Tinordi on Top

Jon Merrill was the one who was signed prior to the 2008 NTDP Evaluation Camp and received the most hype in 2008-09. USNTDP newcomer Derek Forbort has been the one who has received the most hype in 2009-10, but it may be that the top defense prospect on the USNTDP Under-18 is neither Merrill nor Forbort, but is actually Jarred Tinordi. Tinordi, the son of former NHL defenseman Mark Tinordi, doesn't have the offensive production at 5 goals and 8 assists in 56 games that Forbort or Merrill have, but he does have pro-caliber breakout passing, phenomenal size at 6-foot-5.5, exceptional skating and mobility for that size, a physical edge to his game, and the captain's "C" on his jersey. He may never put up big offensive numbers in the NHL, but he'll be the one to log major minutes as the defensive defenseman pairing with the all-star offensive defenseman because he has the skill and awareness to play with the best, and if could come sooner than one might think. If there's anyone on the USNTDP ready to play pro hockey now, it's Tinordi. He may not be selected ahead of Forbort and Merrill in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft, but Tinordi may be the one who comes out on top in the end.

McKeen's correspondent Kevin Wey was able to catch the USNTDP's Under-18 team twice after the Six Nations Tournament and enters notes on 2010-eligible defensemen Jarred Tinordi, Derek Forbort, Jon Merrill, Stephen Johns, and Justin Faulk, as well as goaltenders Jack Campbell and Andy Iles.

Jarred Tinordi (2010), D, USA U-18

My favorite Team USA defenseman .. a big man with serious defensive mobility .. smooth backwards, maintains a wide base, minimizes crossovers, has good speed backwards, and can smoothly angle opponents to the boards .. Tinordi is basically a pro in this regard ..plays with some physicality and will engage physically in the neutral zone or at the blueline .. if Team USA needs someone to step in for skirmishes or to drop the gloves, Tinordi is there to answer the bell .. it really says something that on a team entirely of 1992's, all the same age, that Tinordi established himself as the captain .. gigantic at 6-foot-5.5 and will be an absolute force when he fills out his 205-pound frame .. smooth pivots that only require one step, always .. has a long skating stride and good speed .. breakout passing is pro caliber .. makes very hard, crisp passes right on the tape .. able to execute some nice saucer passes .. the sheer velocity of Tinordi's passes can be seen when they're tipped (rare) and change direction .. has good patience with the puck and doesn't panic when forechecked .. plays a simple game offensively, but has solid stick skills .. Tinordi would see regular powerplay time on a regular USHL team .. the perfect defensive defenseman to pair with an elite offensive defenseman, because Tinordi has skill to work with skilled players .. nobody in the USNTDP or the USHL appears to be as prepared to step into pro hockey right now as Tinordi .. in some regards, would like to see Tinordi drafted by Washington, because the thought of Tinordi alongside either Mike Green or John Carlson for years would be a dream .. you win Stanley Cups with guys like Tinordi paired with your all-star offensive defenseman .. may fall out of the first round, but I fully believe he's worthy of first-round selection .. for a range, 21st to 35th overall .. committed to Notre Dame (2010) .. played 56 total games for the U-18 team and scored 5 goals and 8 assists .. scored 4 goals and 5 assists in 26 USHL regular season games .. had gone pointless in 9 international games prior to the World Under-18 Championships .. invited to the NHL Combine.

Derek Forbort (2010), D, USA U-18

Has solid upside and there are decent odds he reaches or approaches it .. 6-foot-4.5, 198 pounds, and moves very well .. able to build nice speed and employs a long stride .. able to build nice cruising speed with the puck, but also has decent speed bursts .. has impressive lateral movement to keep pucks in at the blueline .. has smooth acceleration backwards, maintains a wide base, eliminates crossovers, and let's his gaps shrink .. able to knock the puck away with a poke check, but also stands up opponents near the blueline or in the neutral zone .. isn't an overly aggressive physical player, but is effective, especially with his size and mobility .. fires hard, crisp passes .. does need to hone his accuracy a little bit, as his passes can be a little off target (although not drastically) .. does make some exceptional passes though, too .. able to transition the puck well .. has soft hands to receive passes and can make smooth, hard point-to-point passes .. has a hard shot from the point and a crisp wristshot .. very little to complain about with Forbort's game .. can see Forbort being similar to Jay Bouwmeester someday, if he maintains this style .. I'd consider Forbort an 11th to 20th overall pick, and will be very surprised if he drops below 25th (barring serious injury at the World U-18's) .. committed to North Dakota (2010) .. played 56 total games for the U-18 team and scored 5 goals and 20 assists .. scored 4 goals and 10 assists in 26 USHL regular season games .. had 3 assists in 9 international games prior to the World Under-18 Championships .. invited to the NHL Combine.

Jonathan Merrill (2010), D, USA U-18

Has super tools, just needs to bring them together for 60 minutes (or more) .. is generally a smooth skater with decent speed who can get well out on his edges .. from a nit-picking standpoint, gets a bit upright in his acceleration backwards .. some pivots are smooth and sometimes he gets a bit upright .. is generally smooth backwards and maintains a wide base, but utilizes crossovers backward more than I'd like to see .. generally maintains a short gap, but would like to see him engage physically sooner and more often .. at 6-foot-3, he has a long reach for poke checks .. offensive awareness is high .. a quarterback on the breakout who can quickly check receiver one, receive two, receiver three, etc., and then connect with a hard, crisp pass to the best option .. a heads-up stickhandler who can assess his options .. super smooth d-to-d passing at the point .. able to receive and gives passes in one smooth motion .. also adept at transitioning the puck with his d-partner .. generally does a good job of not telegraphing his pass .. has a hard, crisp wristshot .. also has a fairly hard slapshot .. fairly smart with his point shot, as he'll take a bit off of it for deflection purposes if called for .. despite the offensive tools, he is still a gaff-a-game player, which gaff gets capitalized on more and more as you go up .. want to see him improve his competitiveness and his consistency .. probably has the highest upside of any defenseman on the USNTDP because of how he can see and think the game .. small concerns place Merrill at 26th to 40th overall in my book at this time, but I can understand how some would rate him higher .. committed to Michigan (2010) .. played 47 total games for the U-18 team and scored 5 goals and 25 assists .. scored 1 goal and 8 assists in 22 USHL regular season games (including 2 games with the U-17 team, tallying 1 assist) .. scored 2 goals and 4 assists in 9 international games prior to the World Under-18 Championships .. invited to the NHL Combine.

Stephen Johns (2010), D, USA U-18

Well-built blueliner provides size at 6-foot-3, 215 pounds and some skill .. maintains a wide base backward, minimizes crossovers, and can stand opponents up in the neutral zone or near the blueline .. if a U-18 defenseman is stepping up for an open-ice hit in the neutral zone, it's likely Johns .. has decent speed, but could upgrade .. also needs to improve his acceleration, as he can be separated from .. gets a little upright at times .. makes hard, crisp breakout passes .. has a hard, crisp wristshot from the point that generates a lot of stick bend .. also has a nice one-timer .. can get overactive with his stick and sometimes makes late hits .. a solid overall defenseman, but I see Johns as more of a 36th to 50th overall pick at this point .. committed to Notre Dame (2010) .. played 53 total games for the U-18 team and scored 3 goals and 12 assists .. scored 1 goal and 7 assists in 23 USHL regular season games .. had 2 assists in 9 international games prior to the World Under-18 Championships .. invited to the NHL Combine.

Justin Faulk (2010), D, USA U-18

Powerplay weapon with his hard shot .. has a hard wristshot, a hard slapshot, and a hard one-timer .. not afraid to take that shot, as he averaged nearly three per game in USHL action (58 in 21 games) .. solid physically at a shade under 6-foot-0 and 196 pounds .. has powerful strides with the puck and almost effortless speed .. able to use his speed and low center of gravity to drive the net when skating the puck .. able to make subtle jukes to cause opponents to circle away and also to sidestep them .. able to might tight circles to avoid forecheckers .. has smooth, powerful acceleration backwards and can get down low in all directions .. minimizes crossovers and can smoothly angle opponents .. makes hard, crisp, accurate passes .. although he is strong, his size is somewhat limiting by NHL standards, and he's not an elite offensive defenseman, so I have him as a 46th to 60th overall pick .. committed to Minnesota-Duluth (2010) .. played 51 total games for the U-18 team and scored 19 goals and 8 assists .. scored 9 goals and 3 assists in 21 USHL regular season games .. scored 2 goals and 2 assists in 9 international games prior to the World Under-18 Championships .. invited to the NHL Combine.

Jack Campbell (2010), G, USA U-18

Big-game goaltender is 18-1-1-1 in international play for Team USA (U-17, U-18, and U-20) over two years .. was in net for Team USA's gold-medal winning game against Canada at the World Junior Championships .. primary strength may be tracking the puck .. does an exceptional job of tracking the puck, whether it be rebounds, missed shots, whatever, he doesn't lose sight of the puck .. ability to track the puck helps him to quickly put himself in place for second chances .. able to get across his net very quickly when standing and is quick to reset .. pad slides are smooth, but needs to improve his push-offs, as he sometimes doesn't get all the way across .. able to go down into his butterfly quickly and can get back up quickly .. good athleticism all-around .. able to make quick pad saves and quick glove saves .. also able to make highly athletic saves, although he doesn't rely on this .. communicates with his defensemen more than any goaltender I've seen come through the USHL, be it communicating his intentions with the puck or to help them on the breakout .. a poised puckhandler who'll come out and stop pucks for his defensemen and makes the simple plays .. able to make smooth, accurate passes up to his forwards .. does a good job of maintaining his angle and taking pucks to the chest and eliminating rebounds or quickly covering them .. no real criticisms other than improving his push-offs from the butterfly position .. will likely be the first USNTDP goaltender taken in the first round of the NHL Entry Draft directly off of the USNTDP .. I'd consider Campbell a 21st to 35th overall pick, weighed heavily toward being in the first round .. will play major juniors with the Windsor Spitfires .. played 28 total games for the U-18 team and played 1618 minutes, compiled a 16-11-1 record, had 1 shutout, a 2.52 goals-against average, and a .904 save percentage .. played 569:28 minutes over 11 USHL regular season games and went 6-3-1, 1 shutout, a 2.21 goals-against average, and a .917 save percentage .. in international play with the Under-18 team prior to the World Under-18 Championships, he had played 280 minutes in over 5 games, had a record of 4-1-0, a 1.71 goals-against average, and a .918 save percentage .. invited to the NHL Combine.

Andy Iles (2010), G, USA U-18

Diminutive goalie is fully deserving of his spot on the USNTDP and truly is one of the very best American-born, 1992-nemtinders .. small goalie at 5-foot-8, 179 pounds ..quick at everything .. gets across his crease quickly .. able to load up and push off from the butterfly position well .. makes quick, smooth pad slides .. able to make quick pad saves .. also possesses a quick glove hand ..able to make some big saves that require some athleticism .. Iles does not automatically drop on every shot, which is vital for a goalie of his size .. does a good job of controlling his rebounds, be it blocking saves to the chest or directing rebounds into the corners .. the only real weakness to Iles' game is that he's 5-foot-8 .. because many NHL teams have no time for goaltenders much below 6-foot-0, Iles' chances at selection in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft aren't too good .. if height is excluded from the equation, Iles is an automatic for selection somewhere in the draft .. committed to Cornell (2010) .. played 27 total games for the U-18 team and played 1520 minutes, compiled an 18-6-1 record, 3 shutouts, a 2.17 goals-against average, and a .918 save percentage .. played 839:42 minutes in over 15 USHL regular season games and went 10-4-0, had 2 shutouts, a 2.29 goals-against average, and .918 save percentage .. in international games prior to the World Under-18 Championships, he had played 259 minutes over 5 games, had a 3-1-0 record, 1 shutout, a 1.62 goals-against average, and a .928 save percentage.