All Foreur One, One Foreur All

The Val-d'Or Foreur has had to fight through illness and injury just to try and keep their heads above water this season. The most disheartening loss came at the beginning of December when Max Sauve, their most consistent forward and veteran leader was lost for up to two months with a broken leg after slipping on a piece of plastic that was laying on the floor during a team outing. The good news is that the team is still alive and fighting for a playoff spot, in no small part due to the mature play of their youngsters, including four players that are eligible for the 2011 NHL Entry Draft. Mckeen's contributor Rick Springhetti reports on the Val-d'Or Foreur

Cedrick Henley (2010), LW, Val-d'Or

Tall, lanky forward with a nose for the net and a quickly improving all-around game .. due to the team's injury situation, he has been given more defensive responsibilities and has responded quite well .. has to be more helpful to his teammates when they are trying to breakout of their own zone, as he is sometimes caught flatfooted or is in the way of the puckcarrier .. although not a speedster, he can move fairly well for a player his size (6-5, 195), but he does have to make sure he is moving his feet or else he will get into penalty problems .. has improved his lower-body strength which in turn, has helped improved his balance .. likes to use his wristshot when he is presented with scoring opportunities which he releases quickly, but he would be a little less predictable if he used other options .. passes can be a little erratic but he knows his limitations and plays within them .. hard to move from the front of the net and takes up a lot of room once he plants his feet .. won't give up on scoring chances .. very effective when playing within a well-structured team game .. effort level is getting more consistent.

Olivier Archambault (2011), LW, Val-d'Or

First player picked in the 2009 QJMHL entry draft .. although mainly known as a playmaker, he has more goals than assists this season, but linemates have not always buried the scoring chances he creates .. good skater with impressive first-step quickness .. moves very quick laterally even with the puck .. uses this to his advantage to avoid hits or give himself a little extra time to make a play .. still learning how to use his linemates better .. currently, he tends to play individually when pressured making him lose control of the puck .. when he has a little bit of time, he is capable of making tape-to-tape passes on the forehand and backhand, while at the same time, drawing opponents toward him and taking them out of the play .. impressive ability to hold on to the puck especially along the boards .. has a quick release to his shot and not afraid to use the one-timer so opposition has to keep an eye on him .. .. makes mistakes when he plays the opposing teams puckcarrier too aggressively .. plays with a lot of energy at all times, no matter what role he is asked to play.

Gabriel Beaupre (2011), D, Val-d'Or

Stay-at-home-defenseman plays a mature game for his age .. uses his large frame effectively to separate opposing player from the puck instead of trying to go for the spectacular hit .. will let the opponent shoot the puck on the net while he makes sure that nobody gets to the loose puck or cut-down on passing options .. will support the offence only when he is sure that it will not lead to odd-man rushes in his own zone but doesn't possess the skills to create scoring chances once he is there .. needs to angle his opponents better during one-on-one situations .. currently, he leaves too wide a gap.. skating is a little difficult, especially his first few steps .. passes need to be kept short and simple, as he does not have the vision to use the stretch pass.

Dylan Capstick (2011), D, Val-d'Or

Big defenseman (6-3, 208), who is learning how to use his size .. like most youngsters his age, he is still working on his coordination, especially in terms of foot speed .. simplified his game as the season has progressed and is playing a more conservative game .. defensively, he clears the front of the net well, but has trouble keeping up with the play when puck is in movement .. especially vulnerable when opponent is skating down his wing .. uses his long reach and surprisingly quick hands to disrupt the puckcarrier .. tends to rush his passes when he tries to do too much .. not a very good skater at this point, but there is every reason to believe that this will improve as he grows into his body .. tries to finish all his checks but weak first-step quickness limit his opportunities .. coaching staff has used him as a forward at times where he seems more effective, especially on the forecheck.

Matthieu Theriault (2010), C, Val-d'Or

Smooth skater who can move well in any direction .. pivots especially well without losing balance .. keeps his head up and moving when handling the puck .. pressures the puckcarrier well when used on the PK, but not always positioned in a way to angle opponents effectively .. skating ability helps make up for this shortcoming as does a very active stick .. not hesitant to play along the walls but needs to make sure he is using his feet to be effective .. will not initiate contact but this is not surprising considering his size (5-8, 160) .. playing in a conservative team system does not leave him too much opportunity to show what he can do offensively .. does well for such a young player in the faceoff circle .. doesn't have a great shot in terms of velocity or release and this area will need to be worked on to help compensate for his size.