U18 Report: Slovakia

Performance reviews and scouting reports on Team Slovakia from the Under-18 Four Nations tournament in Slovakia.

Top Performers

Milan Balis (2006), D

U18 4N Review: led Slovaks with plus-2 rating .. played an average opening game against the Czech Republic .. didn't see much playing time on the fourth line .. failed to generate significant offense and was prone to the odd positional mistakes when trying to support the attack .. bounced back with an above-average showing against Germany where he emerged as the best Slovak blueliner .. regained his offensive flair and made adequate decisions with the puck .. made okay use of his size and played a steady game in his own end .. played his best game of the tournament in the third contest against Russia .. though his slower first step was exposed in this contest, he still stood out above the rest of the Slovak defense with his solid two-way play .. helped boost his draft stock with this performance.

Scouting: a solid skater for his size .. okay agility and lateral movement .. decent balance and lower-body strength .. an average first step is the only knock against his skating .. decent backwards speed .. doesn't fall behind plays .. possesses decent offensive upside .. okay stickhandling skills and hand-eye coordination .. corrals pucks adequately well .. tries to support the offense with quick passes .. doesn't make long outlet passes very often .. prefers to pass to nearby teammates though does recognize passing lanes swiftly .. an adequately reliable player in his own zone .. stays with his man and spots him quickly .. doesn't make glaring positional mistakes, however is prone to the odd little gaffes .. solid instincts and hockey sense .. willing to unload his slapshot frequently, but could use better accuracy .. a solid player on special team units .. plays with a decent edge .. can be effective along the boards and when clearing the crease.

Juraj Valach (2007), D

U18 4N Review: the underager pulled off an above-average showing in the opening game against Czech Republic .. focused on playing mistake-free defense and kept opposing forwards under control .. made substantial use of his reach and wasn't easily outskated even by the smaller waterbug Czech forwards .. repeated his defensive reliability in the second game against Germany, although couldn't avoid some brain cramps when moving the puck .. prone to erratic passes under pressure .. could outpower the majority of the German forwards, however didn't make full use of his compelling size tools in terms of hitting .. delivered a similar effort in the third contest against Russia .. focused on providing steady defense while demonstrating a lack of offensive upside in the process .. not an outstanding showing, however the young rearguard didn't disappoint either.

Scouting: a decent skater for a player of his size .. could use a more explosive first step and faster acceleration, though should be okay once he adds bulk to lower body .. decent agility and balance .. satisfactory backwards skating and lateral movement .. still needs more lower-body strength .. could use bigger top-end speed .. a stay-at-home type who reads developing plays well and mostly chooses the safest alternative when moving the puck .. low-risk puckmover however is prone to questionable decisions when hard-pressed .. shows decent stickhandling skills .. uses a long stick and can be an effective pincher .. willing to use his hard and fairly accurate pointshot .. could use more smarts when playing on the offensive blueline .. works adequately hard down low .. able to throw a solid hit though isn't a steady physical presence .. bulking up is essential .. adequate at clearing the crease and demonstrates adequate positional play .. a solid force in the defensive zone .. spots his man quickly and stays with him .. shoots right.

Tomas Marcinko (2006), C

U18 4N Review: led the Slovaks with a pair of assists .. impressed with creative two-way play in opening period of the first game against Czech Republic before going unnoticed for the balance .. also registered a good first half of the second game against Germany, making smart plays and working diligently, only to cool off over the second half .. a complete non-factor in the third contest against Russia .. reverted back to the uninspired floating he had displayed in previous tournaments, refusing to exploit his size advantage to drive for the net .. definitely not a standout, however at least showed glimpses of promise again which wasn't the case at the three previous international tournaments.

Scouting: an adequate skater .. needs to upgrade on his acceleration and first-step quickness .. decent balance and lower-body strength .. could use more agility in his play .. adequate top speed .. an inconsistent player who takes odd shifts off .. effective at both ends when on his game .. possesses decent vision and hockey sense although his creativity wanders .. good puckhandling skills .. capable of quick takeaways .. struggles at times to properly deal with difficult passes .. willing to use his hard accurate slapshot, however tends to look for a passing lane instead of firing the puck .. solid wrist shot .. above-average defensive awareness, conscientious backchecker and a good asset to the penalty killing units .. displays sound positioning in his own zone and stays with his man .. battles traffic effectively utilizing his size .. could drive the net harder and dish out heavier hits along the boards .. a right-shooting forward.

Lukas Zeliska (2006), C

U18 4N Review: the Slovak captain started the tournament on an average note in the opening game against the Czech Republic .. showed occasional flashes of high offensive skill mixed with regular periods of floating on the perimeter .. paid less attention to defense than needed .. responded with a bright showing against the weaker Germans and was arguably the best Slovak on the ice .. made numerous end-to-end raids, undressing opposing defenders with his quick moves .. played a more tenacious style than in the first game .. failed to repeat this impressive performance against the Russians in the third contest .. committed passing errors, took frequent shifts off, and failed to make effective use of his speed .. only succeeded when presented with one-on-one situations .. showed flashes but too many 'off' moments cost him a really good rating.

Scouting: blessed with solid skating skills .. takes advantage of his above-average acceleration and solid agility to sneak through opposing defenses .. shows adequate top-end speed, but must get stronger in his lower body in order to upgrade balance .. possesses decent stickhandling skills and hand-eye coordination .. maneuvers well with the puck in traffic, though could still improve his puck-protection skills .. can go end-to-end with the puck .. shoots often, utilizing his above-average array of shots .. fires a quick, accurate wristshot and a good slapshot .. blessed with decent offensive instincts and passing abilities, making him effective on powerplay units .. drives to the net effectively though doesn't run opponents over .. throws the odd hit and will stick his nose in traffic, however consistency is an issue .. can be one-dimensional when uninspired defensively .. refuses to get involved defensively some games .. slow to mark his man and strays from checking duties .. needs bigger intensity when playing off the puck .. added strength would also aid him against more physical opponents .. shoots right.

Other Players

Part 2: Julius Sinkovic, Erik Caladi, Rastislav Konecny, Patrik Lusnak, Branislav Rehus, Marko Hucko, Lukas Vartovnik

Part 3: Marek Simko, Tomas Hiadlovsky, Adam Bena, Marek Biro, Michal Gazur, Martin Burzik, Martin Dulak