OHL: Taylor Made

McKeen's Chief correspondent David Burstyn looks at a several Guelph Storm prospects that are eligible for the 2009 NHL Entry Draft including Peter Holland, Taylor Beck and Michael Latta, who are all rated in the top-60 on McKeen's Spring Rankings. Brandon Foote, Tim Campbell and Ben Chiarot are also featured.

Brandon Foote (2009), G, Guelph

Foote has struggled since being acquired from Brampton for Thomas McCollum .. has not been able to 'steal' any games for the Storm, with the exception of one game against the Kitchener Rangers .. has surrendered an average of 3.42 goals a game since coming over in the trade .. the biggest obstacle for Foote is not having a quality backup to push him .. the dynamic in Brampton with Killeen, forced him to compete and play harder for his starts .. in Guelph, it has been the opposite and his lack of confidence is apparent in his play .. rebound control and the fact that he goes down too early are areas that need improvement .. plays far too deep in his net and has a tendency to let in 'soft' goals .. it will be interesting to see how he responds to the playoff pressure, as the job will be his to lose and a first round playoff exodus will fall solely on his shoulders.

Tim Campbell (2009), D, Guelph

It took a little longer for Campbell to develop under coach Brooks but the 6th round selection (111th overall) is starting to fulfill his promise .. has received additional icetime since Gibbons was moved to Ottawa .. a cerebral hockey player who relies on his sharp instincts and understands how to cope and deal with pressure .. limited panic point to his game, as he always finds his options, makes a smart, simple play and is casual in the process .. still not rushing the puck up ice, as he has been coached not to .. he is clever with the puck and makes short precise passes .. his puck carrying skills are decent and has the good sense when to move the play up ice but displays the defensive defenseman mindset of getting to the redline and dumping the puck into the corner or making a quick outlet pass .. his hands and head are faster than his feet .. average in terms of speed and acceleration he has a surprising change of pace that usually gets him out of trouble .. will eliminate his player from a play with a timely bodycheck .. fuses a nice mixture of maturity with a developing offensive game and could be 'stolen' in the later rounds to teams that are doing their homework.

Ben Chiarot (2009), D, Guelph

Chiarot has helped out his draft stock considerably by playing a simple, all-purpose game .. he has adjusted nicely to the pace of the league and is no longer intimidated by aggressive forecheckers, as he has learned to settle down the puck and use his size advantageously to buy some time to make a play .. he has become a low-risk option, a far cry from last season when he could barely crack the lineup .. he has used his agility in a defensive capacity eliminating passing lanes and playing well positionally .. stays with his man defensively and utilizes his reach to pry away loose pucks .. physical and aggressive, he leads the Storm backend in PIM with over 100 .. still unsure with the puck getting panicky while under pressure but to his credit his vision is improving .. Chiarot lacks top-end speed but uses his body to take as much room on the ice as possible and is playing a more conservative game, which only supports his position in the draft.

Taylor Beck (2009), LW, Guelph

Beck has matured considerably within the course of the last month .. he has learned that making the simple play is the better option .. in former times, when he used to make his living in dirty areas of the ice, he is now becoming more of an open-ice player .. his skating is still a question mark, however players like Rick Nash have excelled and it is Beck's willingness to get where the puck is, which makes him appear faster .. his hockey IQ helps him in defensive situations, as he chooses the right angles and is constantly pumping his feet to offset his lack of first step .. shelters the puck and takes an extra second to locate his options .. at 6-foot-1 and 207 pounds, he plays a similar game to Milan Lucic, as his game is all about power and a determination to outwork all the other players on ice .. he may slip to the second round but an NHL team that really likes what he can do will jump on him early in the second, as he will make a better pro than junior.

Michael Latta (2009), C, Guelph

Latta has shades of Sean Avery and Steve Downie in his game .. there is little question concerning his ability to produce on the OHL level, however his overall maturity and skating beg the question if he has what it takes to want to become a hockey player .. Latta has developed more of a playmaker role, as he likes to outdo himself with excessive stickhandling, negating a scoring chance .. is showcasing a more creative side but needs to make a simple play .. needs to exercise his shot more, as within the hash marks he has a terrific release on a snapshot that can fool many goalies .. tends to chase down plays as opposed to establishing his defensive positioning and his overall lack of speed prohibits him from being a difference maker away from the puck .. the best he can hope for is to intimidate a player into taking a poor angle, however at higher levels of competition that will be less likely to occur .. Latta does not hesitate to drop the gloves but is not a heavyweight, even though he has had some good tilts with the likes of Wallace (Windsor), Randell (Kitchener), and Clifford (Barrie) .. hard to project what type of player Latta will be at the next level.

Peter Holland (2009), C, Guelph

Still being played at centre when his talents and skills lie better on the wing .. he is creative and has a quick stick, however his attention to defensive detail does not make him qualified enough to play down the middle .. too fancy with the puck, he is skilled but knows it as well and does not always make the best decisions .. he gets ample chances due to his icetime but has a tendency to take shifts off and does not always play with consistency away from the puck .. has shown a complete lack of physical assertion in recent outings and ironically has only fought once in the league with Greg Nemisz, another player criticized of the same shortcomings .. great snap and wristshot coming down the wing .. he holds onto the puck until the last second and exposes the open face of the blade to get a goalie to move a slight inch before blowing it by them short side .. hockey sense has been a major area of concern, as he is not always able to process what is going on around him and plays in a capsule .. he needs to focus his play away from the puck and show that he is able to lead in any capacity .. the playoffs should expose or glorify his game.