Czech Junior Profiles: HC Hame Zlin juniors

HC Hame Zlin juniors

Tomas Magusin (2006), D

Possesses a gigantic frame .. a sub-par skater with a not very effective stride .. slow acceleration, with first-step quickness and can get beaten by speed .. needs to work on his turns and lateral movement .. speed can be particularly improved with adding more lower-body strength .. stays back in his own zone rather than rushing the puck .. decent stickhandling skills .. uses his reach well at blocking opposing passing lanes and pinching the puck .. solid positional play .. focuses on staying with his man and doesn't make many mistakes in his own end .. doesn't have the vision to emerge as an offensive blueliner .. tends to pass the puck to the teammate nearby him .. has to bulk up considerably and make his giant frame to his advantage .. a Slovak citizen .. still worth future watching.

Jakub Karlicek (2006), D

A decent skater who still needs to improve on particular assets .. stride lacks crispness, but it gets him from point A to point B .. could use more explosiveness, yet is still able to keep up with the play .. skates reasonably well backwards .. boasts solid agility .. adequate lower-body strength and balance .. calm in puck possession, waits for plays to develop although occasionally holds on the puck for too long .. plays with his head up, however still overlooks passing lanes and isn't very creative .. adequate stickhandling skills, but still could use softer hands .. can make passes from both sides of the stick .. passing accuracy remains an issue .. solid accurate shot from the point, but not very hard .. works hard down low .. adequate positional play .. lacks mean streak .. uses his stick instead of his body .. okay attitude and work ethic .. not a legitimate NHL prospect.

Martin Prikryl (2006), D

An adequate skater for a big man but doesn't have the speed to handle quicker forwards effectively .. uses a powerful stride and possesses above-average lower-body strength .. good balance .. needs to improve on his agility .. slow on his turns .. average stickhandling skills .. erratic passer, has to upgrade on passing accuracy considerably .. prone to the odd mistake when moving the puck .. average vision .. distributes accurate passes if not pressured by a forechecking opponent .. unleashes a howitzer from the point, but accuracy is an issue .. a good defensive force when he keeps things simple .. decent positional play .. takes advantage of his big frame and emerges as a decent hitter along the boards .. solid at clearing the crease .. hampered in his progress by an unimpressive attitude and work ethic .. a late '87-born defenseman .. doesn't show noticeable pro potential.

Michal Cerny (2007), D

A decent skater but a player of his smallish size still could use a better acceleration and upgrading on top-end speed .. okay change of pace and a good lateral movement .. adequate first-step quickness .. needs to upgrade on balance and lower-body strength .. okay stickhandling skills .. adept at moving the puck out of his own end and distributing it to the forwards .. a decent passer but tends to make erratic decisions when pressed by an opponent .. okay awareness of his linemates .. adequate shooting skills, but needs to work on firing harder .. should unleash his slapper more often .. a good asset to the powerplay units .. generally doesn't take chances in his own zone, but still could improve on his positional play .. willing to get involved physically despite modest frame, but bulking up and adding more strength is essential for him .. can't handle the sized opponents effectively at this point .. relies more on smarts than on toughness .. a late '88 born defenseman.

Pavel Suk (2006), RW

A decent skater .. possesses an okay top-end speed, but could use a smoother acceleration to be a bigger offensive threat .. decent agility .. average balance .. tends to get knocked off his skates too often which limits his effectiveness in heavy traffic .. blessed with solid stickhandling skills, but needs to develop a better control of the puck in tight spaces .. should cover the puck more effectively .. a decent passer, but is prone to panic decisions with the puck when pressed by an opponent .. uses primarily his wrist or snap shot .. decent commitment to the defensive duties .. marks his man quickly .. willing to muck for the pucks along the boards, but his size deficiency don't make him a force in the trenches .. tends to get out powered by bigger opponents .. doesn't earn NHL consideration.

Daniel Vanek (2006), LW

A solid skater .. uses a quick choppy stride and keeps his feet moving .. good agility and acceleration .. is light on his feet and needs to improve on lower-body strength .. knocked off balance too easily .. very offensively minded .. solid stickhandling skills .. uses a short stick which enables him to make many dekes through traffic .. intensity rises in the offensive zone .. doesn't show much commitment when playing off the puck .. a quick release on his accurate wrist shot .. slap shot needs to be more harder and fired more often .. sub-par defensive awareness .. slow at marking his man and not strong enough to keep him under control .. blessed with a diminutive frame, which prevents him from being an effective physical presence .. his speed enables him to avoid some hits, but gets outmuscled by bigger opponents .. not a NHL prospect.

Jan Bula (2006), C

A solid skater with deceptive quickness and change of pace .. possesses an adequate balance and bursts of speed .. still could improve on his first-step quickness .. adequate top-end speed .. a smooth puckhandler .. capable of making nifty moves with his stick .. eager to earn possession of the puck but less intense when playing off the puck .. utilizes on his solid offensive instincts and creativity with the puck .. a deft passer, but prone to overhandling the puck .. unleashes a quick wrist shot with a solid accuracy .. needs to further work on the accuracy of his good hard slap shots .. essential for him is to be more physically assertive .. isn't a force in heavy traffic .. gets outmuscled by bigger opponents .. defensive play is average at this point .. prone to wandering in his own end .. the former fringe OHL player shoots right .. not worth selecting in the draft.

Adam Miksovsky (2006), RW

An okay skater with a fast acceleration and a fluid stride .. capable of sharp turns .. his speed is one of his strongest assets .. strong footspeed .. could use more lower-body strength and balance .. looking for breakaway chances .. handles the puck adequately with his decent hands and is capable of a quick move to avoid a giveaway .. offensive instincts don't stand out but shows an adequate nose for the net .. fast-released wrist and snap shot .. slap shot should be more accurate .. average portion of vision and hockey sense .. sometimes erratic passing .. thrives on powerplay units with more space for his moves .. takes odd shifts off .. should develop a bigger determination when playing off the puck .. sub-par defensive awareness .. more of a finesse winger .. doesn't hit very hard and traffic play is another thing where he needs upgrading .. not worth selecting in the draft.

Jiri Korcak (2006), RW

An adequate skater .. is a bit heavy-footed which limits his acceleration .. okay agility .. adequate first-step quickness still could be improved .. decent top-end speed and footspeed .. adequate balance and lower-body strength .. smooth puckhandling skills .. willing to go with the puck into traffic .. corrals difficult passes smoothly .. decent reading of plays in the offensive zone .. a crafty passer who can dish out an accurate pass but doesn't have top-notch hockey sense in all three zones .. an okay force when playing in the offensive end .. willing to forecheck .. fires an accurate wrist shot with a fast release .. upgraded on hardness and accuracy of the slap shot and uses it more often .. adequate defensive awareness .. returns back to his own end but is still inconsistent in this asset .. a decent performer on powerplay units .. doesn't avoid physical contact and can lay a solid hit but isn't physically intimidating on every shift.

Tomas Brunec (2006), LW

A diminutive player .. an above-average skater with a solid footspeed .. displays an okay acceleration and first-step quickness .. solid agility on his skates .. doesn't impress with his balance and his smallish frame enables the opponents to knock him off his feet .. slick stickhandling skills and hand-eye coordination .. an offensive forward .. forechecks tenaciously .. tries to sneak through traffic by using flashy moves but opponents who play his body can neutralize him .. should make more accurate passes when passing on a long distance .. adequate variety of shots .. a quick release on his accurate wrist shot .. average slap shot needs to be harder and less telegraphed .. returns back to defense, but needs to mark his man more quickly and upgrade on his defensive positioning .. needs to get stronger to handle traffic more effectively to overcome the lack of size .. can be pushed out of the scoring lanes by bigger opponents .. willing to finish the checks, but is inconsistent.

Jiri Ondracek (2006), RW

An average skater .. the knock against him is his lack of stride crispness .. should pick up on his acceleration and first-step quickness .. possesses adequate balance on his skates .. possesses an okay agility .. possesses decent stickhandling skills .. can beat the defensemen in one-on-one situation occasionally with a surprising move .. an adequate passer but should be able to recognize passing lanes more quickly .. tends to hold on the puck for too long and is hesitant about making a quick pass .. shows a solid wrist and snap shot with a quick release .. slap shot needs to be more accurate .. possesses an okay defensive awareness and returns often back to help out the defense .. marks his man quickly but could read the plays of players with the puck in the defensive zone more faster .. is blessed with an average frame .. often refuses to get involved in the physical going .. needs to gain more muscle mass to avoid getting pushed out of the scoring chances too easily.

Jan Matejka (2007), C

A decent skater with okay bursts of speed and quickness .. adequate balance on his skates but still should improve on lower-body strength .. could further upgrade on his agility and make sharper turns .. top-end speed is an issue but skating is likely to improve due to a fluid stride .. solid puckhandling skills .. uses both sides of the stick when passing or receiving a pass .. more of a playmaker than a finisher .. can make passes with solid timing .. aware of his linemates .. possesses a decent hockey sense which enables him to distribute smart passes .. okay creativity .. needs to work on his variety of shots .. doesn't use his inaccurate slap shot very often .. needs to be more lethal and persistent around the goal area .. doesn't take many off-shifts .. should use his body to bigger extent and throw more hits .. plays more of a finesse style .. is average in his defensive play .. willing to return back and help out but is very raw at blocking the opposing passing lane.

Lukas Vartovnik (2007), C

A solid skater with deceptive quickness and change of pace .. possesses decent bursts of speed and impresses with his balance .. could upgrade on his top-end speed .. an okay puckhandler .. capable of making nifty moves with his stick when needed, but isn't a dipsy-doodler with the puck .. shows decent offensive instincts and an adequate creativity .. possesses a decent portion of hockey sense and awareness of the positioning of the linemates .. releases a hard snap shot with a solid accuracy, but should work on the accuracy of his slap shots .. needs to progress on the smoothness of his finishing skills .. shows up in heavy traffic despite modest frame .. battles for the loose pucks and often looks for the loose rebounds in the opponent's slot .. needs to pick up on his defensive play .. should further develop his defensive positioning and mark his man faster .. average in the faceoff circle .. an '89 born Slovak citizen.