OHL: Meidl a Mixed Bag

We provide fresh scouting reports on three Plymouth Whalers eligible for the 2004 NHL Entry Draft including highly-touted Vaclav Meidl. We remain unimpressed with the (non) effort of Gino Pisellini.

Vaclav Meidl (2004), C

We’re still waiting for him to showcase that extra gear he desperately needs .. a quick first step .. lacks truly sharp agility and adequate balance when moving at top speed .. too often attempts a juke and loses control of the puck .. doesn’t always react fast enough and was leveled despite trying to side-step a hit .. at full speed, he’s quite mobile and can cut down the wing impressively .. balance is only good when he’s in a leaned-over position .. skates with his head down into the neutral zone, not an impressive trait, especially when in traffic .. puck handling ability is very good, fairly strong on the puck and hangs on to it well around his feet and through traffic .. excellent pure passing abilities and made several nifty feeds from behind the net .. good playmaking instincts, impressed with a behind-the-back pass after a strong forecheck .. can be a hard-hitting force when shows requisite effort and plays up to his capabilities .. must give a more consistent effort along the boards and display an oft-absent mean streak .. still picking up the pieces.

Gino Pisellini (2004), RW

Just plain overrated .. poses as a tough guy, yet his game lacks energy and he doesn’t play aggressively at all .. we suppose he has quite the mouth, judging by the number of altercations he gets into .. good fighter when the gloves come off, we’ll give him that .. poor acceleration and top speed is just average .. lacks balance .. lack of determination is just plain frustrating to watch .. not a really useful contributor on the forecheck, not what one would expect from a supposedly blue-collar guy of his caliber .. will throw an add hit, but lacks the upbeat tempo of a pro-quality character guy and generally just skates up and down the wing waiting for the play to come to him .. decent passer and is good at tipping shots in front of the net .. otherwise, he won’t finish much nor create a lot.

Craig Cescon (2004), D

Excellent mobility and strong skating ability for a defenseman .. a lot lacking in other areas, however .. quick first step and above-average top speed .. very agile and moves well laterally .. good transition forwards and back; all in all smooth to all directions .. nice, fluid balance and a really tough kid to get around when applies physical pressure .. impressive offensive instincts in the offensive zone due to heads-up plays .. stood up a fast-breaking attacker with an excellent poke check .. makes hard passes, but many lack accuracy mostly due to his tendency to rush decisions .. capable to making excellent breakout passes when given the time .. not afraid to sacrifice his body to make a preferable feed .. really lacks defensive awareness .. doesn’t really have much patience nor poise in his own end .. gives up the puck a lot due to poor clearing attempts .. doesn’t use stick effectively in front of the net .. must play more stationary in his own end; runs around at times .. not very strong on the puck and at times can be an easy victim of robbery .. a steady one-on-one guy .. takes the body first and then worries about the puck .. slapper is accurate, not much power.