USHL: Illo Weathers the Storm

With four regular-season games left in 2008-09, the Tri-City Storm were looking at the possibility of finishing the season with a sub-.200 record after losing streaks of 19 games, 7 games, and 6 games at different points in the season and a season-long winning streak of two games (twice). However, while the team has struggled mightily, Slovakian forward Radoslav Illo has emerged as a bright spot for Tri-City. The USHL rookie missed almost all of January due to injury, but after returning Jan. 31, he scored 15 goals and 6 assists in the subsequent 19 games and had four games left in the season to add to that total. Averaging over a point per game down the stretch and displaying the skill he's shown since the Fall Classic in September, the early 1990 DOB has established himself as the Storm's top player and has put himself on the radar as a potential late-round pick in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft as a fairly well-rounded player.

McKeen's correspondent Kevin Wey caught the Tri-City Storm in action in early January and late March and files notes on several players including Illo, Joe Zarbo, Anthony DeCenzo, and a number of first-year draft-eligible Tri-City prospects.

Radoslav Illo (2009), LW/RW, Tri-City

With the departure of Cichy, Illo is now Tri-City's most skilled player .. missed most of January with injury .. from Jan. 31 (first game back) to March 21, he had 15 goals and 6 assists in 19 games .. has a hard, crisp wristshot and a snapshot that really whizzes .. both wrist and snapshots are very hard yet appear almost effortless .. able to get off hard shots in stride .. has good cruising speed with the puck .. also has good acceleration with the puck, giving him a fair amount of separation .. has good stride extension and stays fairly low, giving him firm balance .. has some dangle to his game and can lay down some nice moves to deke opponents or to fight through checks .. makes crisp, hard passes and shows some offensive vision and creativity .. 6-foot-0, 178-pound Slovak finishes his checks and puts in a good effort on the forecheck and the backcheck .. also plays on the PK .. haven't noticed any major deficiencies in his game .. Storm's top player in terms of skill and all-around ability .. second-year-eligible, Illo may still be a long shot to be drafted, but he's a solid player and it's not out of the realm of possibility .. uncommitted to a college program .. as of Tri-City's 56-game mark, he had a team-leading 20 goals and also had 12 assists in 46 games.

Joe Zarbo (2009), LW, Tri-City

Looks significantly better to end the season than he did at the start .. went on a scoring tear from Feb. 7 to March 7, scoring 7 goals and 6 assists in 11 games .. displaying more confidence and presence with the puck and creating offensive chances .. has a little dangle to his game to drag it around opponents or to draw it, but still must become stronger on the puck so that he doesn't lose it in traffic as easily .. shows some offensive vision off the half boards and makes crisp centering passes .. speed with the puck has improved and now has decent cruising speed handling the puck .. still a bit upright in his skating .. has a crisp, hard wristshot .. plays on the powerplay .. still a long shot for the 2009 NHL Entry Draft, but has made noticeable improvements .. would like to see him return for one more USHL season to become an impact player before moving on to college .. committed to Clarkson .. as of Tri-City's 56-game mark, he had 15 goals and 10 assists in 53 games.

Alec Rush (2009), D, Tri-City

Seeing significant icetime on a somewhat weak d-corps .. making a bit of an offensive impact to close the season, as he had 7 assists in 10 games from Feb. 28 through March 21 .. played on the both the powerplay and the penalty kill .. generally makes crisp, accurate passes ..6-foot-1, 205-pounder plays with some physicality, sometimes just separating opponent from the puck, other times knocking them on their rear .. will step up to make a hit in the neutral zone or at the blueline .. has a fairly hard pointshot .. needs to upgrade speed, as his speed both forward and backward is only average .. a long shot to go in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft, but additional speed and explosiveness could change that in 2010 .. committed to Princeton .. as of Tri-City's 56-game mark, he had 1 goal and 11 assists in 42 games.

Matt Bailey (2009), LW, Tri-City

Had a two-month period from Dec. 6 to Feb. 6 where he only had 1 goal in 18 games, but has been a fairly regular contributor on the bookends on the season .. puts in a good two-way effort .. not a flashy player, but consistently puts himself in a position to make a subtle play offensively or defensively .. puts in a good effort on the forecheck and finishes his checks .. also a conscientious backchecker .. intercepts his fair share of passes .. plays on the penalty kill and is active in manning the point .. willing to drop to a knee to block shots .. has a little stickhandling prowess and emerges off the wing through hands, swivels, and/or sheer effort .. needs to improve speed and acceleration with the puck, as both are only average .. has a decent wristshot and exposes five-holes .. passing game needs refining .. most passes are crisp, but too many are in the skates of teammates when on the rush .. 6-foot-1, 179-pounder puts in a good effort to drive the net .. an extreme long shot to be drafted, but it could be different in 2010 if he improves his speed and quickness, because the hockey sense seems to be there .. committed to Alaska-Anchorage .. as of Tri-City's 56-game mark, he had 9 goals and 14 assists in 54 games.

Rick Pinkston (2009), D, Tri-City

Also seeing significant icetime .. has the tools to become a decent two-way defenseman .. has a little speed with the puck and decent separation to emerge from scrums .. had some success skating the puck, although he does not have elite speed .. has decent stride extension .. passing game needs refining .. passes are often a tad soft, although crisp .. when he tries to put a little more oomph on his passes, they become wobbly .. wristshot is adequate, but does have a hard slapshot .. 6-foot-1, 189-pounder plays with some physicality and will step up to make hits .. needs to improve passing game and add a little more power, speed, and quickness backwards and laterally, thus is an extreme long shot for 2009 NHL Entry Draft .. uncommitted to a college program .. as of Tri-City's 56-game mark, he had 2 goals and 3 assists in 37 games.

Berkley Scott (2009), C/W, Tri-City

Added to Tri-City roster Feb. 6 and started playing for Storm Feb. 27 after high school season with Anoka ended .. limited viewing, but agility stood out .. adept at executing tight turns with the puck to evade checkers and/or circle away .. 6-foot-1, 185-pounder showed willingness to go into traffic and engage physically going for loose pucks .. probably an extreme long shot for the 2009 NHL Entry Draft, but looking forward to seeing how he progresses for 2009-10 .. uncommitted to a college program.. as of Tri-City's 56-game mark, he had 1 assist in 10 games .. scored 17 goals and 15 assists in 28 games for Anoka High School prior to coming to Tri-City.

Isaac Kohls (2009), RW, Tri-City

Added to roster in January and played first game Jan. 27 after staring the year in Minnesota high school with Hill-Murray .. reason for midseason departure not made public .. put up points in early February for Storm, but was on a 14-game pointless streak through March 21 .. limited viewing .. 5-foot-9, 175-pound right winger has decent speed and some power in his strides .. speed with the puck is also decent .. also has a nice wristshot .. makes accurate passes .. impressed with how he'll take a good look before he gets the puck to assess the play before he moves it .. an extreme long shot to be taken in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft due to size and underwhelming offensive production this year .. uncommitted to a college program .. as of Tri-City's 56-game mark, he had 4 assists in 20 games .. scored 10 goals and 7 assists in 18 games for Hill-Murray prior to joining Tri-City.

Anthony DeCenzo (2009), RW, Tri-City

Small forward (5-foot-10, 170 pounds) relies on quickness .. quick down low in the offensive zone and able to execute tight switchbacks with the puck .. legs look a little thin and could use more knee bend, but still has decent speed top speed .. has good offensive vision .. plays on both the powerplay and the penalty kill .. third year of draft eligibility, but still an extreme long shot to be selected in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft, as he will need more speed for higher levels .. committed to Vermont .. played for Team Reebok (West Division) in USHL Prospects/All-Star Game .. as of Tri-City's 56-game mark, he had 18 goals and 25 assists in 56 games to lead Storm in points.

Tanner Slarks (2009), D, Tri-City

Added to the roster Oct. 23, but re-assigned to affiliate list Jan. 5 and returned to Spokane Braves of Kootenay International Junior Hockey League .. smaller defenseman (5-foot-10, 178 pounds) impressed in lone viewing in early January .. has good all-compass mobility .. generates strong acceleration backwards with powerful crossovers, lets his gaps shrink, and is a smooth skater backwards .. able to get very low for hip checks or to thrust into opponents .. able to angle opponents to the boards .. makes crisp, accurate passes .. obviously, almost no shot at being selected in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft, but it would be good to see him return to the Storm or elsewhere in the USHL in 2009-10 .. uncommitted to a college program .. had 1 assist in 15 games that he played for the Storm .. scored 1 goal and 6 assists in 13 games for Spokane Braves.

Charlie Dodero (2011), D, Tri-City

Doing okay as a 16-year-old defenseman in the USHL .. plays with some physicality, be it stepping up for or a hit or shoving opponents over at the blueline .. appears to be putting in a concerted effort to keep his gaps short .. does a good job to utilize leg drags to block passing lanes and/or shots .. a slightly upright skater .. also a bit upright in his crossovers and utilizes short steps instead of powering out of his crossovers .. stickhandling needs a little work, as he loses control of the puck when he tries to incorporate dekes .. does make crisp, accurate breakout passes, though .. already has decent size at 6-foot-2, 185 pounds .. looking forward to seeing how he progresses over the summer for his second season in the USHL .. uncommitted to a college program .. as of Tri-City's 56-game mark, he had 3 assists in 46 games.