Team Dave “Tiger” Williams
Petr Taticek – the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds rookie raised some eyebrows with his smooth adjustment to the OHL style of play and he keeps on producing. Taticek, a son of a former Czech Elite League forward, shows signs of developing into a premiere power forward. He is a perfect blend of size, skill and toughness and his super-nova OHL debut forced the NHL scouts to take him into account as a serious first-round prospect. Petr has nearly the same size as former Greyhounds captain Josef Vasicek, who skates for the Carolina Hurricanes now, but has slightly more skill. Taticek is a very good skater who can make fast turns and pivots, but his biggest skill is his stickhandling ability which allows him to make nifty moves and great plays. Taticek is a naturally talented playmaker with a perfect hockey sense, but also doesn’t hesitate to shoot the puck. As a bonus to this playmaking package, Taticek doesn’t shy away from the rough physical play and uses his frame well. Always highly intense, Taticek also won’t hurt you defensively and has all the tools of a NHL player. Now he looks as a top 15-20 pick, can only upgrade his status at the Top Prospects Game.
Jakub Klepis – his sudden move to the WHL made some people quite mad back home in his parent HC Slavia Praha team, but he proves that this decision was good for him. Klepis established himself among the top WHL rookies soon and his offensive skills enable him to sit near the top of the WHL rookie scoring race. Jakub is an explosive skater with a great burst of speed and a hard drive to the net. As a finesse forward, Klepis handles the puck extremly well and can prepare great chances. He has an accurate wrist shot with a quick release and his slap shot is also quite hard and accurate. Klepis isn’t a natural playmaker, but his superb knack for making surprising passes makes him a highly touted talent. On the defensive side Klepis isn’t a huge factor, he likes to rush forward more than backwards, but no doubt, a top prospect. Right now he looks as late first-rounder or early second-rounder.
Team Kelly Hrudey
Petr Kanko – the Kitchener Rangers rookie is now finally permitted to shine in the OHL, months before his parent club HC Sparta Praha demanded his return home, but this year’s tougher version of Ales Hemsky stays with the Rangers. The offensive sparkplug Kanko showed up at the last Under-18 WJC, where he led the Czech forwards in scoring as an underage. Kanko skates like the wind and his turns are great. He is an ultimate offensive power with a tremendous nose for the net. Kanko knows many ways how to score a goal and is a smooth puckhandler, very dangerous on powerplay. Once on the puck, Petr tries to score a goal and prefers shooting to passing. His shooting arsenal is perfect and he knows how to use it. Petr’s drawbacks are his smallish size and his defensive play, but the speedster knows how to avoid punishing hits. A player who scored a goal in both of his Czech Extraleague and OHL debuts is a blue-chipper who will probably crack the top 15.
Martin Vagner – led all QMJHL draft-eligible skaters in the CSB preliminary rankings, ahead of offensive sensation Pierre-Marc Bouchard. Is the only Czech defenseman in the Top Prospects Game and also the only Czech to arrive from the ‘Q’. The Hull Olympiques rookie is a former Pardubice Jr. player and a rearguard with an exceptional talent. Martin posesses prototypical NHL size and plays a very good two-way game. His size enables him a very good reach plus Vagner distributes the pucks very effectively. He has a low panic point and can make great outlet passes. Has a hard shot from the point which is tippable and also posesses quarterbacking skills. On the defensive side Martin is very mature and tries to keep his play simple and avoid mistakes. A good hitter uses his body well, but could be more harder at times. A complete package of defensive awareness and offensive flair, Vagner is a dark horse who can upgrade his status only. Now looks as a top 20 pick.
