USHL Report: Omaha Lancers

All eyes were on the Omaha Lancers in 2010-11, as scouts came in droves to watch Seth Ambroz, one of the highest-regarded USHL prospects eligible for the 2011 NHL Entry Draft entering the season. However, it was Detroit Red Wings draft pick Ben Marshall who impressed the most and took home some USHL hardware at the end of the season. McKeen's correspondent Kevin Wey enters notes on Ambroz and Marshall, as well as 2011-eligible goaltender John Keeney and the 2012-eligible Adam Chlapik.

Seth Ambroz (2011), RW, Omaha

Now proven that Ambroz is a complementary player offensively, but his defensive game grew a lot in 2010-11 .. after three full seasons of USHL hockey, Ambroz still has many of the same skating flaws .. lacks speed with the puck .. also lacks acceleration with the puck, which gives him virtually no separation .. gets upright under acceleration with and without the puck .. has a bit of a sprinter's kick in his extension and his stride could afford to be more fluid .. is also too upright in his crossovers .. is able to build some speed on the forecheck, but it takes some space .. lack of separation with the puck is further compromised by stickhandling shortcomings .. doesn't seem in full control of the puck in his first few strides when trying to explode .. has a tendency to stickhandle with his head down .. is good at using his size to protect the puck along the boards, but is prone to mishandling the puck in open ice when pressured quickly .. difficult for him to make plays just after he gets the puck, as he's quickly caught by opponents .. capable of firing hard, crisp passes, but needs to hone his accuracy .. passing game would likely improve if he had the separation to not feel rushed and to open up more time and space for himself .. dangerous when he's fed the puck, though .. seemingly able to develop roots around the crease and is tough to move out .. very strong finishing abilities around the net .. most of his goals are scored in close, but he has noteworthy shot power .. is able to fire hard, crisp wristshots with seemingly little effort .. likewise, his slapshot is hard and crisp and can seem effortless at times .. a regular on the first powerplay unit .. as he currently is, Ambroz requires skilled players around him to put up big points, as he doesn't have the skating to truly generate offense himself .. despite skating flaws, is able to thrust into opponents and fight through checks .. can explode into opponents when battling for the puck .. puts in a good effort on the forecheck and finishes his checks .. able to lay down some hard hits along the boards with his 6-foot-2, 215-pound frame .. drew a lot of penalties this season playing a physical game and staying disciplined when opponents retaliated .. a very capable fighter, but was very smart in choosing when and when not to fight this past season .. had a leadership role as an alternate captain .. became a very effective player defensively despite his lack of speed .. did a good job of positioning himself to intercept passes in the neutral zone and near the blueline .. also displayed a knack for stripping opponents of the puck before or at the blueline .. displayed a willingness to drop and block shots and did so well, oftentimes blocking them out of the defensive zone .. also made some timely clears of the zone when he had to collapse a little lower to help out defensively .. was one of Omaha's regulars on the PK .. needs to work on his skating mechanics and his explosiveness a lot, and his stickhandling secondarily, but his development defensively and as a leader in 2010-11 was a real positive .. finished the season with 24 goals and 22 assists in 56 games .. scored 2 goals and 0 assists in 3 playoff games .. played for the U.S. Under-18 Select Team at the Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament in August .. also played for Team USA at the World Junior A Challenge and scored 2 goals and 3 assists in 4 games .. named a Mid-Season All-Star by the USHL .. committed to Minnesota (2011-12) .. offensive game could transform if he improves his skating, but his offensive output at higher levels could be limited if he doesn't .. development defensively bodes well for Ambroz when he almost inevitably has to play third- and fourth-line roles as he works his way up the hockey ladder .. a prospect to consider in the second half of the second round.

John Keeney (2011), G, Omaha

Fairly solid young goaltender, but was used sparingly down the stretch, as the Lancers utilized Todd Mathews as the number one netminder .. able to butterfly quickly and maintains a compact butterfly .. does a good job of directing butterfly saves toward the boards and away from the net .. able to quickly cover rebounds in front of him or stick them into the corners .. makes calm and composed butterfly saves and can get back up quickly .. minimizes rebounds off of the chest protector .. resets quickly but calmly .. executes smooth, quick, and controlled pad slides across his crease .. able to change directions mid pad slide .. is also quick across his crease on his skates .. does a good job of keeping his torso upright on butterfly saves and when moving laterally, maximizing his 6-foot-1, 190-pound frame .. typically tracks the puck well and reads the play well and uses positioning to make a lot of his saves .. plays a technical game, but has a decent athletic base to work with .. able to make quick pad saves, splits saves, and big saves coming across his crease if necessary .. directs blockers saves away from the net .. makes crisp glove saves .. plays with poise in net .. does not panic on dangerous chances, breakaways, second and third shots, and the like .. a decent puckhandler .. calmly moves the puck behind the net and moves it effectively .. able to launch passes up to his forwards, but typically makes the easy, safe play .. had a strong late January and first couple weeks of February, but then went on a losing streak .. only started 3 of Omaha's final 15 games .. played over 30 games and finished with a 15-9-3 record, 1 shutout, a 2.23 goals-against average, and a .918 save percentage .. no college commitment of yet .. a weak end to the season makes Keeney a long shot for selection in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft, but he is a goalie to continue to monitor moving forward.

Adam Chlapik (2012), LW, Omaha

Typically played a fourth-line role for the Lancers, but impressed all season with his two-way game and physical edge .. has good speed with the puck and can be shifty .. displays good explosiveness and uses it to get to loose pucks or quickly pressure opponents .. able to build good speed out of his crossovers .. quick laterally with the puck .. poised with the puck and doesn't panic when pressured .. confident with the puck down low and in the corners and off the half boards as well as in open ice .. a heads-up stickhandler who can assess his options .. able to buy time for his teammates with his patience and his ability to protect the puck .. adept at shielding the puck using spins and through positioning his body .. has quick hands and can combine them with his quickness to explode off the boards .. able to make quick sweeps across his body to weave through traffic in open ice .. does a good job of starting and working the cycle .. makes smooth, quick passes .. saw some time on the powerplay thanks to his poise and ability to create nice plays .. has soft hands to handle hard passes and difficult passes .. possesses a fairly hard, crisp wristshot .. also has a hard, crisp slapper .. plays a conscientious two-way game and hustles on the forecheck and backcheck .. finishes his checks and can thrust into his hits .. able to make big hits crashing opposing defenseman and in open ice .. engages physically going for the puck .. quickly engages opponents off of the faceoff and will play the body .. has displayed a willingness to step up for teammates he feels have been wronged .. able to inject some energy into his team with some of the hits he makes .. on some shifts, despite being a skilled player, the first thing he'll do is go out and make a big hit .. decent size at 5-foot-11, 180 pounds .. brings a solid combination of skating, skill, and physicality .. has proven capable of playing a third- or fourth-line role, but also the upside to play a top-six role for the Lancers in 2011-12 .. finished the season with 9 goals and 6 assists in 46 games .. went without a point in 3 playoff games .. played for the Czech Republic at the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge and had no points in 5 games .. no college commitment of yet .. a prospect to watch for the 2012 Draft, as the odds are strong that Chlapik will play a top-six role for Lancers, assuming he isn't selected in the CHL Import Draft and goes the major junior route.

Ben Marshall (Det), D, Omaha

One of the best defensemen in the USHL in 2010-11 and was named to the USHL All-Rookie Team and the All-USHL Second Team .. small in stature at 5-foot-9, 170 pounds, but made a big impact in every area .. has good, smooth cruising speed with the puck and always appears to be in control .. explosiveness with the puck gives him excellent separation, which he uses often from behind his net .. also able to utilize his speed bursts in the neutral zone to gain the offensive zone .. has a powerful skating stride and stays low to give him a low center of gravity .. makes smooth turns in all directions .. also executes smooth pivots forward and backward .. smooth walking the blue line and can be quite explosive doing so .. confident at the point and his ability to swivel allows him to easily make passes, receive passes, fire shots, or fake shots quickly .. confident with the puck and can skate the puck coast-to-coast, but doesn't do so for the sake of it .. very competent in creating plays down low in the offensive zone when he's skated the puck there or has joined the attack .. makes smooth, crisp passes .. one consistent criticism from the beginning to the end of the season is that Marshall could afford to put more oomph on a lot of his passes .. has a hard, crisp wristshot .. off-foot wristshot is also hard and crisp .. has an exceptionally hard one-timer, which Marshall utilized a lot on the power play .. also has a hard, crisp slapper .. despite being small in size, his shot power seems fairly effortless .. does a good job of keeping his one-timers low and on net .. Lancers' powerplay quarterback and saw significant time with the man advantage .. also saw time on the PK .. defensively, gets down low backward, maintains a wide base, and lets his gaps close .. able to stop smoothly and quickly to stick with opponents who attempt to ditch him utilizing sudden stops .. utilizes stick checks a lot in open ice, but plays with some physicality down low .. able to thrust into his checks and make some big hits .. missed the preseason due to a broken wrist suffered over the summer at the Red Wings' development camp, but still made an immediate impact and became one of the top all-around defensemen in the USHL .. finished seventh in USHL defenseman scoring with 11 goals and 22 assists in 56 games .. finished fourth amongst USHL defensemen in plus/minus at plus-20 and was well ahead of any other Lancer .. had 0 goals and 1 assist in 3 playoff games .. named a Mid-Season All-Star by the USHL .. committed to Minnesota (2011-12) .. has the tools a small defenseman needs for long-term success and will likely only get faster and more explosive as he continues to fill out.