Midget Buc Bowl: Division A Prospect Notes

Des Moines, Iowa, sees plenty of prospects come through town in the American Hockey League at Iowa Chops games and in the United States Hockey League at Des Moines Buccaneers games, but the Bucs organization brought some of the top U-18 talent in the United States to the area in October for the 2008 Midget Buc Bowl. Twenty midget major AAA teams from around the country competed at the tournament and were able to showcase their players to scouts from a number of USHL teams and a few NAHL teams as well.

McKeen's correspondent Kevin Wey enters notes on players from Detroit Victory Honda (who made it to the finals), the Madison Capitols, S2 Hockey, and the Florida Jr. Panther Alliance, all members of Division A at the tournament.

Luke Eibler (2009), D, Victory Honda

Was not amongst the notable prospects to take notes on, but his play was eye-catching .. has good backwards skating form, as he does not rely on crossovers, keeps a wide base for maximum mobility, and has decent speed backwards .. has some speed forwards, including with the puck, but the 6-foot-3, 175-pound blueliner needs additional strength to maximize his long strides .. steps up to stand-up opponents or to make open-ice hits often, many of which end up big hits .. keeps his head on a swivel and does a good job of intercepting passes or clogging passing lanes with his stick .. makes fairly crisp, accurate passes .. has a hard shot from the point and a decent snapshot, too .. few opponents attempt to stop him when he gets his momentum going with the puck, and he has the hands to make some moves .. plays a good two-way game and has a definite physical presence that will only get bigger as he adds more muscle .. very impressive for having come out of the Michigan high school ranks prior to this season .. in 2007-08, he played for Pickney High School and was named to the 2008 Division 2 All-State Second Team by the Michigan High School Hockey Coaches Association .. selected by the Indiana Ice in the 2008 USHL Futures Draft in the 7th round with the 63rd overall pick.

Jay Llewelyn (2010), LW, Victory Honda

Big forward has some potential, but needs to improve game-to-game and shift-to-shift consistency .. has decent speed when he chooses to put forth the effort .. does have a little acceleration and power, but could use more and is slow when he's not trying .. does a good job of using his 6-foot-3, 200-pound frame to shield the puck from opponents and start the cycle .. has adequate stick skills, but didn't really exert himself enough on a consistent basis during the tournament to show what he's really capable of .. intriguing power forward that will need to put forth a consistent effort if he is to play in the USHL or major juniors, but does seem to have the potential to do so .. in 2007-08, he played midget minor AAA for Victory Honda and scored 5 goals and 6 assists in 31 MWEHL regular season games .. selected by the Saginaw Spirit in the 2008 OHL Priority Selection in the 14th round with the 271st overall pick.

Garrett Ross (2010), RW, Victory Honda

At minimum, he has a future as a good defensive forward .. has decent speed with the puck down the alleys, as well as decent speed bursts .. does have a quick wristshot and a decent snapshot, but did not seem to have a natural scorer's touch .. puts in an excellent defensive effort, finishing his checks on the forecheck and hustling to prevent the opponents from breaking out the puck .. also hustles on the backcheck and can strip opponents of the puck .. is capable of laying out big hits .. unselected in the 2008 USHL Futures Draft, but does seem like a candidate for the 2009 USHL Entry Draft with a strong 2008-09 season or as a challenger for a roster spot through tryouts .. in 2007-08, he played midget minor AAA for Victory Honda and scored 7 goals and 9 assists in 31 MWEHL regular season games.

Andy Ryan (2011), D, Victory Honda

Significantly advanced defenseman for his age .. keeps his gaps short .. keeps a low stance skating backwards and keeps crossovers to a minimum .. could afford to skate with a wider base backwards and also needs more speed backwards .. has good lateral mobility .. has a smooth stride skating forward, with or without the puck .. adept at blocking shots or clogging passing lanes with leg drags .. played both the left side and the right side, was a regular on special teams, and played in the final minute of the game .. does not panic defensively or offensively, as he does not backtrack early defensively and remains calm when pressured when handling the puck ..generally makes crisp, accurate passes and receives passes with soft hands .. does stop moving his feet at times, when assessing the play offensively .. pinches in from the point from time to time, but is responsible doing so .. in 2007-08, he played midget minor AAA for Victory Honda and scored 7 goals and 9 assists in 31 MWEHL regular season games .. definitely a player to watch, especially if he does not plateau early.

Jon Roessler (2010), C, Madison Capitols

Isn't the prettiest skater, but is nevertheless a consistent offensive presence .. has average speed, hunches forward when skating, also skates somewhat upright, and loses almost all knee bend when tired .. often has short, choppy strides and gets vertical when accelerating .. despite skating deficiencies, he is a set-up man along the half boards on the powerplay and is calm with the puck .. has good offensive awareness and reads the play well to fill holes or to find open teammates .. does have quick feet laterally and the agility to evade checkers with spin moves at low speed, both of which he uses to come out of the corners and drive the net on opponents one typically would think could contain him .. has a scorer's and playmaker's touch with decent snapshot and wristshot .. also has good defensive awareness to cover for pinching defenseman and plays on the penalty kill .. is not an overwhelming physical presence, but does engage physically .. already has the hockey sense to excel, just needs to improve his skating .. in 2007-08, he played midget minor AAA for the Madison Capitols.

Aaron Scheppelman (2010), D, S2 Hockey

Smooth-skating defenseman that plays an aggressive, physical game .. maintains a low stance backwards with a wide base .. has good backwards acceleration, speed and keeps his gaps fairly small .. smooth skater with good all-compass mobility .. has decent speed forward and has a fairly long stride .. plays physical along the boards, around the net and goes for open-ice hits, too .. knows how to play his two-on-ones and when to drop to clog the passing lane .. offensively, makes crisp passes on the tape and has a crisp wristshot and a good slapshot .. stickhandling is only adequate, as he does lose the handle at times .. intriguing as a physical defensive defenseman that moves the puck reliably and who has already filled out, even if only 5-foot-11 in height .. in 2007-08, he played midget minor AAA for Honeybaked and scored 1 goal and 6 assists in 28 MWEHL regular season games.

Nick Paluch (2010), C, S2 Hockey

Small forward is an excellent skater .. has good speed and maintains good knee bend and generates power in his strides .. has very good agility, as he has quick feet when needed but also maintains good knee bend in tight turns for maximum cut .. does not just cross his feet over but powers out of turns .. also has good speed with the puck and can shift gears .. smooth stickhandler that has good agility with the puck .. has decent two-way awareness and uses it skating on the forecheck and the backcheck .. does a good job to stay open to the play .. undersized at this point, but has as a strong skating base to his game and some skill, too .. in 2007-08, he played midget minor AAA for Belle Tire and scored 6 goals and 11 assists in 31 MWEHL regular season games.

Brock McGinn (2010), D, Florida Jr. Panthers Alliance

Physical defenseman with decent skill .. has quick feet for good lateral movement to defend around his net and to go for loose pucks .. also has good acceleration and speed bursts, but takes too many steps and gets a little upright under acceleration .. has average speed with the puck, but is fairly patient with the puck .. generally makes crisp, accurate passes .. has a hard slapshot from the point that is crisp and that he keeps low .. does a good job to take looks skating back for the puck .. plays a very physical game along the boards and around his net and likes to make open-ice hits .. will drop the gloves, too .. could end up a major physical force when he fills out, at whatever level he plays at .. in 2007-08, he played midget minor AA for the South Florida Golden Wolves.