USHL: Buc Bowl

The 15th annual Buc Bowl marks the beginning of the USHL season. With the majority of participants neither drafted nor committed to a college, the Buc Bowl is a buffet for both recruiters and scouts. While several teams and players are still shaking off their preseason rust, here's a look at the players who stood out in this tournament.

Cedar Rapids

Zachary Miskovic ( D, May 8,1985) Gave a fiery effort on every shift .. frequently jumps into the play offensively .. works twice as hard after making a mistake .. good skater .. an excellent, oft-used penalty killer.

Des Moines

Chad Rau (F, Jan 18, 1987, Colorado College) On a team that looks to be in early season disarray, Rau is the glue that could bring this club together .. single-handedly tried to carry his team on his back and made things happen .. gave an intense effort and took charge on every shift .. excellent on face-offs .. a go-to guy .. made other players look better .. two steps ahead of his opponents .. created several scoring chances off turnovers.

Ryan Raven (F, Jan 14, 1986) Split personality .. multi-tasking lanky forward gooned it up like a true showman one day in front of the big home crowd by throwing his body around and policing the ice .. the following game, he showed up offensively and clicked with Rau for several fantastic chances, ultimately amassing one goal for the day (four in total for the tourney).

Green Bay

Blake Wheeler (F, Aug 31, 1986 Phoenix 2004, Minnesota) Flashes of total brilliance and superstardom were mixed with painful awkwardness .. uncoordinated and it looks like he's at a stage where his body is maturing ahead of his mind, but all signs suggest that the swan that will come from this ugly ducking .. when coordination is established, hopefully the physical game will follow.

Ryan Petersen (F Sept 5, 1984) Started off his team's scoring in the slot with a pretty top shelf goal and continued to fly all over the ice for the rest of Saturday's match .. made an impressive feed when he streaked along the boards and weaved in and out of traffic to set up Tyler Lehrke.

Spencer Dillon (D, Jan 7, 1985) Exhibits size, toughness and solid defensive skills.... not afraid to scrap with the biggest players .. had one scrum and one fight in the game against Lincoln.

Jeff Hazelwood (F, July 24, 1985) Did not register an assist at the Bowl, but still showed impressive vision and set up potential .. goal against Lincoln was off an intended pass that bounced onto his stick.

Indiana

Tomas Klempa (F, Feb 3,1984 Nebraska-Omaha) Lightning-fast skater .. slippery .. creates turnovers with his speed and was forced down for a penalty shot opportunity by a distruntled defenseman after robbing him of the puck (though did not convert on the ps) .. terrific chemistry with Todd McIlrath .. was relied upon for penalty kill situations.

Todd McIlrath (F, Feb 27, 1986, Bowling Green) With as much skill and offensive ability still did very well tag teaming with Klempa for defensive work and PK time .. good puck handling skills and excellent at skating through traffic.

Lincoln

John Vadnais (D, April 7, 1986) Wasn't afraid to mix it up and tallied 12 PIMS in three games .. most consistent and solid d-man on a losing team .. has good size and skates well for his frame .. made a fantastic recovery, getting back in the play quickly to prevent a breakaway for a probable goal.

Jared Boll (F, May 13, 1986) Cranky forward was mixing things up and took on guys taller than he .. feisty and created havoc in front of the opponent's net .. participated in one of the better fights of the tourney against a bigger Spencer Dillon and held his own.

Omaha

Brett Motherwell (D, Sept 11, 1986, Boston College) Oozes talent; best defenseman at the bowl .. not a quarterback in a pure sense, but handled the puck considerably, earning top marks .. was relied upon to help kill off a 5-on-3 pp .. outsmarts bigger guys; quick feet and good vision .. a leader and uses his body smartly, without taking himself out of position .. jumped in offensively .. shows necessary intangibles to succeed at the next level.

Brock Bradford (F, Jan 7, 1987) Lit the lamp twice on Saturday, chasing the goalie on one of the two .. a power play specialist .. has a tendency to go unnoticed at certain times and then comes out of nowhere to deceptively sneak in for a scoring opportunity.

Nicholas Fanto (F, June 9,1986) Just plain nasty .. would rather take an opponent's head off than score a goal .. agitator who frustrates and knocks opposing players off their game like a true pest .. created space for his linemates and set up players effectively to register four helpers at the bowl.

Sioux Falls

Joe Finley (D, June 29, 1987) A beast on skates; huge rearguard .. a surprisingly graceful skater for his size with pretty good agility .. polices the ice with authority and poise.

Andreas Nodl (F, Feb 28, 1987) Perhaps a defenseman in another lifetime - skates very well backwards and to all angles .. creates offensive opportunities with his head and hands, but is a defense-first thinker .. a defensive specialist.

Tri City

Jarod Palmer (F, Feb 10, 1986) Spectacular on a line with Jaroslav Markovic .. in three games, amassed three goals including a shorthanded marker against Sioux Falls (also three assists and a +3 rating) .. has good size yet is light on his skates .. made a highlight-reel play setting up Markovice near the net .. has excellent wheels; top-end speed is spectacular .. logged a ton of ice time against Sioux Falls and scored the game winner in the shootout.

Chris Zarb (D, Jan 11,1985, Flyers 2004, Ferris State) Towering presence and showed considerable offensive upside .. jumped into the play smartly without leaving the blueline exposed .. once got steamrolled in the Sioux zone, yet quickly got up to protect his zone negating a potential odd-man rush.

Jaroslav Markovic (F, May 22, 1985) Seven points in three games; a short-handed and power play goal on the résumé .. deceptively quick with soft hands and savvy positional skills.

Waterloo

Dustin Molle (D, Nov 24, 1985) All-around solid and not far from the next challenge .. strong and big .. positionally polished .. was a +2 at the bowl.