Stewart Sluggish at the ORT

The Florida Panthers youngsters probably wished they'd stayed home after failing to win a single match at the Ottawa Rookie Tournament. Most disappointing was the uninspired performance from Anthony Stewart who, aside from a late goal in a losing effort of the final match, was unproductive. We have scouting reports on the key players representing the Panthers.

Jeff Caron, D .. nice, low shot from the point .. beautiful skater, smooth and fluid .. very surehanded with excellent game-reading skills .. everything is very sharp, nice turns, knows when to pass and when to clear the zone .. like the way he manages to corral tough passes by getting down to his knees quickly, swallowing the puck up, all without losing his balance and momentum.

Martin Tuma, D .. ties up his man with authority along the boards .. active stick on the pk .. really gritty and led the Panthers rookies in hits in most games .. several times fanned on clearing attempts .. strong upper body .. competes on every shift.

Anthony Stewart, RW .. floated for most of the tournament, as if he's too good to be there .. not taking the body consistently .. struggled to corral some pucks .. embarrassing on one play where he just stood upright and watched teammates defend a two-on-two in front of him .. excellent wrister with a great release .. dropped the gloves against Jimmy Bonneau .. this isn't the first time he hasn't shown up.

Stefan Meyer, C .. big, mobile winger .. lacks elite vision and is sometimes seen overhandling the puck in his own end .. must react better to plays around him .. shoot-first instincts .. goalies adjust to him quickly because he is so predictable.

Rostislav Olesz, C .. strong and well-balanced but not always getting the most out of his size/skill combo .. natural playmaking instincts .. feathers accurate passes to set up linemates at the side of the net .. strong in the slot with well-balanced legs, but isn't nasty .. always aware of where his teammates are .. underrated skater, was involved on a number of rushes .. the way he skates, he reminds a touch of Jagr and he shows a similar stare when he sees a scoring opportunity .. excellent takeoff, which he unfortunately doesn't employ as much as he could; could be more selfish with the puck on his stick .. even went down in an attempt to block a shot .. visibly critical of himself when things don't go his way .. feet don't stop moving when the puck hits his stick .. could still battle a little more along the boards .. impressive wingspan aids him in man-on-man rushes.

Kenndal McArdle, LW .. lacks strength and especially balance .. gets into traffic, but struggles to stay on his feet .. a buzzard; exceptionally quick and opportunistic .. fantastic feet .. lacks beef but he's a kid here so he's doing all right .. started to really bang bodies in the match against Ottawa, making a number of surprisingly strong checks.

Rob Globke, RW .. has good speed but lacks first-step quickness and lateral mobility, which hurts him when he attacks the net .. strong puck protection skills .. hard slap shot with a quick release .. beat Jaroslav Halak with a sharp wrister up high at the right faceoff circle.

Kamil Kreps, C .. fine skater and stickhandler but is really lacking in the strength department .. really flies on the ice with amazing ease .. shows some beautiful trickery with the puck but once he gets touched he falls apart .. often fails to complete crucial passing plays.

Dan Collins, RW .. just not moving well enough sometimes .. feet can be static .. not standing out very much .. at times behind the play and was not seen being physical very often .. strong wrist shot he finally started to show late into the tourney.

David Shantz, G .. he has been shaky since early last season and has still yet to figure things out .. allowed some weak goals get past his glove .. does have excellent lateral movement and great foot speed, but it is his timing and balance that have been the problem .. sometimes goes down too early, which results in pucks beating him up high .. needs constant tutoring in order to economize his movements .. Jeff Glass he is not; not yet.

Tyler Plante, G .. cat-like goalie with excellent reflexes .. could still improve his balance .. quick, flexible lower body .. reads the play well and stays square to the puck .. makes some unnecessary movements; will need to work on economizing his style in the coming years.

Ottawa Rookie Tournament: The Top-10 Performances

1. Andrew Ladd, F, Carolina

2. Jeff Glass, G, Ottawa

3. Andrej Meszaros, D, Ottawa

4. Maxim Lapierre, F, Montreal

5. Vince Bellissimo, F, Carolina

6. Guillaume Latendresse, F, Montreal

7. Alexander Steen, F, Toronto

8. Rostislav Olesz, F, Florida

9. Kenndal McArdle, F, Florida

10. Patrick Eaves, F, Ottawa

For complete results, including standings and scoring leaders, click HERE.