USA Hockey: Beantown Classic Spring Tournament

The Beantown Classic is a showcase of the top players from local New England leagues. The tournament is separated into a Draft Division and Pre-Draft Division. Below are some of the players who participated in the Draft Division as McKeen's was on hand and reviews several players, including those that should hear their name called on draft day, such as: Alexander Killorn, Nick Bonino, Steve Moses, and Paul Carey.

Top 10 Forwards (Draft Division)

Alexander Killorn (2007), F (JR) (Deerfield/ Team B- Teal)

Had a very impressive tournament and may have helped his draft status .. a smooth skater who brings a full package of size and strength .. skates so well for a kid with his size .. he physically overpowered every opponent that stepped in his way and finished all of his checks .. strong defensively and tough to knock off the puck .. was an offensive threat every shift, but would like to see him shoot more, as he is a pass-first type forward .. needs to learn to stop hooking because at the next level it will be called .. overall, the top forward prospect in New England and committed to Harvard for 2008.

Nick Bonino (2007), F (SR) (Avon/ Team D- Gold)

Easily the top offensive forward coming out of New England for the upcoming NHL draft .. his hands and vision make him a scoring threat every time the puck is on his stick .. has a quick release .. scored a nice goal when he made a quick move in front and got the goalie moving .. can be relied defensively and plays well on the PK .. committed to Boston University for 2007.

Steve Moses (2007), F (JR) (Jr. Bruins/ Team C- Orange)

Could be a late-round pick just because of his offensive skills .. an excellent skater with good acceleration and explosive strides .. has smooth hands and always wants the puck on his stick .. can really skate with the puck .. vocal on the ice .. backchecks hard, but could be more physical .. makes smart decisions with the puck and dangerous in the scoring areas .. committed to the University of New Hampshire for 2008.

Cam Atkinson (2007), F (JR) (Avon/ Team D- Gold)

Similar player to Moses and could be a late pick in the draft .. has great speed with and without the puck and plays at both ends of the rink .. has a strong shot while in stride .. really backs-off defenders with his speed and stickhandling skills .. does need to get stronger along the boards to compensate for his size .. committed to Boston College for 2008.

Austin Smith (2007), F (SR) (Gunnery/ Team C- Orange)

A skinny forward with lots of offensive talent and speed .. his quick hands and breakaway speed make him a dangerous threat .. scored on a rebound when he knocked the puck over the goalie .. needs to make better decisions in defensive zone .. committed to Colgate for 2008 and it is rumored that he will play a season for Penticton (BCHL).

Patrick Cullen (2007), F (JR) (Washington Jr. Nationals/ Team A- Black)

Cullen plays in the Atlantic Junior Hockey League and had a solid season .. his game revolves around his strong shot and quick release .. he also brings size (6-0, 180) and is a strong skater .. scored on a quick snapshot from the slot .. committed to RPI for 2008.

Paul Carey (2007), F (JR) (Salisbury/ Team D- Gold)

Had a physical tournament, but his offensive game was very quiet .. he will most likely hear his name called on draft day, but his ranking has dropped as fellow prep school players like Bonino and Killorn have consistently played strong games all year .. Carey has another year at Salisbury to be a leader and help the team get back into the championship game, so he will need to elevate his offensive game .. committed to Boston College for 2008.

Jon Dwyer (2007), F (SR) (Phillips Exeter/ Team D- Gold)

Has a solid stride that he stretches out .. strong along the boards and is physical .. quiet game offensively .. uses his stick a lot and hooks too much .. has good defensive awareness .. strong on the PK .. has yet to commit to a college and could be a late pick in the draft.

Yuri Bouharevich (2007), F (SR) (St. Paul's/ Team B- Teal)

A strong 1-on-1 player with hands and speed that make him dangerous with the puck .. needs to get stronger, but does well in the corners with his quickness .. displayed good vision in the offensive zone and worked well with teammate Francois Brisebois .. has yet to commit to a college and may take a year of junior before making the jump to college.

Nick Pitsikoulis (2007), F (SR) (Westminster/ Team B- Teal)

A solid forward with good speed .. has vision and hustles every shift .. over handles the puck at times, but is willing to take a hit to make a play .. committed to St. Lawrence for 2007.

Honorable Mention: Pier-Oliver Michaud (2007), F (Portland Jr. Pirates/ Team A- Black), T.J. Syner (2007), F (NE Jr. Falcons/ Team A- Black), Egor Egorov (2007), F (NE Jr. Huskies/ Team A- Black), Jeff Velleca (2007), F (NE Jr. Falcons/ Team A- Black), Bobby Farnham (2007), F (Phillips Andover/ Team C- Orange)

Top 5 Defensemen (Draft Division)

Cam Burt (2007), D (SR) (NE Jr. Huskies/ Team A- Black)

A big surprise, as around the scouting world he was a relative unknown, but 5-foot-11 d-man played great at both ends of the ice, and certainly created some buzz .. a Detroit native that can skate and make plays with the puck .. scored on a rush from his own blueline .. needs to add some muscle, but his quickness and skills should land him on a college list or two.

Peter Child (2007), D (SR) (St. Paul's/ Team B- Teal)

He kept standing out every shift and really stood out on defense .. a definite PP specialist and handles the puck well at the point .. offensively, he is excellent as he gets shots to the net and has good vision from the blueline .. was vocal from the backend .. needs to be more aware defensively .. very surprised he has yet to commit to a college and may take a year of juniors.

Drew MacKenzie (2007), D (JR) (Taft/ Team D- Gold)

Drew showed why so many have him ranked in the mid-rounds by playing much better than the last viewing .. was joining the rush and creating scoring chances from the point .. had an assist on the first goal when he kept the puck in at the point and made one move before sliding the puck over to Bonino .. showed good poise with the puck .. still seemed to struggle with his breakout passes, as they were off the mark .. could add more strength as he was bumped off the puck on a few plays .. overall, a pro prospect but draft position could fall anywhere on draft day.

Josh Burrows (2007), D (SR) (Jr. Bruins/ Team C- Orange)

Has great size (6-3, 195) and uses it every chance he can .. as tough as they come in the defensive zone with good positioning .. does not seem to be a threat in the offensive zone, but does have a strong one-timer from the point .. skates well with the puck when given a little room to get going, but does not do it very often .. committed to Vermont for 2007 and will be a solid college player, but has not shown enough to be considered a NHL draft prospect.

Edwin Shea (2007), D (JR) (Jr. Bruins/ Team C- Orange)

A solid defender who seems to do the little things right all the time .. showed good speed and never gives up on a play .. has a long reach and uses it effectively on 1-on-1 situations and on the PK .. has decent offensive ability with a solid one-timer .. needs to work on getting his shot off quicker .. committed to Boston College for 2008.

Top Goalies (Draft Division)

Note – all goalies split time for every game, so it was difficult to evaluate in a short span, but here are two goalies that stood-out in their short playing time: Nick Eno (2007), G (SR) (Green Mountain Glades/ Team B- Teal) and Wesley Vesprini (2007), G (SR) (Jr. Bruins/ Team C- Orange)

Both have yet to commit to a college.