OHL: Hodgson Leading Battalion

The first place Brampton Battalion went 0-for-8 on the powerplay in a 6-2 loss to the Mississauga St. Michael's Majors. During the game, they struggled defensively, lacked discipline and missed assignments. There were some bright spots however in Cody Hodgson, currently ranked No. 13 on McKeen's Midterm Rankings for the 2008 NHL Entry Draft and Matt Duchene, eligible in 2009. McKeen's correspondent Gus Katsaros was on hand and provides notes on several Battalion prospects.

Patrick Killeen (2008), G, Brampton Battalion

Butterfly-style goalie using his 6-foot-four body to cover a lot of the net from his knees, where he dropped in warm-up as a first reaction, timed prior to the puck being shot .. on the second goal-against during the game, Killeen saw a perfect shot go over his shoulder, as a result of dropping to his knees too soon .. good at getting post-to-post and reads the play out front well .. spotted pinching defenseman left uncovered and got over at the top of the crease quickly to take away space and time from an almost sure goal .. can flop a lot after the initial shot, instead of getting back into position .. limited defensive help in this game coupled with some shaky decision-making contributed to a less than stellar performance.

Cody Hodgson (2008), C, Brampton Battalion

Projected first rounder .. good hands in the faceoff circle .. good offensive vision using hands for skillful passes while his skating opens up possibilities to use an arsenal of shots .. skillful offensively, he was defensively responsible, whether sticking with his man deep in defensive zone coverage, or backing up a pinching defenseman in the offensive zone .. follows the powerplay rush as the last man curling in the neutral zone, picking up speed as the trailer along the wall to drive to the net or retrieve a loose puck in the corner or setting up behind the net .. protects the puck well and patiently hides his intentions .. plays a roving position in the offensive zone with the man-advantage, covering up for pinching defensemen or following the play down deep .. battles along the boards for loose pucks using his body well, limiting ineffective stick checks .. when he does not have the puck, he gets into open ice becoming a viable outlet on most plays, creating a play almost out of thin air .. a bright spot on a bad outing for the Battalion.

Scott Tanski (2008), C, Brampton Battalion

Lanky 6-foot pivot is an average skater with a wide skating stride, but rarely hit full stride .. seemed tentative physically, as his 179-pound frame does not bode well for battling along the boards .. despite his skating, he does keep his feet moving utilizing good position to close gaps defensively .. average slapshot and did not display much in the way of variety .. has a good sense of his defensive duties and uses space well, but his skating keeps him from getting to the speed to excel offensively and be responsible defensively.

Mike Lomas (2008), LW, Brampton Battalion

Physical winger despite 5-foot-11, 183-pound frame, not afraid to throw a check, although he can sometimes go looking for a hit that does not materialize, putting himself out of position .. uses quick bursts with a good change of pace to retrieve loose pucks and getting into the zone .. digs and battles hard along the boards .. made an exceptional play banking a pass off the boards almost at a ninety-degree angle where a teammate swooped in to pick up the puck, while Lomas quickly got in position .. scrappy, finishes his checks and gets in players faces .. energy player with limited hands, but loads of desire.

Kyle DeCoste (2008), RW, Brampton Battalion

Puck hound, constantly moving his feet .. spots opportunities to use a quick burst to get to open ice, or to close gaps with his man in defensive coverage .. high energy forward looks for open ice as an outlet effectively, making use of a good skating stride .. sacrifices his body to block shots .. finishes his checks making his presence felt .. aggressively bolts to the net and into traffic looking for loose pucks while getting involved in a scuffle after the whistle .. impressive speed and desire to make the most of each shift.

Bob Sanguinetti (NYR), D, Brampton Battalion

A disappointing outing for the Blueshirts first-round choice in 2007, with an uninspired defensive effort, along with a non-existent physical game .. patient with the puck at the point drawing the opposition to him while he gets the puck off as a shot through traffic or using good vision finding a man down low .. a lazy effort in defensive zone coverage not fighting for his spot, using too many stick checks most of the night and not enough physical work .. did a lot of watching the puck and not doing very much in coverage .. plays the entire powerplay .. was knocked-off the puck easily despite his 6-foot-2, 183-pound frame .. showed a hint of life diving for puck in the third period, only to slowly recover and get back to the play .. was caught wandering on the penalty kill and almost had his man blow by him to go in all alone and relying on his partner to save the play .. even his approach to offense was lazy and not thought out, making a drop pass into traffic with no teammate in sight .. a performance not worthy of a first round pick.

Cory Emmerton (Det), LW, Brampton Battalion

Uneventful first period without much of an impact on either side of the puck, as he could still be reeling from a bout of mononucleosis that held him out of the World Juniors Championships .. better puck control and passing in the second period with the man advantage .. 6-foot, 190-pound winger plays the point with the man-advantage .. carried the puck in deep on the powerplay and stayed down low after noticing his spot on the point was covered (by Cory Hodgson) .. lax coverage defensively in the slot where his missed an assignment that led to the Majors third goal, a direct cause of being scored on .. let his man go at the half-boards after losing the puck battle and did nothing but glide watching the Majors score their fourth of the night .. good hand/eye coordination stopping the puck in midair, and using his feet to kick it up to his stick and get a pass off all in one neat motion .. that was the only bright spot in a horrible outing.

John DeGray (Ana), D, Brampton Battalion

Secondary powerplay QB .. too attentive to the puck in his own zone, watching its progress and lost his positioning in front of the goal, while a defenseman pinched in from the point behind him to rattle off a quick shot on goal .. tough blueliner, using 6-foot-4, 212-pound frame to steer his man away from the net from in close .. can sometimes venture into ill-timed aggressiveness at inopportune moments and could control his emotions after the whistle better - good heart, but could make better decisions .. good backwards skater with quick acceleration and positioning .. quick feet and physically imposing rearguard.

Matt Duchene (2009), C, Brampton Battalion

The 5-foot-11, 190-pound pivot does not stop moving his feet and is always involved when on the ice in some way .. plays the powerplay with Sanguinetti on the point in some instances .. uses his body as a first instinct in coverage, hitting his man to cause turnovers .. quick bursts of speed in transition with excellent first-step acceleration .. admirable energy, passion and speed off the hop, or during play .. reads the play well venturing to the opposite side of the ice when pressure is already on the one side, looking for free space to utilize a quick shot .. goes hard to the net with his stick on the ice .. physical, gets involved along the boards and going to the net and into scrums looking for rebounds .. gets back deep in his zone with the awareness to see both his defensemen on one side of the ice, so he covered the middle .. has good defensive awareness, but must learn to trust his instincts and react to coverage decisions not wavering between what to do at specific moments .. pounced on a loose puck, and had Majors goalie beat and tried a low shot but was robbed on two-consecutive rebounds .. big burst of short-distance speed, going hard to the net, almost putting in the rebound all of which epitomized his effort in this contest.