USHL Report: Fargo Force

McKeen's correspondent Kevin Wey was able to catch the Fargo Force at the USHL Fall-Classic and twice in November and enters notes on NHL Draft picks Zane Gothberg and Jimmy Mullin and the 2011-eligible Colten St. Clair and Garrett Haar, as well as Brian Cooper and the rest of Fargo's impressive crop eligible for the 2012 Draft.

Zane Gothberg (Bos), G, Fargo

Looking great coming off the World Junior A Challenge .. assumed the number one spot in Fargo when veteran Ryan Massa went down to injury .. has decent size at 6-foot-1, 190 pounds .. makes smooth, quick slides across his crease .. makes strong pushoffs .. does a great job of keeping upright in his slides and maximizing net coverage .. able to butterfly and take away the five-hole quickly, but can get back up exceptionally quickly .. able to reset very quickly .. able to slide across his crease on his skates quickly, too .. maintains a compact butterfly and directs rebounds to the boards with his pads and/or stick .. able to make a quick kick save out of the butterfly and has good extension .. makes crisp glove saves .. tracks the puck through traffic well .. sees the puck well, but also reads the play well .. does a good job of maintaining his calm and playing a poised game .. moves the puck fairly well, including with only one hand on his stick .. only negative note is that he does drop a little bit early at times .. played Minnesota high school hockey for Thief River Falls in 2009-10 .. played for U.S. Junior Select Team at the 2010 World Junior A Challenge in November and backstopped the team to the gold .. played for the U.S. Under-18 Select Team at the 2009 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament .. committed to North Dakota.

Jimmy Mullin (TB), RW, Fargo

Fargo's most skilled player .. possesses great speed with the puck and on the forecheck and backcheck .. able to weave his way through and around traffic with his speed and stickhandling .. explosive in his starts and stops .. able to explode off the half boards and drive the net or make a play .. ability to make tight turns at speed makes him very slippery .. heads-up stickhandler with good offensive vision to find open teammates and trailers .. hands are among the quickest in the USHL and he can maintain control of the puck in tight spaces .. able to make quick moves across his body .. an adept toe dragger who can do so at various coordinates around his body .. also does a good job of shielding the puck one-handed .. willing to skate the puck into traffic .. plays the speed game well, but can also subtly slow the play down and create space and buy time for his teammates .. listed at only 5-foot-10, 160 pounds, but doesn't play small .. played prep hockey for Shattuck St. Mary's in 2009-10 and led the team in both goals and assists .. played for the U.S. Junior Select Team at the 2010 World Junior A Challenge in November and led the team in scoring (4-6-0-6) .. committed to Miami-Ohio.

Colten St.Clair (2011), RW/C, Fargo

Playing both right wing and center for the Force .. has good speed with the puck .. maintains a power stance and has a fairly powerful stride with good extension .. possesses a hard wristshot and a decent one-timer .. backhand is also pretty strong .. makes hard, crisp passes .. willing to skate the puck into traffic, but effectiveness is mixed .. doesn't appear to have the stickhandling prowess to be a high-end, one-on-one player .. attempts some slick stickhandling moves, but success rate of getting it around the opponent or maintaining the handle needs to increase .. sees some time on the powerplay, but more on the penalty kill .. sturdy build at 5-foot-10, 190 pounds .. in his third season of USHL hockey and appears only marginally better than last season .. offensive production only on pace for 30 to 40 points - not enough for early or mid-round selection .. a solid two-way player at the USHL level who appears to project as more of a defensive specialist as an NHL prospect .. played for the U.S. Junior Select Team at the 2010 World Junior A Challenge in November .. committed to North Dakota.

Garrett Haar (2011), D, Fargo

Known for racking up assists at previous levels, but is having to solidify his all-around game in the USHL .. has decent speed with the puck and good stride extension .. gets down low defensively and lets his gaps close, but backs in too much at times .. effectiveness when attempting to stand up opponents physically is mixed .. generally makes hard, crisp passes, although could be more consistent in this area .. a fairly adept toe dragger who uses it to evade forecheckers .. used spin moves to evade forecheckers in the preseason, but is utilizing this less often now .. generally does a good job of keeping his head up to read the play .. sees time on the powerplay .. not big by NHL standards at 6-foot-0, 195 pounds, but isn't small, either .. plays with some physicality .. committed to Northeastern.

Nate Arentz (2012), LW/C, Fargo

Playing more of a fourth-line role for the Force, but displays a strong set of tools .. possesses a smooth, powerful stride that produces good speed with and without the puck .. makes smooth turns and generates power in his crossovers .. uses his speed and agility on the forecheck to hound opponents .. not uncommon for him to be F1 on the forecheck .. also utilizes his speed and effort on the backcheck .. displays shiftiness with the puck and confidence with the puck .. able to use his speed and stick skills to get the puck around opponents .. has a crisp wristshot that he can fire in stride .. has a frame to work with at 6-foot-0, 167 pounds as a 16-year-old .. plays with some physicality .. selected to skate at the USNTDP Evaluation Camp last March, but was not selected to skate at The Program .. no college commitment of yet.

Justin Wade (2012), D, Fargo

Started season on Fargo's affiliate list, but has seen time in about half of the Force's games so far .. has adequate speed and acceleration .. drops his chest a bit when skating .. gets down low backward and lets his gaps close, but appears susceptible to speed .. passing game needs refining, as his passes are off target too often .. can make crisp, accurate passes, though .. plays with some physicality and can thrust into his hits .. already fairly mature physically at 6-foot-1, 205 pounds .. steep adjustment curve can be forgiven some, as he played midget minor last season (for the Chicago Mission) .. played for the U.S. Under-17 Select Team at the Four Nations Tournament in August .. no college commitment of yet.

Brian Cooper (2012), D, Fargo

Fargo's number one defenseman in his second season in the USHL .. smooth skater with good speed and who can skate the puck .. uses his speed and quickness down low in the defensive zone to quickly cover assignments .. gets down low backward, maintains a fairly wide base, eliminates crossovers, and is in a power position .. lets his gaps shrink and will engage at the blueline .. able to thrust up into his hits .. also able to lay down hip checks .. plays with some feistiness down low .. plays a physical game, but also is an adept poke checker .. makes hard, crisp passes .. gets shots off from the point quickly with his crisp off-foot wristshot .. also possesses a decent one-timer .. sees icetime in all situations .. only real drawback is his size at 5-foot-9, 180 pounds, but he doesn't play small .. played for the U.S. Under-18 Select Team at the Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament in August .. also played for the U.S. Junior Select Team at the World Junior A Challenge this November .. no college commitment of yet.