Sioux City Fall Classic Part II

As mentioned in Part I of the Sioux City USHL Fall Classic Report, odds are that at least one Musketeer will be selected in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft, thanks to three decent prospects in their first year of eligibility. What really boosts those odds is the crop of second and third-year-eligible prospects Sioux City sports on its roster. Goaltender Matt Skoff, who played for Team USA's Under-18 Select Team at the 2008 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament, was the most impressive goaltender during the 2009 USHL preseason and has the talent to be the top goalie in the league in 2009-10. Veteran right-winger Adam Schmidt looks set to take his game to the next level. Wisconsin high school scoring ace Matt Paape led the team in preseason scoring, and defenseman Dan Dekeyser used the preseason to establish himself as the team's first or second defenseman, and all three have a legitimate chance at earning late-round selection in the 2010 Draft.

McKeen's correspondent Kevin Wey caught the Sioux City Musketeers in action at both the Battle of Iowa and the Fall Classic and enters notes on Matt Skoff, Adam Schmidt, Matt Paape, Dan Dekeyser, and a few other prospects looking to prove themselves for NHL Draft selection the second or third time around.

Matthew Skoff (2010), G, Sioux City

Hands down the most impressive USHL goaltender in the preseason .. excellent technical game with a fine athletic base .. does a great job tracking the puck through traffic .. stays square to the puck .. maintains composure at all times, be it a breakaway, with the play collapsing in on him, or even when interfered with .. smooth, quick pad slides .. adept at loading up with one leg and quickly and smoothly sliding across the crease .. able to get up and over quickly, as he does so simultaneously .. very quick to his posts .. able to reset quickly .. does a good job directing rebounds into the corners and resets quickly .. stays tall in his butterfly .. able to make the big splits save and has nice extension doing so .. also able to make the big glove saves when he has to, but this only happens when the opposition makes a great play, not as the result of being out of position .. Yanakeff appears to have been given the 1A spot on reputation, but Skoff appears to be the superior netminder at this time .. preseason performance was best goaltending I've seen out of a USHL goaltender .. if Skoff backs up his preseason, he can go in his second season of draft eligibility as former USHL goaltender Alex Kangas did in 2006 .. no college commitment of yet .. played midget major for the Pittsburgh Hornets in 2008-09 and played 720 minutes over 14 games and went 3-6-4 with 0 shutouts, a 3.75 G.AA, and a .898 save percentage .. played a full 60 minutes in his 1 game at the 2009 USHL Fall Classic and got the win and earning a 1.00 G.AA and a .950 save percentage .. played 120 minutes over 2 games for the entire preseason and went 2-0-0 with 1 shutout, a 0.50 G.AA, and a .976 save percentage.

Adam Schmidt (2010), RW, Sioux City

Looked like Sioux City's top forward, but the numbers didn't reflect it.. confidence with the puck has continued its upward trend from last season .. executed some nifty toe drags to undress opponents .. able to make some nice saucer passes from the half boards and can catch difficult passes .. has good cruising speed and acceleration with the puck .. 6-foot-2, 180-pound right-winger plays a physical game .. finishes his checks with some force and creates turnovers .. frequently F1 on the forecheck .. willing to take a hit to make a play .. was big man in front on the powerplay .. came a long way last season and looks poised for a breakout USHL season .. a potential late-round pick if he puts up the numbers commensurate to the skill he now has .. committed to Holy Cross .. played for Sioux City in 2008-09 and scored 5 goals and 9 assists in 49 games .. went without a point in 3 games at the 2009 USHL Fall Classic (an error in scoring robbed him of a goal he should have been credited with Sept. 25) .. credited with 1 goal and 1 assist in 5 games for the preseason.

Dan Dekeyser (2010), D, Sioux City

Sioux City's version of Joe Hartman, only a bit better offensively .. skates with his shoulders hunched like Hartman .. skating is a bit awkward at times .. awkward circling laterally with the puck and isn't immune from stumbling in pivots .. gets down low backwards and generally maintains a short gap .. can be beaten wide with speed, but also a threat to rub the opponent out along the boards or to make a poke check .. manned the point well .. has a hard pointshot and a heavy one-timer .. has a crisp wristshot and snapshot, too .. good one-touch passer and can get the shot off quickly from the pass .. makes hard, crisp, accurate breakout passes and transition passes .. fairly confident skating the puck out, too .. took a leadership role on the ice communicating with his fellow defensemen .. has a legitimate shot of establishing himself as Sioux City's number one defenseman .. listed at 6-foot-2, 174 pounds, but didn't appear to be that lanky .. a long shot to go in the 2010 Draft as a third-year-eligible player, but Matt Bartkowski and Michael Sdao (both of the Lincoln Stars) did so in 2008 and 2009 respectively .. no college commitment of yet .. played for the Trail Smoke Eaters of the BCHL in 2008-09 and scored 8 goals and 17 assists in 58 games .. went without a point in 3 games at the 2009 USHL Fall Classic .. went without a point in 5 games for the entire preseason.

Matt Paape (2010), RW, Sioux City

Doesn't wow you, but he sure is in the right place at the right to time finish chances an awful lot .. top speed and acceleration with the puck are both lacking .. overcomes lack of speed with offensive awareness, as he's in place to strike on rebounds often and has a goal scorer's touch .. has a decent wristshot .. despite being only 5-foot-10, 185 pounds (visually looks smaller), he is able to protect the puck well down low and can get the cycle established .. has good peripheral vision to help him evade checks .. appears to need more lower body strength to give him more top speed and better separation, but definitely has the offensive awareness for success .. born six days later and his first year of eligibility is the 2010 Draft .. may end up Sioux City's top scorer, thus giving him some chance of being taken in the 2010 Draft .. committed to Wisconsin .. played Wisconsin high school hockey for Appleton United in 2008-09 and scored 20 goals and 34 assists in 22 games .. played for Team Wisconsin in the 2008 Upper Midwest High School Elite League prior to the high school season and scored 18 goals and 15 assists in 23 games .. named to the Wisconsin Hockey Coaches Association All-State First Team .. scored 2 goals and 1 assists in 3 games at the 2009 USHL Fall Classic .. scored 4 goals and 1 assist in 5 games for the entire preseason, leading Sioux City in goals and points.

Darik Angeli (2010), C/RW, Sioux City

Nice size at 6-foot-2, 195 pounds and possesses a skilled set of hands .. has good speed with the puck and likes to use wide, sweeping stickhandling moves .. a bit upright in his crossovers and uncertain out on his edges, but has a long stride and good straight-line speed .. heads-up stickhandler who likes to make plays from the half boards and created some prime scoring chances doing so .. makes hard passes, but had too many centering passes intercepted or blocked .. able to lay down some nifty moves to beat opponents in open ice or to emerge off the boards .. adept toe-dragger .. has a decent wristshot .. finishes his checks on the forecheck .. like Steve Quailer in 2007-08, Angeli comes to Sioux City from Colorado looking to prove himself in his second year of draft eligibility .. has a chance at selection in the 2010 Draft if he establishes himself as a top-six forward, but competition for icetime on Sioux City is fierce .. no college commitment of yet .. played midget major for the Colorado Rampage in 2008-09 and scored 19 goals and 25 assists in 46 Tier 1 regular-season games .. had 1 assist in 3 games at the 2009 USHL Fall Classic .. scored 1 goal and 1 assist in 4 games for the entire preseason.

Joe Kalisz (2010), C/LW, Sioux City

Provided a physical presence, a hard shot, and decent skill .. finishes his checks on the forecheck and in the neutral zone and stepped up for some big open-ice hits .. also used his 6-foot-1, 185-pound frame in 50/50 battles for the puck and driving the net .. stops at the net for rebound chances .. able to unleash a hard slapper .. able to protect the puck with swivels along the boards .. has a decent set of hands and can drag the puck around the opposition and drive the net for prime scoring chances .. displayed patience with the puck down low and made some nice plays .. also able to control difficult passes .. played a third and fourth-line role for Sioux City in preseason, but is a contender to battle for a larger role .. probably a long shot to go in the 2010 Draft, since he's in his second year of eligibility, but not impossible .. committed to Alaska-Fairbanks starting in 2011-12 .. played midget major for Victory Honda in 2008-09 and scored 20 goals and 32 assists in 46 Tier 1 regular-season games .. scored 1 goal in 2 games at the 2009 USHL Fall Classic .. scored 1 goal and 1 assist in 4 games for the entire preseason.

Michael McDonald (2010), D, Sioux City

Has the makings of a defensive defenseman who moves the puck reliably .. consistently allowed his gap to shrink by the blueline .. did a good job of keeping his eyes on the opponent's chest, staying with the man, and engaging physically as the gap shrunk .. 6-foot-4, 200-pound blueliner played with some physicality down low but in also stepping up for hits from the point and in open ice .. has decent speed and a long stride .. makes hard, crisp first passes that are generally accurate .. executed smooth, crisp transition passes to his defensive partner .. has a hard wristshot from the point .. probably a long shot to be selected in the 2010 Draft, his second year of eligibility, but certainly worth monitoring .. no college commitment of yet .. played Minnesota high school hockey for Mahtomedi and scored 3 goals and 17 assists in 30 games .. went without a point in 2 games at the 2009 USHL Fall Classic .. went without a point in 4 games for the entire preseason.

Note: McDonald was released by Sioux City in mid-October and picked up by the North Iowa Outlaws of the NAHL