USA WORLD JUNIOR PREVIEW

by Erik Freeman
on
With the number one draft pick from the 2000 NHL Entry draft, Ricky DiePietro between the pipes, Team USA will have a building block for this year’s club. Six other returnees are also back for a run at the gold. We will breakdown the offense, defense, and goaltending on this year’s team.

Offense: Five players are back to lead the offensive attack. Andy Hilbert from the University of Michigan is back for his 3rd tournament and must provide leadership and scoring. Jeff Taffe, Team USA’s leading scorer from last season, is also back. Look for him and fellow Minnesotan Troy Riddle to play together. They have worked very well together throughout the year for the Golden Gophers. Other returnees include Connor Dunlop, Brett Nowak, and John Sabo. R.J. Umberger is a newcomer to watch for. Excellent play at Ohio State earned Umberger the number one ranking by the CSB among college eligible players for April’s NHL Entry Draft. Troy Riddle will be counted on to use his wicked speed and finesse to antagonize opponents. Other forwards who will be looked upon to score are Jon DiSalvatore, Marc Cavosie and Kris Vernarsky. This group of forwards should be able to skate with the high flying Czech’s and Swede’s in Group A. Team USA wants to play an up tempo style of play, which shouldn’t be a problem with the speed this team possesses.

Defense: Anchoring the defensive unit is first round draft pick in last year’s draft, Ron Hainsey, from the University of Mass-Lowell. Having only one player with experience at the World Juniors some teams cou Read more»

Rangers Prospect Update

by Brandon LeBourveau
on

Week Of 12/10 to 12/20 

Player         Team    League  GP   G   A   P  PIM  +/-
Pavel Brendl  Calgary   WHL    26  29  23  52   24   21

This Week: No Games Played
Notes: Will represent the Czech Republic in the upcoming World Junior Championships. 

Player           Team    League  GP   G   A   P  PIM  +/-
Jamie Lundmark  Seattle   WHL    20  17  17   34  19  +3

This Week: 1 GP, 2 G, 0 A, 2 P, 0 PIM, +2
Notes: Playing for team Canada at the WJC. Has been Seattle’s best player since the trade. 

Player         Team    League  GP   G   A   P  PIM  +/-
Filip Novak   Regina    WHL    34  12  22  34   38   12

This Week: 3 GP, 1 G, 0 A, 1 P, 5 PIM, +1
Notes: Would be playing for the Czech Republic in the WJC, but because of past problems with his former Czech team, they refused to let him play in the tournament. He currently has 5 more goals this year through 34 games than he had all last year in 47 games. He also is only 5 points away from matching last seasons totals. His play has really improved from last season. 

Player              Team    League  GP   G   A   P  PIM  +/-
Garret Bembridge  Saskatoon  WHL    35  24  20  44   12  -13

This Week: 3 GP, 1 G, 0 A, 2 P, 0 PIM, -6 Read more»

Canucks top rookies

by pbadmin
on
Here are a few of the Canuck’s top prospects that are
currently in the NHL. I hope to provide some stats and updates on Canuck prospects at all levels every couple of weeks, as they play a major role in the future of
the Canucks’ organization.

Daniel Sedin, fourth in NHL rookie scoring (27–9-8-17) is making a big
impact on the Vancouver Canucks in his third line role. His ability to cycle
the puck in the offensive zone with twin brother Henrik, continues to
generate scoring chances. Recently Daniel missed four games due to a
shoulder injury. Coach Crawford babied him into returning to the lineup, to
many this raises questions about how Daniel has adapted to the rigours of
the NHL. Being held pointless in three games since his return, team and fans
alike hope that now that the league is getting to know the
Sedins’ style of play they won’t hit the wall a la Bill Muckalt or Steve
Kariya. Overall though,
Daniel is doing an excellent job in his first season, and is expected to
continue as a favorite in the Calder Cup run.

PROJECTION: Daniel looks like he’s going to be an excellent player in the
future. How good is hard to determine, but it seems as though he’s about as
close to being a sure-fire star as any first year prospect. He will very
likely be at least a consistent 25 goal, 60 point scorer in the NHL with the
ability to become a superstar perhaps scoring 50 goals and 100 points.
Through 27 games Sedin is on track to tally about 27 goals and 23 assists if
he were to play 80 games. To compare him to another player h Read more»

WJC column – Canada in search of Gold

by Jeff Bromley
on
Last time I checked, it had been three years since the teenage hockey phenoms that represent our country
every Christmas at the World Junior Hockey Championships had brought home the gold medal. A bronze
last year after falling to the dreaded Russians in the semifinal game, a silver in 1999 at Winnipeg in a
heartbreaking overtime loss, once again to the Russians. The 1998 edition was a forgetful eighth place
showing. So from failing hands the torch is passed to this years crop of teenage talent. Pressure? What
pressure?

There is a handful of pundits and prognosticators that predict that if this year’s edition of the Canadian
world junior entry doesn’t win the yellow hardware, it will only further signify that Canada has fallen further
of its perch of hockey supremacy. I beg to differ. If the boys don’t come home with gold around their necks,
I maintain that it is exactly the opposite. We haven’t fallen further off the perch, it’s just that the perch has
become much bigger and now hosts more than the just the one or two dominant countries that occupied it
in the past. Canada, Russia, the Czech Republic, Sweden and Finland are all dominant countries on the
international hockey scene. With the addition of up and comers such as Slovakia, Latvia and Belarus it only
promises to become even more crowded at the top. Suffice to say that the days of one country dominating
at the international level, such as the way Canada did from 1993 to ’97, five gold medals in a row at the
WJC’s, are over. Every year from now on will more than likely be a crap shoot w Read more»

On the Long Road to Recovery

by Erik Freeman
on

Patrick Foley has played in pain for the past three years and finally decided enough was enough. Partially tearing both his ACL’s in his junior year of high school football, he elected to continue playing hockey with braces on each knee up until last season. That’s when everything went downhill. After games and practices Foley’s knees had him in so much pain he couldn’t run or even ride a bike. He decided to have Dr. Brett Zarins of the New England Patriots take a look at his knees. The only solution to the problem was surgery. On May 31, 2000, Foley went in and had his right knee operated on. A month later it was the left knees turn to be repaired. Foley was optimistic about a return to the New Hampshire Wildcats this year, however after a November appointment with Dr. Zarins it was in Patrick’s best interest to be redshirted. Foley is rehabilitating his knees and skated for the first time since the surgery this past week. Foley said just feeling the wind blowing against his face was a great feeling. Being part of the team is important to Foley. He helps teammates at team workouts and provides support and the insight of someone not at ice level. What really drives Foley is the chance to play for a national title. The process of rehabilitating both knees is physically and mentally grinding, but you couldn’t find a bettter warrior than Patrick Foley to do it. Determined, Foley is working hard to get his play back to the level exhibited before the surgeries. Don’t be shocked to see him back on the rink next year playing better than ever.
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