U17 Rochester Select Camps: Team Kelly Green

USA Hockey recently held tryouts for their Ivan Hlinka summer team in Rochester. The tryouts were broken down into eight teams. In part 1 of an 8-part series, McKeen's Director of Scouting, David Burstyn, looks at several key performers on the Kelly Green team.

Matt Mahalak (2011), G, Plymouth

Played last season as a member of the Youngstown Phantoms, starting in 31 games after being chosen first overall in the USHL Futures Draft .. played well this season considering the porous defence corps in front of him .. big, economical and limits his movements, always staying square to the shooter .. unflappable and rarely caught out of position .. extremely athletic and agile for his size .. could use his stick more to make saves and play the puck .. good skater, as he can thrust from side-to-side rather quickly .. has all the tools to be a successful goalie and one of the better NHL prospects for this coming draft, especially based on his decision to play in the OHL .. should be able to capture the starting duties for the US Ivan Hlinka team.

Tanner Mort (2011), D, Spokane

Mort has grown five inches and gained 45 pounds since being selected 87th overall by Spokane in the 2008 WHL bantam draft .. has an awkward skating style, as there is a slight hiccup in his mechanics, yet he is effective in all directions .. a reliable defenseman whose hockey sense and positioning are his best attributes .. he does not play outside his skill set and makes safe plays to rid his zone of pressure .. not against using the boards and never throws the puck up the middle .. sound decision making in the defensive zone but not overly involved in the offensive zone .. does not go past the redline to make a play with the puck .. very limited in terms of being able to see the ice, but can make an ok outlet pass.

Frank Schumacher (2012), D, Saginaw

Split time this season with both Victory Honda (Major Midget) and the Saginaw Spirit of the OHL .. plays a game that marries both offensive and defensive components to it .. tries to intimidate but is not a tough guy, yet plays with sandpaper .. always pushing the envelope on the offensive side of things and enters the zone with frequency .. however, his rushes are not thought out and he often skates himself out of options .. he is a crisp skater who has good lateral and reverse movement .. his skating allows him to take chances in the offensive zone, as he can recover and plays an ok defensive game .. an extra year of Major Junior due to his late birth date should help in his development but his identity has yet to be established and he needs to rethink the game.

Tyler Rostenkowski (2011), D, Texas (NAPHL)

Smaller, but thick defender who constantly tried to make plays with the puck .. decent skater with short bursts of speed but no separation gear .. stocky build allowed him to protect the puck and make a play with it .. appeared to get frustrated when plays did not develop and at times, would not play through hits and attempt to sell a call .. has a good offensive dimension to his game but his size puts him at a disadvantage .. defensively, he is all over the place, constantly moving his feet and not remaining stationary .. he appeared over-anxious and was chasing the play rather than it coming to him .. nonetheless, he played well in games considering the level of competition he has come from.

Nick Malysa (2011), D, Plymouth

Played sparingly this season by the Whalers, Malysa was unable to establish himself as a force at the evaluation camps .. not adept at handling the puck, he did however show on a few shifts his penchant for manning the puck up ice .. however his game is better suited in the defensive zone .. played a conservative game, relying more on his active stick and aggression to protect his crease .. seemed more comfortable in that role, yet was unable to be a factor in the games watched .. needs to continue to understand his role and play within it .. should see his icetime spike this season in Plymouth due to graduations on the backend.

John Gaudreau (2011), LW, Comcast (Verbal Comittment to Northeastern)

One of the more explosive offensive players, as he scored 10 points in his first two games .. lethal on the PP where he exercises his time and space well and waits till the last possible second to thread the needle on a pass .. has the capacity to make good moves in close and execute passes once he gets around a defender .. very intelligent in the offensive zone .. smart in terms of reading a play, he often intercepted passes to create scoring chances the other way .. blessed with decent quickness, but he does not have rink-length speed .. defensively, he is simply ok, not having the size (5'7, 140) to compete down low, he needs to rely on his game-reading skills to make a difference without the puck .. desperately needs to add weight to his frame, especially his lower body .. should make this team, as he showcases the type of offensive game that would benefit the second line.

Matthew Hanson (2011), RW, Cedar Rapids

Put up solid numbers last season playing for Russell Stover .. made good use of his speed to create offensive chances .. shows imagination and the ability to play and keep up with talented players .. was situated as the high man on the point on multiple occasions .. he has great feet and does a good job of absorbing hits and continuing to plough his way into the offensive zone .. his speed intimidates the opposition and he is able to converge on loose pucks .. defensively is where he struggles, as he needs to put himself in better positions .. should his defensive game improve, he could make a formidable checking-line winger, capable of chipping in some points .. will start the season in the USHL.

Ben Greiner (2011), RW, Shattuck St. Mary's

Well put together at 6-foot-1 and 180 pounds, Greiner is an offensive player who has a good feel for the game strictly in the offensive zone .. he can create with his quick stick and his feet are always pumping in the offensive zone when a scoring chance is within his sights .. he can get complacent in the neutral zone and defensive zone and needs to be prodded to move his feet and work to get into position .. has a hair trigger release and exploits his shot often to catch goalies off guard .. employed as an F1 to stimulate offence, however he rarely dropped back below his own blueline, which did not help his cause .. nonetheless, he is a talented player who has an outside chance of making this team.

Vasirey Zelepukin (2011), C, Royals (AYHL16)

The son of former New Jersey Devil, Valeri.. blessed with speed but very limited hockey sense .. routinely made mistakes in terms of locating his options, as he simply could not see plays unfold .. speed was instrumental in converging on loose pucks but he was unable to dictate the play with the puck .. often over skated options and made poor passing selections .. was used more as a PK player, as he was able to force plays due to his speed .. not much in terms of pro potential at this stage.

Jon Grebosky (2012), C, Hornets (T1Maj)

Benefitted by playing on the top PP unit with Hanson and Gaudreau and piled up the points as a result (6 points in first 2 games) .. plays with a short stick to stickhandle easier in traffic and get closer to the goal .. was successful in getting the opposition to bite on a quick move before skating past them .. very clever and crafty player .. his game however, is littered with inconsistency, as he has a tendency to disappear for long stretches at a time .. equipped with a short stride that garners little to no speed .. more of a support player who needs players to bring out his skill, as he can not carry a line.