Grand Gudbranson

Led by coach Doug Gilmour, the Kingston Frontenacs have escaped from the Eastern Conference basement and appear to be poised to make the playoffs for the first time in three seasons. Erik Gudbranson has returned from a knee injury and has immediately stepped in and produced. The backend consists of draft eligible Tyler Mort, San Jose second round pick Taylor Doherty and Detroit's Brian Lashoff, all of which have made contributions to team success. The Frontenacs first round selection (2nd overall) of Alan Quine is already paying dividends, as he is establishing himself as an absolute gem of a prospect.

Led by coach Doug Gilmour, the Kingston Frontenacs have escaped from the Eastern Conference basement and appear to be poised to make the playoffs for the first time in three seasons. McKeen's Director of Scouting David Burstyn looks at several Kingston Frontenacs including Erik Gudbranson, Tyler Mort, Taylor Doherty, Brian Lashoff and Alan Quine.

Erik Gudbranson (2010), D, Kingston

Suffered a sprained MCL that saw him miss over a month of action .. has looked impressive in his return giving the backend additional structure and a player who can log upwards of 30-plus minutes a game .. swift and agile for a player of his size (6-3, 200) .. he controls the tempo of the game with the puck in his possession .. he is confident with the puck and makes calculated and solid decisions with it .. the lack of systems in place sometimes handcuff his options, as the forwards appear to be skating with very little purpose in the neutral zone, thus making it difficult for him to spearhead any type of offensive rush .. elects to hang back rather than going end-to-end, which may be a direct result of coaching, as he certainly has the ability to push the puck up ice .. selective in his offensive reads, as he will usually pass the puck, however it would be nice to see him make more charges up ice to instigate offence .. at times, he tries to force his passes and could take a little off them to make a completion .. his first step suffers a tad, as he is not the quickest off the mark and this hurts him in defensive situations .. he uses his reach so well that he is able to steer guys to the outside but at times, he does get beaten to the inside .. takes hits to advance the puck and also delivers his share of hits .. plays with sandpaper but not all the time, as he is not naturally aggressive but when he connects with a hit it usually separates the man from the puck .. Gudbranson wears a letter 'A' and is praised by coach Gilmour whose evaluation of him will have a resounding effect on NHL teams.

Tyler Mort (2010), D, Kingston

Mort is logging more minutes this season despite having played in 52 games as a rookie, yet not seeing limited icetime .. average in all facets of his game, he does not excel in any particular area .. his skating is average, as he is unable to generate much or any speed .. his puck skills are also very ordinary .. loses the gap too often and is routinely beaten in defensive situations .. Mort does have a nice shot but is not given PP time to use it .. continues to learn on the job and play in key situations, but his game is far from NHL ready.

Taylor Doherty (SJ), D, Kingston

Doherty is at his best when he keeps things simple, which he has understood to do this season .. he has not developed an offensive component to his game and even though he appears poised to set career highs in points this season, he is far from an offensive threat .. needs to step up his defensive game, as he misses too many assignments .. relies too much on his size and his long stick to defend .. he appears to have grown into his body and has stopped growing at 6-foot-8, yet continues to put the weight on, as he is a whopping 230 pounds .. this may be too much playing weight for him to carry, as he appears a tad slower and is unable to stay with players off the rush when skating backwards .. it will be an upward battle for Doherty who needs work on many areas of his game to be ready for even a 7th defenseman position in the NHL.

Brian Lashoff (Det), D, Kingston

Shined in his first AHL season putting up points in both the final games of the regular season, 6-1-4-5 and played in all eight playoff games posting 8-1-4-5 totals .. appears to be doing too much this season, as he is thrown to the wolves every game, often having too match up against the opposition's best .. handled his own in the AHL playing in a limited role but back in junior he is overwhelmed at times .. nonetheless, he has handled the responsibilities well and is the captain of the team .. a rugged defender, he gives players additional shots down low and has grit to his game and is not averse to fighting .. manufactures offence with his puckhandling skill .. ok vision, he can hold onto the puck too long before he makes a play .. boasts a decent shot from the point .. plays the point on the PP and is effective due to his lateral mobility on the line and his ability to get into better positions to shoot .. Lashoff will be a cornerstone to this team but it will be up to him to determine whether he plays pro next year or returns as a coveted overage defender in junior.

Alan Quine (2011), C, Kingston

Quine may be the best natural offensive player on this team .. this is an extremely bold statement considering Moon is a two-time, 30-goal man and has posted back-to-back 70-plus point seasons .. nonetheless, Quine has the ability to be an elite junior capable of shattering those totals while playing a much more reliable two-way game than Moon .. his skating is elite, swift and effortless in his stride .. he achieves top levels of speed and is an incredibly graceful skater .. intelligent, as he knows where to go in the offensive zone .. he makes subtle plays that give him additional time and space .. already recognized by the opposition, they often play him differently for fear that he will embarrass them with a quick move .. can pick the pocket of the opposition, as he is so quick in the transition game .. comes back eagerly to defend .. lacks requisite strength to be a difference maker at this point in traffic or along the boards .. he applies himself but just is not strong enough and is easily knocked off the puck .. selective in his attempts to get in front or battle along the boards .. has all the makings of being a special player and should be a first line, first PP option for Team Ontario at the U17 and a possible candidate for the WJC in two short years.