Can: U-18 Evaluation Camps

This year's under-18 evaluation camps were held in Kitchener this past week with 44 of the best Canadian 1988-born players vying for a spot on team Canada for the Under 18 Junior Cup, taking place this week. All three CHL leagues were represented with 15 players from the WHL, 11 from the OHL and 8 from the QMJHL. We observe two promising goalies that competed for the starting job of keeping pucks out of the net and several defensemen.

Jonathan Bernier – G (2006)

Butterfly style goalie makes most saves by virtue of solid fundamentals and good positional sense as opposed to great reflexes .. good stickhandler, can clear the zone and make a nice outlet pass .. sound side-to-side movement .. protects the five-hole very well .. can drop into the butterfly and recover quickly .. rarely surrenders big rebounds and smothers most in his general vicinity .. glove hand is quick, as he kept it tight to his body .. blocker side is not as solid, as many pucks seem to slide in between there .. at times loses track of where the net is; needs to hug the post .. susceptible to wraparounds and players charging from the side of the net, especially big power forwards.

Leland Irving – G (2006)

Butterfly goalie plays a style similar to that of Jonathan Bernier .. strong concentration .. follows the puck and communicates with teammates as to incoming forwards .. square to the shooter and angles well .. rarely out of position and manages to cover a large portion of the net .. tends to shy away from handling the puck; not one of his stronger suits.

John deGray – D (2006)

Tall, lanky defender with some meanness .. has potential to really fill out, perhaps gaining another inch and considerable bulk with much-needed conditioning .. capable of carrying the puck up the ice with moderate success, but tends to play a safe game .. below-average first step and upright skating style generate minimal speed .. not a finesse defenseman in terms of his skating and offensive ability, but understands proper positioning .. blocks shots and shooting lanes effectively .. sub-par puck protection skills cause him to make turnovers.

Keaton Ellerby – D (2007)

Defender with great skating skills and promising offensive upside .. tremendous first step and effortless, silky-smooth skating style that generates top speed within few strides .. lateral and reverse movement is spectacular .. can stickhandle at top speed while leaving the zone, often beating the first two forecheckers .. great cuts and extremely shifty .. prefers open ice and additional room that PP creates .. good shot from the point and decision-making is exceptional in terms of his ability to distribute the puck .. one-timers tend to be erratic; needs to keep his hands lower on the stick .. needs considerable work on upper body strength .. often manhandled in front of the net and outmuscled by stronger forecheckers .. unable to contain them coming down the wing and occasionally lets them slip behind him to the front of the net .. seemed apprehensive to take the body or initiate physical contact .. used his stick to remove players in front of the net, but often gets his stick too high which results in penalties.

Ty Wishart – D (2006)

Huge defender will undoubtedly fill out to complement his 6-foot-5 frame .. bruiser; often looks to rub his man along the boards and eliminate from action .. moves surprisingly well for a player of his size .. not an overly fast skater but has a nice, large stride that covers the ice well and positions himself in accordance with the play .. not overly confident with the puck; often looking to dish it off .. looked a little confused in PP situations, playing behind the blueline as opposed to being inside it to create scoring chances and keeping the puck inside the zone.

James Delory – D (2006)

Hulking kid is about 15 pounds heavier than Ty Wishart .. plays a reliable game with quick short passes out of the zone and is a solid presence on the back end .. very solidly built; players just bounce off him when they attempt to hit him .. very aggressive and extremely physical .. occasionally goes for too much on a hit and takes himself out of position .. decent movement, but lacks foot speed, which prohibits him from rushing the puck up the ice or creating any sort of offensive breakouts.

Logan Pyett – D (2006)

Modest size and frame; needs to get stronger and fill out .. primarily an offensive defenseman who flourishes playing the point on the PP .. has a cannon of a shot and good vision, especially in the offensive zone .. distributes the puck well, often finding a streaking winger with patience on the puck and without rushing to make a play .. skating is a strength; fluid and can change directions swiftly and reverse effortlessly.

Ben Shutron – D (2006)

Crisp, smooth skating style and can pick up considerable speed with few short bursts/strides .. limited in his lateral and reverse movement .. often got beat to the outside as he was unable to get his feet moving in time .. has difficulty changing directions and keeping up with the play .. coughs up the puck when pressured, as he lacks the wherewithal to make a safe, smart play like using the boards .. can move the puck up the ice, but tends to try to carry it too long and gets burned trying to beat too many guys out of the zone with the puck being pushed deep into the offensive territory and him out of position .. has a nice hard shot that he keeps low and manages to get through, somewhat similar to Gonchar in that respect .. plays an offensive style of game and is a PP specialist, however he desperately needs to work on his defensive responsibilities.