Midget Buc Bowl: Division D 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.

In his final report on the 2008 Midget Buc Bowl, McKeen's correspondent Kevin Wey looks at the top prospects eligible for the 2010 and 2011 NHL Entry Drafts from Division D, featuring Rocco Grimaldi (pictured) and Little Caesars (who won the tournament) and the Chicago Fury.

Rocco Grimaldi (2011), C, Little Caesars

The featured attraction at the 2008 Midget Buc Bowl as a 1993-born .. is a water bug with his exceptional agility and very quick stops and starts .. speed and acceleration are also equally exceptional .. skates in a power position with good knee bend and generates power in his strides .. has unbelievably quick hands that are also soft .. has a fairly hard shot .. does a good job of opening up to the play while handling the puck and assessing options .. combination of speed, hands, and hockey sense allows him to skate around the opposition .. engages physically and can lay out some good shoulder checks .. plays on the PK and puts in a good effort pressuring opponents on the forecheck .. 5-foot-6, 152-pound center did seem to tire over the course of the weekend, and size is a potential issue in the future .. would probably have to quit hockey not to be drafted in 2011, as he has Patrick Kane-like talent .. in 2007-08, he played midget minor AAA for Little Caesars and scored 60 goals and 68 assists in 76 games.

Vince Trochek (2011), C, Little Caesars

Talented two-way center skipped midget minor altogether .. has good speed and decent acceleration .. strides have decent power, especially for his age .. puts in a good effort on the forecheck and backcheck, where he uses his speed and hockey sense .. engages physically and lays out some nice hits along the boards .. involved down low helping his defensemen .. overshadowed by Grimaldi on Little Caesar's, but still a very advanced 1993-born .. in 2007-08, he played bantam major AAA for Little Caesars and scored 57 goals and 71 assists in 79 games.

Jamie Oleksiak (2011), D, Little Caesars

Gigantic defenseman sure to draw plenty of interest .. has a long stride with some power .. needs more power accelerating backwards but does a good job of keeping a wide base and minimizing crossovers .. needs to improve turning radius, but has decent mobility backwards to angle and finish opponents along the boards .. generally maintains short gaps .. adept hip checker also able to throw opponents around .. passing game is inconsistent .. demonstrates he can make crisp, accurate passes and spring teammates for breakaways, but then can be off the mark the next game .. does maintain poise with the puck .. hands are reasonably soft for receiving passes smoothly .. has a good pointshot that creates scoring chances .. already 6-foot-5 and 210 pounds a couple months before his 16th birthday .. in 2007-08, he played midget minor for the Toronto Young Nationals of the Greater Toronto Hockey League .. has dual Canadian/American citizenship .. drafted by the Chicago Steel in the second round, 17th overall pick, of the 2008 USHL Futures Draft .. selected by the Saginaw Spirit in the seventh round, 138th overall pick, in the 2008 OHL Priority Selection.

Michael Houser (2010), G, Little Caesars

Six-foot-two, 188-pound goalie has most shots hit him in the chest with no rebound .. drops on almost every shot, but generally plays his angles well to make Giguere-like saves .. able to load up and get across his crease from and in butterfly reasonably well .. has the combination of size and technique, with sufficient athleticism that scouts like to see today.. in 2007-08, he played midget minor AAA for Little Caesars and played 40 games with a record or 26-6-6, 8 shutouts, a 1.87 goals-against, and a .906 save percentage .. backstopped Little Caesars to USA Hockey Tier I U16 national championship with a 1.19 goals-against average and a .954 save percentage at the tournament .. drafted by Des Moines Buccaneers in the second round, 14th overall, of the 2008 USHL Futures Draft.

John McCarron (2010), LW, Little Caesars

Big forward plays a physical game but must improve speed and hands .. never hesitates to play the body and lays out big hits frequently .. picks up penalties coming across zones for big hits .. not particularly fast and has average agility .. has almost no separation with the puck .. is a fairly smooth skater without the puck, though .. shows a little speed in hustle on the forecheck and backcheck and to make hits .. slow in moving the puck .. uses his frame to shield the puck well .. has a big slapper skating down the wing .. has a decent wristshot and snapshot, but must improve accuracy .. does a good job staying open to the play and reading and reacting off the play offensively and defensively .. more explosiveness and speed for separation would do him wonders .. in 2007-08, he played midget minor AAA for Honeybaked and scored 9 goals and 25 assists in 64 games .. drafted by the Lincoln Stars in the fourth round, 38th overall, of the 2008 USHL Futures Draft.

Brent Tate (2010), RW, Little Caesars

Developing power forward .. has good cruising speed and decent speed with the puck .. a bit upright when turning and in general .. still has fairly long strides, but needs more power .. has a quick snapshot and a nice backhand .. puts in a good effort on the forecheck and the backcheck .. 6-foot-1, 165-pound right-winger plays with some physicality and will hunt for hits a bit (not as much as teammate John McCarron) .. engages physically to establish position for the puck .. could become a very good power forward as he fills out .. appeared to dislocate or separate his shoulder in the second game and did not return .. in 2007-08, he played midget minor AAA for Little Caesars and scored 27 goals and 28 assists in 75 games.

Savario Posa (2010), D, Little Caesars

Smaller defenseman (5-10, 170), but still worth monitoring .. has quick feet and decent speed, but could afford to lengthen stride .. has decent backwards acceleration, but needs to keep a wider stance and reduce crossovers a bit .. does make quick stops and starts backwards .. makes crisp, accurate passes .. has good patience with the puck .. distributes the puck well on the powerplay .. possesses a decent slapshot that he keeps low and a quick snapshot .. occasionally pinches offensively, but not irresponsibly .. also plays on the penalty kill .. communicates with d-partner .. improved speed (through power) could make him a noteworthy puck-moving defenseman or a good two-way defenseman .. in 2007-08, he played midget minor AAA for Little Caesars and scored 6 goals and 31 assists in 79 games.

Derrek Schartz (2010), LW, Chicago Fury

Texas transplant may be most impressive prospect on Illinois team .. has a lean upper body and leans forward a lot skating, but legs are in excellent form with good knee bend and significant power .. has good speed .. plays with a little sandpaper and can make some big hits .. has a quick wristshot and passes are generally crisp and on the tape .. in 2007-08, he played midget minor AAA for the Texas Attack.

Brian Davis (2010), C, Chicago Fury

Pivot plays a good positional, two-way game .. adept at filling in holes in the offensive zone and reading the play .. has good quickness and utilizes it on the forecheck and backcheck .. decent playmaker down low, out of the corners, and off the boards .. also a threat to come off the boards or out of the corner and score himself .. not overly flashy, but still moderately impressive in his two-way game .. in 2007-08, he played midget minor AAA for the Chicago Mission of the MWEHL and scored 16 goals and 11 assists in 31 MWEHL regular season games.

Mike LaFrenier (2010), D, Chicago Fury

Smaller defenseman does many things well and his junior hockey experience shows .. has good speed forwards and a nice stride .. lacks power accelerating backwards, but has very good backwards form .. keeps a wide stance backwards with no crossovers and has excellent agility and mobility backwards .. keeps short gaps and can angle opponents well or stand them up .. has a cannon of a slapper .. makes crisp, accurate passes and can connect long-distance .. mobility and passing makes him good at transitioning the puck .. 5-foot-10, 170-pound defenseman is a good two-way blueliner and hopefully grows a couple of inches .. in 2007-08, he played Tier III Junior A for the Chicago Force and scored 7 goals and 10 assists in 38 games.

D.J. Nykaza (2010), C, Chicago Fury

Really leans forward when skating, but still has decent cruising speed without the puck .. has thin legs and lacks acceleration with the puck .. does have some agility and can make nice Gretzky circles with the puck .. has a fairly hard slapshot and a decent wristshot .. stickhandling often involves slow, sweeping moves with the puck .. plays on both the powerplay and penalty kill .. additional lower body strength will go a long way in defining his game .. in 2007-08, he played midget minor AAA for Team Illinois and scored 6 goals and 8 assists in 30 MWEHL regular season games.

Jackson Bray (2010), RW, Chicago Fury

Stout, 5-foot-10, 190-pound right winger may need to improve conditioning.. is strong in pushing over opponents .. willing to engage physically and shoulder into opponents to establish position and get the puck .. however, his first few steps are slow and lacks separation .. has some power in his strides, but speed is average with the puck and only decent without .. was not much of a presence offensively .. appears to be a strong player, but also appears to need to work on fast-twitch muscle fiber conditioning .. in 2007-08, he played midget major AAA for the Chicago Fury and scored 2 goals and 4 assists in 26 MWEHL regular season games.

Derek Schultz (2010), LW, Chicago Fury

Big forward picks up points despite major skating deficiencies .. is fairly slow and lacks power .. has little knee bend and also skates bent over .. turns are an adventure .. passing seemed off, although sub-par skating may be the culprit .. is, however, a consistent presence around the net and has a hard snapshot .. can make some big hits if he gets frustrated .. significant overhauling of skating might make him a good power forward around the net .. in 2007-08, he played midget minor AAA for the Chicago Fury and scored 10 goals and 16 assists in 31 MWEHL regular season games.