good 3rd line power forward type in the WHL and should go in the mid rounds as well. 

Defense
Austin Strand is a big, strong defenseman who can add in a bit of offence.  He is one of the true darkhorses of the draft to move way up, much higher than we have him.  Another dman WHL scouts will be watching is Shane Bear.  Bear is another with loads of potential who seems to yet to have hit his peak.

Goalies
Riley Morris of the Calgary Bronks should be drafted and with a good Alberta Cup could sneak in to the 4th-5th round range.

Summary
Projected draft picks - 8 minimum

Calgary South
- Team that is made up of the top two teams from Calgary.  The Calgary Bisons and the Calgary Royals make up the team.
Offence
It doesn't get much better than Nick Merkley in terms of offence in the entire WHL bantam draft this season.  Merkley was one of the highest scoring players in the AMBHL and is one of the most dynamic players in the draft and will go in the top 6.  Braylon Shmyr who is Merkley's team-mate with the Bisons has speed and skill to burn as well and should go somewhere in the 2nd round.  Tyler Rohl and the Royals captain Cameron Anklewich are a could others to watch closely this weekend.  Kelton Driedger is another who came on and got stronger as the season progressed.

Defense
All of the players on the defense core have a good chance at being drafted and are all very similar in size and stature.  The group could very well be led by Bradley Forrest of the Calgary Bisons who has been a fast riser this season.  Savi Scalise of the Royals has been consistent all season long.

Goalies
Both Morrissey and Sawchenko were selected by the zone as the goalies.  Sawchenko put up record breaking numbers this season with a 1.47 GAA and a .944 save percentage.  Sawchenko could go in the top 2 rounds of the bantam draft.

Summary
Potential draft picks - minimum of 8

South
- Team made up of players who played with Airdrie, Medicine Hat, Okotoks and Lethbridge.
Offence
Last seasons AMBHL rookie of the year Mason McCarty had a very quiet season but remains the most prolific scorign threat from this zone.  He had 22 goals and 39 points in just 23 games which were very good totals playing for Okotoks.  McCarty's team-mate and converted defenseman Eric Theander is also on the team and did well this season.  Chase Bell from Lethbridge, Mitch Hallas from Medicine Hat and Chad Harrison along with Kris Leclair from Airdrie are some others to watch.

Defense
The defense core is led by pure game Tristan Thompson who played with Airdrie and can be very nasty. 

Goalies
Ryan Ternes of Aidrie could garner some consideration as a draft pick next Thursday with a strong tournament.  Ternes did well in KIBIHT and will look to carry that play forward.

Summary
Potential draft picks - minimum of 3

Things to watch/consider
The Top two forwards in Alberta with Estephan and Merkley.  Will one out-shine the other?

Can a defenseman rise as Guhle has risen this year?

Who will open up the WHL scouts eyes more between Sawchenko, Dea and Child?  All three are ranked within the top 5 overall goalies in the entire draft!

With just 3 projected AMBHL players to go in the first round, the lowest number in many years...can anyone vault up and join the elite? 

World Selects Invitational Underway

The World Selects Invitational got underway yesterday with the 98 group playing games in Prague while the 99's are playing games in Italy.  With just one 98 born player from western Canada taking part in the event, we will focus just on that player and in the 99 group, several players are spread out over 2 teams so we'll follow those teams.

99 Age Group
Western Canada Selects 9 - Tyrol Italy 0
Dawson Brunseski of Camrose led the way with 3-1-4, Brayden Labant 1-2-3 and Brayden Nicholettes had 2 assists.

Western Canada Selects 6 - Hamr Selects (Czech) 5
Brayden Nicholettes 1-1-2 and Jacob Kendall also scored for WCS.

Pro Hockey 1 - CSKA Russia 7
Our current top ranked '99 western Canada born prospect Jordy Bellerive scored the lone goal for Pro Hockey in this one.

Pro Hockey 3 - Spartak 3
Jordy Bellerive once again has scored as this game is currently in progress at the time of this posting.

98 Age Group
Eastern Canada Selects 3 - CSKA Russia 4
Tyler Benson has joined an Eastern Canada Selects team as the lone representative in the 98 age group at this event.  He more than held his own in the first game with 2-1-3.

Eastern Canada Selects 3 - Czech Red 2 SO
Sam Sternschein scored all 3 goals, including the SO winner.  Sternschein plays varsity in NY State

World Selects Invite begins tomorrow

The World Selects Invite begins tomorrow in Bolzano, Italy.  The tournament will feature several highly ranked players from western Canada in both the 98 and 99 age groups.  From the 98 age group, our #1 ranked player Tyler Benson will be joining ECS from Ontario.  In the 99 age group Justin Almeida and Jordy Bellerive who are highly ranked will be playing for "Pro Hockey" while Brayden Nicholetts from Calgary, Brayden Labant from Cold Lake, Brayden Gorda from Edmonton, Jacob Kendall of Camrose and Dawson Brunseski of Camrose.

We will keep those of you who have an interest on these top players posted in the coming days...

Also, the Vancouver Selects are holding a super series this coming weekend with themselves, the Vancouver Vipers, US West and Southern Alberta Selects.  The US West team is made up of many of the top 98 born players who will appear on our initial US list on May 6.

The Alberta Champions Cup begins this weekend as well in Calgary with the 98 and 99 born groups taking part.  The 98 born group will feature many of the spring/summer hockey top teams including; the Saskatoon Jr. Blades, Calgary Jr. Hitmen, Vancouver Selects Black(Blue hosting a tournament of their own), Kelowna Jr. Rockets amongst the teams.  In the 99 age group, the Alberta 99's, Jr. Hitmen, Saskcan amongst the teams.  We will also keep you posted on the top players and the results from the first major spring tournament.

The Alberta Cup begins this coming Thursday in Lethbridge.  Stay tuned for lots of information in the coming days and throughout the Alberta Cup.  After that, we wait for the bantam draft and put a close on the 2011-2012 season with the bantam draft on May 3, 2012.  How time flies!

Sask First

Zone 1 have defeated Zone 8 by a final score of 8-5 in what was a predictable final to the Sask First Bantam Tournament in Regina.  Zone 5 won the B side, Zone 3 won the C and Zone 7 the D side to complete the tournament.  This was the final showcase for all 1997 born players from Saskatchewan prior to the WHL Bantam Draft which is now just 11 days away.  Also from this group, 24 forwards, 12 defenseman and 4 goalies will be selected for the U16 Top 40 camp.  Here is how we would select the squad.

Forwards (24)
*Dakota Boutin Moosomin Melville Bantam AA Millionaires 5'11" 160 July 3 1997
*Rykr Cole Moosomin Melville Bantam AA Millionaires 5'10" 160 April 29 1997
*Jayden Halbgewachs Emerald Park Prairie Storm Bantam AA 5'7" 145 March 22 1997
Donovan Neuls Grenfell Melville Bantam AA Millionaires 5'9" 145 October 24 1997
Jesse Gabrielle Moosomin OMG Crimson 5'11" 180 June 17 1997
*Regan Nagy Ogema Weyburn AA Crescent Point Wings 5' 11" 155 May 11 1997
*Wyatt Sloboshan Saskatoon Saskatoon Bantam AA Maniacs 5'9" 150 January 24 1997
Drew  Litwin Wynyard Humboldt Broncos Bantam AA 5'10" 145 February 28 1997
*Terrell Draude Warman Sask Valley Vipers 6'2" 185 March 21 1997
Logan Schatz Allan Sask Valley Vipers 5'6" 130 September 16 1997
*Cameron Hebig Saskatoon Saskatoon Bantam AA Frostbite 5'7" 135 January 21 1997
Lane Pederson Saskatoon Saskatoon Bantam AA Generals 5'8" 144 August 4 1997
Jimmy Lambert Saskatoon Saskatoon Bantam AA Bandits 5'2" 100 February 9 1997
Kody White Saskatoon Saskatoon Bantam AA Bandits 5' 10" 155 March 25 1997
Brandan Arnold Dodsland West Central Bantam AA Wheat Kings 5'6" 130 April 5 1997
*Spencer Bast Macklin West Central Bantam AA Wheat Kings 5' 10" 155 January 5 1997
Ryan Rothenburger Radisson Sask Valley Vipers 6' 140 May 20 1997
Layne Young Frenchman Butte Battleford Bantam AA Barons 5' 9' 165 June 25 1997
*Matthew Campese Prince Albert PA Bantam AA Raiders 5'11" 165 December 10 1997
*Tristen Elder Kinistino Northeast AA Bantam Wolfpack 6'1" 158 December 11 1997
Reed Gunville Prince Albert PA Bantam AA Raiders 5'8" 140 March 4 1997
Zac Paziuk Prince Albert Northeast AA Bantam Wolfpack 5'9" 147 January 22 1997
Caleb Seaman Choiceland Northeast AA Bantam Wolfpack 5' 120 February 26 1997
Kalem Zary Melfort Northeast AA Bantam Wolfpack 5'9" 141 September 23 1997

Defense
*Ethan Bear Whitewood Pursuit of Excellence 5'11.5" 180 June 26 1997
*Troy Murray White City Prairie Storm Bantam AA 6' 155 September 12 1997
*Brennan Riddle Balgonie Prairie Storm Bantam AA 6' 1" 175 July 27 1997
*Michael Eskra Regina Regina Bantam AA Oilers 5'11" 170 January 25 1997
Chance Patterson Foam Lake Yorkton Bantam AA Terriers 6'2.5" 176 May 29 1997
*evan fiala clavet Sask Valley Vipers 6'2 170 June 7 1997
*Connor  Hobbs Saskatoon Saskatoon Bantam AA Bandits 5'11" 163 January 4 1997
*Tate Olson saskatoon Saskatoon Bantam AA Stallions 6' 1" 170 March 21 1997
Dustin Perillat Saskatooon Saskatoon Bantam AA Outlaws 5'10" 165 January 10 1997
*Shane Collins Rosetown West Central Bantam AA Wheat Kings 6' 160 February 20 1997
*Lochlan Morrison PA PA Bantam AA Raiders 6' 180 July 8 1997
Bryce  Fiske Airronge  Northeast AA Bantam Wolfpack 5'9.5" 150 November 6 1997

Goalies
Nikolas Amundrud Melfort Northeast AA Bantam Wolfpack 5'11" 145 October 20 1997
Connor Ingram Imperial Warman Wildcats 5'11" 184 March 31 1997
*Matt Kustra Yorkton Notre Dame Bantam AAA Hounds 5' 10" 165 June 7 1997
*Logan Flodell Regina Regina Bantam AA Senators 5'11" 160 February 10 1997

*Unanimous Choice

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

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.

Sask First Tournament

The second last provincial camp is set to get underway beginning Friday, April 20 in Regina at the Cooperators Centre.  The approximate 160 players will arrive in Regina at 11:30 AM and various meetings and presentations will take part during the afternoon.  Game action will begin at 4:30 with Zone 8 taking on Zone 5.

In recent years Saskatchewan has had about 45 players drafted on average.  That means about 5-6 players per team are likely to be selected.  Here is a bit of a preview on what to watch at this weekends tournament.

Zone 1
One of the favorites entering the tournament has be the zone including players who played on one of the provinces powerhouse teams - Balgonie and players from Weyburn and Melville.  Every single player on the defense core stand a good chance to be drafted.  Among the group could be three second round draft picks.

Goalies
In goal, the team boasts the 2nd and 3rd ranked goalies in terms of GAA in the SBAAHL.  Braeden Pyne split time in Balgonie this year with Blade Roh and was somewhat over-shadowed.  However, he went the entire regular season without a loss and posted a stellar 2.26 GAA to go with that 11-0-1 record.  Chantz Vinck from Weyburn had a sparkling 1.95 GAA with 3SO and placed just behind Blade Roh in GAA in the overall league.  Vinck is a small goalie still at just 126 lbs.

Defense
The Defense looks to be easily the best this tournament will have to offer as a whole.  Ethan Bear (POE) will come over to join potential 2nd round picks from Balgonie in Brennan Riddle and Troy Murray.  Even Armstrong from Melville is a 6'2 155 raw defenseman with good potential.  Add in hard hitters from Weyburn in Drew Fellner and Nick Lenius and there really aren't any holes.  Overall, there will be at least 4 draft picks from this group with Lenius and Armstrong possibly making it all 6.

Forwards
The forward group is led by the top ranked forward in the province in Jayden Halbgewachs.  We fully expect Jayden to be a high pick in the up coming bantam draft.  Rykr Cole, Dakota Boutin, Donovan Neuls and Jesse Gabrielle give this group ample fire power.  It will be interesting to see what Gabrielle can do in this tournament.  Is he a first rounder?  We will find out.  There will be a minimum of 5 draft picks from this group.

Projected Draft Picks - 10
Top Picks (first 2 rounds) - 3 Jayden Halbgewachs, Ethan Bear, Brennan Riddle

Zone 2
This is a zone that comprises players from Regina.  On paper, they really don't have much of a chance of competing for the title but do have some prospects that could be fairly high picks in a couple weeks.

Goalies
A goalie that we will really be watching at this tournament is 5'11 160lb Logan Flodell.  Flodell entered the year as one of the top goalies in Saskatchewan but has fallen off a bit as the season wore on.  He posted a sub-par 4.33 GAA, placing him 17th in the league.  On the other hand, 5'8.5 130lb Shaun Fleming had a very good year with the Regina Canucks.

Defense
The defense is led by Michael Eskra.  Eskra led all SBAAHL in goals this season and is a very poised, offensive type defenseman.  Jake Tesarowski is a skill defenseman who can play forward.  He is somewhat undersized at 5'8 145lb but should garner a look come draft day.  Billy Waronek is another defenseman we will be watching as he projects as a shut-down defender.

Forwards
The forward group lacks star power with nobody projected to be drafted within the top few rounds this year. A few players to watch would be 5'7 160lb Arthur Miller who plays hard in all areas, competes hard and is a strong player for his size.  Owen Sillinger is a 5'2 120 player with a late 97 birthday who likely won't get drafted but has good bloodlines.  Sillinger's team-mate Conner Chaulk has some compete in him and could be a possible draft pick.

Projected Draft Picks - 4
Top picks (first 2 rounds) - Eskra (maybe)

Zone 3
This zone comprises of players from SW Saskatchewan.  The majority of the players on this team come from the Swift Current and Moose Jaw bantam teams.  On the surface, it looks like this will be another zone who doesn't stand much of a chance at winning Sask First but they do have some decent prospects.

Goalies
Kyle Zinger is a goalie to watch heading in to Sask First.  Zinger is a big goalie with good overall skills and went somewhat overshadowed this year.

Defense
The defense doesn't have anyone who is currently on our rankings but one player who could garner a look is 5'10 155lb Carter Doerksen who played this past season with Swift Current.

Forwards
Up front Colton Adam from Swift Current bantam is a 6'0 140lb player who could still have more filling out to do and projects as a decent prospect.  However, the kingpin of the entire squad is Regan Nagy who is from Ogema and played this year with Weyburn.  Nagy has all the tools to be a top player and is a very smooth skating winger with excellent compete in his game.  We think Nagy could be a top 2 round selection most definite and possibly slip in to the later part of the first round with a solid showing this weekend.  After that, perhaps Bhody Magnusson from Moose Jaw could be a late round selection.  Bhody works hard and leaves it all out there.

Projected Draft Picks - 3
Top Picks (first 2 rounds) - Regan Nagy

Zone 4
This zone is made up of players from the East-Central area of Saskatchewan.  The squad is primarily made up of players who played with the Yorkton bantam team.  This team is made up of several hard hitting defenseman and smallish forwards.  Not a lot of draft picks on this team but a few could definitely surprise.

Goalies
Matt Kustra entered the season as one of the highly touted goalies and a possible top 3 rounder.  His play early on suffered but that could be due to the fact they were playing in a Midget AA league.  As the season wore on, he got better and with a strong Sask First could re-cement himself as a top goalie for the draft.

Defense
The defense core features as many as 4 draft picks.  Yorkton defenseman Turner Ottenbreit and Chance Patterson project as mid round selections.  Patterson is a big 6'2.5 defenseman with a hard shot and huge upside while Ottenbreit is a mean defenseman who competes hard and has a good overall feel for the game.  A pair of Notre Dame defenseman had very strong KIBIHT tournaments.  Evan Werle is a tremendous skater and competed hard.  His team-mate Hilderman showed some promise as well and could be a pick.

Forwards
The forward group isn't as strong and really only has Tyler Kreklewich who played this past season with Melville as its only likely selection.  Kreklewich's offensive production suffered a bit as he played on a 2nd line behind Neuls/Cole and Boutin in Melville.

Projected Draft Picks - 6
Top draft picks (first 2 rounds) - 0

Zone 5
This zone is made up of players from the out-laying areas of Saskatoon.  This zone is perhaps the most diverse in that some of the players played "A" hockey, others in the GSHL and others in the SBAAHL.  Overall, each position in Zone 5 is thin on depth but each have some highly rated players to watch.

Goalies
The goalie to watch here is Sask Valley Vipers starter Connor Ingram.  The 5'11 184lb Ingram was in the top 10 in GAA in the SBAAHL and had just 1 loss the entire season.

Defense
A defenseman who has climbed faster than almost any other this season is Sask Valley Vipers 6'2 170lb Evan Fiala.  Fiala plays tough, competes hard and has some raw offensive skill, he should go in the top 3 rounds of the draft and some feel he could go as early as the early 2nd round.  Logan Karakochuk from Humboldt is an offensive type defenseman who see's the ice extremely well.

Forwards
Up front, Terrell Draude led all SBAAHL players in scoring with 54 goals and 94 points in 24 games.  He can take over games at times.  Strong shot, long reach and super hockey sense.  I think WHL personal want him to improve his skating but his overall game and skill set should land him in the 2nd round.  Drew Litwin from Humboldt had a very frustrating season, battling injury all year.  He has great offensive skill and with a good Sask First, could cement himself as a mid round pick.  Wyatt Sloboshan from Saskatoon is perhaps the top forward from the GSHL this year.  Wyatt is a skill forward with leadership and great offensive awareness.  Logan Schatz is a small shifty player with good skill and ability to pick up points consistently.  Logan could be a draft pick if teams can overlook his 5'6 130lb frame.

Projected Draft Picks - 7
Top picks (first 2 rounds) - 3 (Evan Fiala, Terrell Draude, Wyatt Sloboshan(maybe))

Zone 6
Traditionally a very strong zone.  This zone is made up of players from Saskatoon and has averaged at least 10 draft picks over the past 6 years.  This years team may not touch that level though.  Although we will see definitely 3 defenseman selected from this group, that forward group may not fair so well.

Goalies
Both tenders are undersized and could easily be passed over.  Brock Hamm is just 5'5 120lb while Swystun is 5'8 145 but has a late December birthday, making him almost a 98 born.  Swystun was thought to have a decent chance at being drafted at the start of the season and still could be selected.

Defense
This zone features three defenseman would could all be top 3 round selections.  The group is led by Top 10 overall rated Tate Olson.  Olson doesn't have any holes in his game and some nights this year, played as much as 40 minutes.  Olson has an offensive flair and is very steady in his own zone as well.  Could be the first defenseman taken in the draft.  Connor Hobbs is a 5'11 163lb defenseman who projects as more of a stay at home defenseman who I believe will still get much bigger.  Tough has nails.  Dustin Perillat is the 3rd of the big 3 dman and has a good offensive game.

Forwards
This years group of forwards doesn't really come close to years of the past.  The top rated forward on this zone would be 5'7 135lb Cameron Hebig.  Hebig is one of the more skilled players from the province.  Jimmy Lambert is a 5'2 100lb forward who likely will not be drafted due to being so small.  He isn't 5'5 Brayden Point small, he is just 100lbs still.  If Lambert were 5 inches taller and 30 pounds heavier, he would be a top 2-3 round pick.  Very skilled and tremendous speed.  Could be worth taking a late flyer on to see if he can grow a bit.

Projected Draft Picks - 8
Top picks (first 2 rounds) - 3 (Connor Hobbs, Tate Olson, Cameron Hebig(maybe))

Zone 7
This zone is made up of players from western Saskatchewan around Battlefords, Maidstone and Rosetown areas.  Most of the players on this team played with Battlefords or West Central.  Both teams were mid pack in the SBAAHL north this year.

Goalies
Both goalies from this zone stand over 6'0 tall.  We currently don't have either Malenfant or Kidd in our rankings but that is why Sask First can be such a key tournament.  If either show well, they could be a selection.  Kidd had a 4.46 GAA with West Central this season.  Malenfant had a great 3.50 GAA and we'll be watching him closely.

Defense
The Defense is led by another of the provinces fast climbers in West Central defenseman Shane Collins.  Many view Collins as a possible 1st round selection.  We have him in the 2nd round.  He is another defenseman who simply can do it all.

Forwards
The offence features a few players who could be mid-round selections.  Spencer Bast likely leads that crew though.  Bast is a 5'10 155lb forward who will likely go lower than he should but does project as a possible dark horse scoring forward.  Brandon Arnold, his team-mate from West Central has skill but is undersized.  Keifer Hintz has fallen a bit this year but is a  strong forward with good compete.  Ryan Rothenburger, Layne Young and Brayden Uhrich could all be mid to late round picks.  Uhrich plays with grit and toughness. Young is offensive and Rothenburger has really come on late in the season.

Projected Draft Picks - 7
Top draft picks (top 2 rounds) - 1 (Shane Collins)

Zone 8
Another of the favorites to win Sask First.  Zone 8 is made up of players from NE Saskatchewan and features players from Prince Albert and defending Saskatchewan bantam champs North East Wolfpack.

Goalies
Nik Amundrud is one of the top ranked goalies, if not the top rated goalie from Saskatchewan.  He proved himself a bit at the westerns as he held his team in many of the games.  Amundrud is a late birthday and is 5'11 145.  He will look to establish himself as a possible 3rd to 4th rounder for draft day.

Defense
The defense boast as many as 3-4 draft picks we feel.  Lochlan Morrison is a player with good bloodlines and plays with a good, raw complete game.  Morrison we have a bit higher than most do and we think he could be a 3rd rounder.  Bryce Fiske is as gritty as they come in this years draft.  He takes no prisoners and his compete level is 2nd to none.  Fiske is a bit undersized for a defenseman and really that is the only thing holding him back from being a very high pick.  Matt Long is a hard hitter with good leadership and projects as a stay at home defenseman.  Devin Gerwing was strong at westerns and could see a look.

Forwards
This is a very deep group.  The zone here is led by Matthew Campese who is a December birthdate.  Campese has one of the hardest shots in Saskatchewan and possesses good speed.  We think Matthew will land somewhere in the early 2nd round.  Reed Gunville is a player with good skill and some grity.  When he fills out, he could be a very good player.  The team will have several of the North East Wolfpack players led by Caleb Seaman, Tristan Elder and Zac Paziuk.  Elder is the most intriguing of the group to many as he has great raw offensive skill and has much more room to grow past 6'1 158.  Paziuk has some big time skill and a good nose around the net.  Seaman will need to have a big tournament to re-establish himself as a top 4 round selection.  Grambo and Zary could also be late round selections.

Projected Draft Picks - 10
Top draft picks (first 2 rounds) - 2 (Matthew Campese, Tristan Elder(maybe))

10 Players to Watch for Various Reasons
D - Ethan Bear - Bear played this season on a stacked POE squad which featured as many as 4 players who will be taken in the top 2 rounds.  As a result, Bear didn't see the ice time he was used to prior to moving to POE and perhaps didn't have quite the dominating season many thought he would.  Bear remains a first or second round prospect for the draft but we want to see if he can dominant at a level to put him back in the first round.  He has the talent to do so.

D - Tate Olson - A player that we have had somewhat limited viewing on.  Just the way it worked out.  However, Olson has shown all the tools to be the top defenseman in western Canada.  He will need to dominate and be heads and shoulders above the rest to cement a top 6 selections where many feel he can land.

F - Jesse Gabrielle - Many are very anxious to see Gabrielle at Sask First.  He played this year at Osseo Maple Grove Crimson HS in Minnesota due to family reasons.  Gabrielle is a 5'11 180 scoring star who will need to prove his status as a top 2 round rated prospect.  Gabrielle is from Moosomin, the same hometown as other top players Rykr Cole and Dakota Boutin who will also be watched closely.

F - Troy Murray - The brother of Everett Silvertip and likely top 5 overall NHL selection coming up this year Ryan Murray.  Troy is a late birthday who like his brother, really seems to be getting better and better at a very fast rate.  He may not have the offensive upside his brother has but has a lot of high end tools.  It will be interesting to see if he can cement himself as a top 2 rounder.

G - Logan Flodell and G - Matt Kustra - Both goalies have all the tools to become top tenders down the road.  Both have battled inconsistent play this year.  We want to see if one of them can take the bull by the horns and rise to elite status like we believe they can.

D - Mike Eskra - High scoring blue-liner who is a big under-rated by some.  He will be compared to Ethan Bear as both play similar styles.  Eskra has a chance to be taken in the 2nd round as well with a good tournament.

F - Regan Nagy - Needs a strong Sask First and some dominant play to keep first round status.  However, once again what will hurt him is that he plays on a team with not much else in terms of star talent to help him out.

D - Evan Fiala - Surged up the rankings late in the year and then had a sub-par KIBIHT tournament.  We will look for Evan to return to his dominating self and regain his status as a top 2 round selection.

F - Spencer Bast - One of the dark horse players of the draft.  He isn't likely to be selected in the top few rounds but has the skill to be a high end point producer.  With a good tournament, he could open up some eyes.

F - Tristan Elder - Big forward with good skill for a player his size.  Some have him as high as the first round, we are so sure yet.  He will need to prove that type of status to his this weekend!

BC Cup Scoring Leaders heading in to final day

Through 3 games played.

Scoring Leaders
Matt Barzal  1-4-5
Tyler Soy  2-2-4
Nash Dabb  2-2-4
Jakob Stukel  2-1-3
Jesse Roach  1-2-3
Chris Seto 1-2-3
Brad Morrison 1-2-3
Jansen Harkins  1-2-3
Max James 1-2-3
San Chung 2-1-3
Chaz Reddekopp 2-1-3

BC Cup Day 4/ Spring Hockey Tournament - BC UPDATE - LATE SATURDAY

Late Saturday.......


Mainland Spring Hockey Tournament
The start of spring hockey is underway with a tournament in British Columbia.  This gives us our first look at some of the top B.C. spring hockey teams and players who will travel to major tournaments in Alberta, Winnipeg and the Challenge Cup this spring/summer.  There will also be several other smaller tournaments with various teams attending that we will cover as well.

The Mainland Tournament features top teams such as the Vancouver Vipers and the Vancouver Selects Blue who feature many of the top 1998 born prospects leading up to the 2013 bantam draft.  The Vipers are 4-0-0, while the Selects Blue are 3-1-0, having lost a head to head game vs. the Vipers by a score of 6-1.

The Vipers have played the past 2 games without current top 5 rated 98 born prospect Jaeger White who suffered an injury in game 2 of the tournament.  Also, Jake Kryski and Keyvan Mohtari didn't take part at all in the tournament.  Quinn Benjafield has been limited to just 2 games as well for the Vipers.  So for though, scoring hasn't be a concern, even if all the forwards out.  They have scored 29 goals in 4 games and are led by Luke Gingras and Dante Hannoun who each have 7 goals thus far.  Hannoun has 11 points while Gingras sits 2nd with 8.  Jaeger white is 2-5-7 in just 2 games.  Dante Fabbro leads all defenseman with 1-3-4 in 4 games.  Tyler Shugrue, one of the top rated 98 born goalies right now has played in 3 of 4 games.

The Selects Blue haven't been quite as dynamic with just 12 goals scored in 3 games at the time of this entry.  Beck Malenstyn leads the team in goals and points at 4-0-4.  Davis Koch and Kailer Yamamoto each have 2 goals for the Selects Blue.

Other Notables:
Ben Brar - Vancouver Selects Black - 4-1-5
Tak Anholt - North Shore Selects 2-4-6
Justin Pogdorenko - Kootenay Avs  4-4-8
Everett Hicks - Kootenay Avs 4-3-7
Oliver Alcock - Pacific Knights 5-0-5

The Vipers and the Selects Blue will meet in tomorrow's final.

BC CUP - Day 4
Canucks 4 - Wild 3 SO
Scoring the goals tonight for the Canucks were; San Chung from Coquitlam, Maxwell James from Kamloops and Ty Ronning.  Chung and Ronning have been spark plugs for the Canucks so far at the BC Cup.  Scoring for the Wild were; Matt Barzal, Brady Reagan and Jesse Wallace from Kimberley.


Sabres 4 - Stars 1
Sabres got goals from Brad Morrison with 2, Benjamin Paul and Jordan Funk who played with Cloverdale this past season.  The Stars lone goal came from Nanoose Bay product Trent Bell.  Bell played this season with the Oceanside Generals.


Wild 4 - Bruins 2
Both teams are now 1-1-0 as the Wild double up the Bruins 4-2.  Hayden Child opened the scoring for the Bruins.  Child played this year with Vernon and was somewhat of a pugilist with 161 pims in just 38 games.  He also scored 14 goals.  Then it was all Wild as Colton Faucher from Prince George scored.  Faucher is a 5'10 160lb defenseman who could garner a look come draft day.  Parker Wotherspoon scored to give the Wild a 2-1 lead.  Wotherspoon we fully expect to be early in the draft in the first round.  Ricky Bateman from Fort St. John gave the Wild a 3-1 lead before Jonny Evans scored to cut the gap to 3-2.  Evans is a 5'6.5 125 forward who is very talented but very small which could hurt his draft chances.  Jonathan Irving from Coquitlam rounded out the scoring.  Matt Barzal who we have rated #1 lead all point getters with 3 assists.

Leafs 4 - Canucks 3
The Leafs now move to 2-0-0 while the Canucks drop to 0-2-0.  Top 10 rated prospect Jansen Harkins scored his 2nd goal in as many games giving the Leafs a 1-0 lead.  Soon after, Jack Lafroth of Terrace scored to even the game 1-1.  The 6'0 155lb Lafroth had 26-28-54 in 38 games this season with Terrace McCarthy Motors GM Bantam Reps.  He was a team-mate of high scoring forwards Colin Bell and Carter Shannon.  Mitchell Cameron would score for the Leafs before the end of the period to give the Leafs a 2-1 lead.  That goal was Cameron's 2nd of the tournament.  It would be 3-2 and the end of the 2nd as Jordan Topping of Nanaimo and Jansen Harkins with his 2nd of the game would trade markers.  Topping, a 5'11 forward from Nanaimo is showing well so far.  In the 3rd, the Leafs went up by 2 as Chaz Reddekopp scored his 2nd of the tournament.  Look for Chaz to go late first or early 2nd round.  Tyler Soy would add a late one for the Canucks to make the final 4-3.

Sabres 3 - Flyers 2 SO
Glenn Gawdin would score very early in the first period to give the Flyers a 1-0 lead.  Gawdin, who played this year for Seafair went a bit un-noticed this season but everyone is taking notice now and we think he has a good chance to be a top 10 selection on May 3rd.  The game stayed 1-0 until early in the 2nd when another highly touted player scored as speed Brad Morrison scored.  Morrison scored over 80 goals this season with OHA and could also land in the first round or early second at the latest.  Then a bit later on in the 2nd period, Glenn Gawdin scored his 2nd of the game to give the Flyers a 2-1 lead.  Jakob Stukel would tie the game up for the Sabres before the end of the period.  Stukel is a hard working player who lays it all on the line and could be a early 2nd round selection.  The game went to a shoot-out where the Sabres would win it.  Both teams are now 1-1-0.


Stars 7 - Avalanche 5 
Highly ranked Chris Seto who played this season for Cloverdale scored 2 goals as did Seafair forward Ryan Wilkinson.  Seto was part of one of western Canada's deadliest duo's along with Tyler Soy.  Ryan Wilkinson was 2nd behind Glenn Gawdin in Seafair scoring with 12-25-37 but 51 points back of Gawdin's 58-32-90.  Joe Surgenor led the Avalanche with 2 goals.  Surgenor is a 5'7 145lb forward from Courtenay, B.C.  He played this season with Comox Valley Bantam A's.

Bruins 3 - Leafs 1
Both teams are now 2-1-0 as the Bruins defeat the Leafs 3-1.  Devon Sideroff got the scoring started in the first period to give the Bruins a 1-0 lead.  Sideroff played this season with OHA and placed 4th in OHA scoring with 34-43-77 in 63 games.  Then Mitchell Newsome who played in Semiahmoo this season scored to tie the game at 1-1.  Alex Hartman of Fort St. John scored and the Bruins got another late one to take the game 3-1.

Spring Hockey Has Begun!

Now that the Western Canada Bantam AAA Championships have completed, the start of the 2012 spring/summer hockey season has begun.  This gives us a good chance to start focusing on some of the top 98 born and 99 born talent as we begin to shift our focus towards the next age groups.

This weekend the Mainland Hockey Tournament is underway and primarily features teams from B.C. in both the 98 and 99 age groups.  A couple teams in the 98 age group that should role over the opposition are the Vancouver Vipers, featuring Jaeger White and Dante Fabbro.  The Vancouver Selects Blue will take part also and they feature many top prospects in that age group as well.

Friday Action
Vancouver Selects Blue 7 - Kelowna Rockets 0
Jesse Lansdell had a huge opening game of spring hockey with 1-2-3 but also suffered a leg injury and could be out a while.  Beck Malenstyn, who is coming off a fantastic KIBIHT tournament continued that success with 2 goals.  Bowen, Koch, Rizzolo and Yamamoto also scored for the Selects Blue.  Sahvan Khaira led the way from defense with 2 assists.


NHTC Warriors 4 - Pro Panthers 1


Ravens Black 4 - Prince George Warriors 0
Ravens Black get 1-1-2 from Sasha Synaeghel and 2 assists from Mateo Toledo in moving to 1-0-0.  Also scoring for the Ravens were; Lesage, Mavin and Wiltshire.


Kootenay Avalanche 8 - Pacific Knights 1
The Kootenay Avalanche got off to a strong start with a 8-1 win early Friday.  Justin Podgorenko had a huge game with 3-2-5.  Podgorenko played last season with Nelson and was fantastic and could be a player to watch moving forward.  Everett Hicks, who was a team-mate of Podgorenko had 2-3-5.  Dillon Milliron had a big game with 2-1-3 as well.  Oliver Alcock replied for the Pacific Knights.


Vancouver Attack 7 - Ice Dogs 1
Jaeden Choy paces the attack with a 2 goal performance.  Choy played this season with Mission.  Defenseman Justin Peaker scored as well for the attack.  Stewart Glass scored the lone goal for the Ice Dogs.


Vancouver Vipers 7 - BCIS98 0
The powerhouse Vipers started off what should be a very good spring hockey season with a bang in defeating BCIS 98 7-0.  Leading the way for the Vipers was Jaeger White with 4 assists and Kenessary Kylyshbek fired home a 3 goal game.  Also Dante Hannoun scored twice for the Vipers and we would expect him to be a high pick come 2013.  Nate McCarnan and D- Devin Purhar had 1-1-2, Robbie Johnson had 2 helpers.

Vancouver Selects Black 4 - Jr Giants 3
The Vancouver Selects Black who are basically the "B" team for the Selects program got by the Jr. Giants 4-3.  Jacob Dewaal scored twice in leading the attack while highly rated Nathan Jackson who played with Chilliwack this year had 1-1-2.  Karamdev Grewel had 2 assists.  Nic Tallarico was between the Selects Black pipes.  The Jr. Giants got a huge game from Caleb Fantillo who scored 3 times!  Fantillo was a very effective player this year with Coquitlam. 

North Shore Selects 5 - Ice Hawks 2
North Shore got 1-1-2 from Alex Uryga and Kevin Wong in the victory.  Tak Anholt had a pair of helpers.  Tak will be a player to watch over the next year or so heading to 2013.  Justin Lee, Camden Donohoe and Alex Akpata also scored for North Shore.  Alex Crickmore-Thompson was in goal in this one.  Sam Atkins and Charles Meng scored for the Ice Hawks.

Selects Hockey B.C. 5 - Okanagan Ice Dogs 2
Selects Hockey B.C got goals from Akash Baines, Kaden Moore, Michael Tibury, Cameron Waisman and Cameron Obcena.  Jeff Schlegel and Thomas Pattison replied for the Ice Dogs.

South Island Orca 9 - NHTC Warriors Black 1
Cam Thompson picked up 3-1-4 and Jacob Finlay added 2 goals in leading the South Island Orca to a big opening win.  D- Matt Forbes and Jack Kendall also replied for South Island.  Tyler Rennie was in goal and played all 45 minutes.  Dylan McRae scored the lone marker for the Warriors Black.

BC Cup - Day 2

There will now be a series of practices for the rest of the afternoon and evening.  Action will resume tomorrow morning and throughout the day with each team playing twice.

Team Flyers 2 - Teams Stars 1 SO
Tristan Simm started the scoring after a scoreless first period with an early 2nd period marker.  Simm played this past season with the Semiahmoo Ravens.  Simm currently isn't ranked by us on our draft list.  Then late in the game, Chris Seto scored to tie it up.  Seto is expected to be a late first rounder on draft day.  He played this past season with the powerhouse Cloverdale Colts who looked like they would roll to the westerns, having won 32 in a row until BWC beat them in the provincial final game.  Seto has one of the hardest, most accurate shots in the draft and will be a solid WHL'er in the future.

Team Avalanche 4 - Team Sabres 3
-Bazien scores twice
After a scoreless first period, Team Avalanche went up 1-0 on a Johnny Wesley goal.  Wesley played this season in Semiahmoo on what was a very good team that featured other top forwards such as Plotnikoff, Bradley and Craighead to name a few.  We expect Wesley to be a draft pick in the 4-6 round range.  Then shortly after, Team Sabres got a marker from hard working, small forward Addison Bazien.  Bazien played this year with the Kamloops Jardine Blazers.  Bazien had a pretty successful season and could go around where Wesley will go in the draft.  Then the Sabres would regain the lead on a Brodie Smith marker late in the period.  Smith played this season on the Victoria Raquet Club and isn't currently ranked in our top 225.  A good BC Cup could change that, as is the case for all players.

In the 3rd period, big Jesse Roach scored to even things up.  Roach is an underrated player for the draft, in large part of the league he played in.  He is a player to watch at the BC Cup.  Then Colin Bell from Terrace, BC scored to give the Avalanche a 3-2 lead.  Bell is another player who played in a low profile league in Bantam Tier 3 in the Skeena Valley AHA.  Bell led his league leading Terrace squad with 64-63-127 in 46 games this season.  They won the league title but lost to Jesse Roach's Quesnel team in the provincial final 6-5.  Then it was Addison Bazien scoring his 2nd of the game late to make it close and end the game at a 4-3 final for the Avs.

BC Cup - Day 1

Team Leafs  5 vs Team Wild 1  Final
Leafs goals:  Reddekopp, Andrew Jack, Mitchell Cameron, Harkins, Carson Richards.  Chaz Reddekopp is a big defenseman from POE who sometimes can get lost on a very deep, talented POE squad but he is a player who we expect to go somewhere in the late 1st to mid 2nd round range.  Of course, we have all gotten to know Jansen Harkins this year as one of the top players eligable for the draft.  Jansen perhaps is the best two-way player and plays all three zones extremely well.  He could be selected anywhere from the 2nd overall pick to no lower than 7th in our opinion.  For team Wild, it was very underated Blake Holowaty with the goal.  Holowaty was lost in the OMAHA Tier 2 league and wasn't scouted very heavily at all this year.  Blake is a big, power forward with above average skill and should open up some eyes at the BC Cup!

Team Canucks 3 vs. Team Bruins 4 FINAL
In a re-match of the Stanley Cup finals, the over-whelming favourite for fans in the building had to be the Canucks, right?!  However, it was Daniel Nault scoring with just seconds remaining to give the Bruins a 4-3 win over the Canucks.  Nault, a forward from Penticton played this season with OHA and had 23-50-73 in 63 games played this season.  We aren't sure if Nault will be taken or not in the WHL bantam draft though as he has aspirations of playing Junior A hockey down the road.  The other Bruins goals came from Prince George's Trevor Gagne and Steven Fiust had two goals.  Fiust was a team-mate of Nault's and had a fantastic season with OHA this year putting up 55-53-108 in 63 games.  We expect Fiust to be taken in this year's bantam draft.  Scoring for Team Canucks was San Chung of Coquitlam, Tyler Soy of Cloverdale and Ty Ronning of BWC.  Soy should be taken in the first half of the first round, while Ty Ronning is shooting up the draft rankings late in the year and has a chance at being taken late first round.  San Chung has a good chance of being selected in the later rounds.

Back from Holidays

Sorry for the lack of content on the blog over the past 4-5 days.  After KIBIHT and Westerns ended, we decided to escape reality for a bit!  Now that we are back to reality, coverage will begin on the BC Cup which began today with registration and continues this evening with a pair of games.  Stay tuned to either twitter or the blog for all the latest on the BC Cup through out the weekend.

April 8, 2012 newsletter is now ready

RankingsWe have expanded the 1997 age group rankings to now a top 225.  The reason being is that there are approximetaly that many players drafted in the bantam draft each year.  Since the last rankings, we have finished up all provincial playoffs, the Manitoba POE, KIBIHT and the Western Canada Bantam Hockey Championships.  As a result some significant movement has been made on this the 2nd last newsletter of the season.

Interviews
In the interview section this time around, I had a chance to chat with one of the fastest risers in the 2nd half of the season.  Perhaps one of the hardest working players in the draft who can also supply offence.  Some have him as high as the first round.

I speak with a 98 born player who looks like a sure fire bet to be a 2013 first rounder.  He has played age advanced the past couple seasons.

We interview a goalie who is flying under the radar but shouldn't be and we think he has a decent chance of turning out to be one of the better goalies form his province in future years.

Lastly, I interview a defenseman who is looking to become the next in a long line of talented defenseman to attend POE next year.  

News and Notes/Tournament Re-Cap

We have decided to prune down the USA draft list to a top 30 who we feel have a good chance to play or want to play in the WHL one day.  The WHL has never had more than 30 selections from south of the border on draft day.

Western Canada Bantam AAA Championship Review/ KIBIHT Review

We give a full review of both the Western Canada Bantam Championships and the KIBIHT tournament.  Which players were standouts, who were our all-stars and other information on the top forwards, defenseman and goalies at each of the tournament and why.

Sneak peak at the top 20 '99 born players.  Full list will be included after the bantam draft in May.