USHL Report: USA U-18 Part II

The additions of Connor Murphy from injury and Jacob Trouba and Seth Jones from the Under-17 team have given an Under-18 team that already featured Robbie Russo and Michael Paliotta a very well-balanced d-corps heading into the World Under-18 Championships. McKeen's correspondent Kevin Wey enters notes on all seven of the defensemen Team USA will be bringing to Germany this month.

Connor Murphy (2011), D, USA U-18

Already playing as the Under-18 team's third or fourth defenseman, despite missing much of this season and the previous two seasons due to injury .. explosiveness is currently only adequate, but is understandable given the past two years .. able to build decent speed .. displays good mobility in terms of edge control .. good lateral mobility at the point .. able to make hard, crisp, accurate passes, although his passing game is slightly off after missing so much time .. moves the puck well with his d-partner on the transition and at the point .. has a hard, crisp wrister from the point and does a good job of keeping it low .. also possesses a fairly hard slapshot from the point and keeps them low .. confident with the puck and can shield it well from forecheckers with his reach .. fairly wide base backward, gets reasonably low, and minimizes crossovers .. able to stop backward quickly .. able to get low and use his long reach to sweep the puck away .. not overtly physical in these viewings, but did engage .. has a good frame to work with at 6-foot-3, 185 pounds .. already a fixture on the second powerplay unit, despite missing most of the season .. suffered a fractured vertebrae before the 2009-10 season (spondylolysis) and missed all but eight games .. re-injured the vertebrae again before the 2010-11 season .. suffered a ruptured spleen during the 2008-09 season .. played for and captained the USA Under-18 Select Team at the Ivan Hlinka Tournament last August .. returned in time for the 2010 Five Nations Cup in early February .. heading into the World Under-18 Championships, he had 3 goals and 3 assists in 14 total games .. played 2 games for the Under-17 after the Five Nations Cup to get him additional icetime and went without a point .. committed to Miami (2011-12) .. the most complete USHL/USNTDP defense prospect eligible for the 2011 NHL Entry Draft in terms of overall package of size, skill, and smarts .. quite similar to his father, former NHLer Gord Murphy .. solid potential to become a second or third NHL defenseman, particularly as he makes up for lost time and fills out.

Robbie Russo (2011), D, USA U-18

Smooth operator has been the 1993s' first defenseman from start to finish in his time with the USNTDP .. a smooth skater backward who has good speed in reverse .. maintains a wide base backward, gets down low, eliminates crossovers, and lets his gaps close .. able to smoothly angle the opponent toward the boards and rub him out .. able to stop backward quickly and is smooth and controlled in doing so .. executes smooth pivots in all directions and stays low and in a power position .. not an overtly physical defenseman, but will engage physically and is intelligent in his positioning .. low skating stance allows him to thrust up into opponents .. smooth, powerful skater forward .. possesses powerful acceleration and quickly builds speed with seemingly little effort .. nice cruising speed with the puck and can weave through traffic .. powers out of his crossovers and builds impressive speed .. able to make smooth, powerful, tight circles with the puck to evade opponents and does so often .. pivots with the puck are also smooth .. confident with the puck and is a puck possession defenseman .. not afraid to circle back and regroup with the puck if he doesn't like the options he sees .. exceptionally consistent passing game .. passes are always smooth, crisp, and on target .. able to fire hard, crisp passes to get pucks across zones through traffic on the attack or to spring teammates .. an adept saucer passer who keeps them crisp, on target, and lands them perfectly time and time again .. transitions the puck well with his d-partner .. distributes the puck well from the point on the powerplay .. smooth mobility allows him to be slippery at the point with swivels and spins .. incorporates some fakes from the point and can then pass or shoot the puck quickly .. has a hard, crisp, smooth slapshot .. wristshot is also fairly hard and always crisp .. plays in all situations and sees major minutes .. a staple for Team USA in the shootout and has displayed prowess in scoring shootout goals .. an alternate captain .. not prohibitively small at just under 6-foot-0 and 190 pounds .. offensive production is down, but he's pinching in from the point much less this season and letting his improved forward teammates do their jobs down low .. heading into the World Under-18s, he had 3 goals and 19 assists in 52 total games, which significantly belies his offensive awareness and skill .. was a point per game in international competition at 1 goal and 7 assists in 8 games .. committed to Notre Dame (2011-12) .. similar to Kris Letang in some regards, although not as physical .. projects as a second or third defenseman.

Michael Paliotta (2011), D, USA U-18

Defensive defenseman with a solid first pass and who brings a physical presence .. a bit upright accelerating backward, compromising the power he could produce .. also a bit upright skating backward and isn't in a power position .. base backward could be a bit wider .. lets his gaps close, but is susceptible to getting opened up .. does display good mobility and some quickness down low in his own zone staying with opponents .. forward skating is also upright .. needs to get lower, which would also help him improve his stride extension .. needs to make sure he's using his arms optimally and not swinging an arm across his body .. generally fires hard, crisp, accurate first passes .. makes crisp point-to-point passes .. able to execute some nice one-touch and saucer passes .. has a decent, crisp wristshot from the point .. also has a decent slapshot .. ability to engage physically while skating backward is moderate, but is effective physically down low in his own zone .. does attempt to step up for open-ice hits and can thrust into his checks .. good size at 6-foot-3, 200 pounds .. sees regular time at even strength and the penalty kill .. no longer a regular on the powerplay with Seth Jones and Jacob Trouba called up .. physicality will likely make a great leap forward once he gains additional strength and gets lower in his skating stance and in a power position more often .. heading into the World Under-18 Championships with 1 goal and 12 assists in 52 overall games .. committed to Vermont (2011-12) .. potential to become a second-paring defenseman, particularly if he's very successful in developing a powerful skating stride with a lower stance.

Barrett Kaib (2011), D, USA U-18

Small-but-physical defenseman beat out Joe Fiala for the final spot on the blueline for the World Under-18 Championships and despite missing late February and most of March due to injury .. maintains a wide base backward, stays fairly low, eliminates crossovers, and lets his gaps close .. fairly powerful acceleration backward .. engages physically at or near the blueline .. smaller at just under 5-foot-10, but stout at 190 pounds .. plays with a distinct physical edge .. able to launch into his hits .. plays very physical down low in his own zone and around his net but is also a threat to step up for big open-ice hits .. engages physically for loose pucks and not uncommon that he takes his man off his skates .. also a threat to strip opponents of the puck just using his stick .. has decent speed with the puck .. fairly confident with the puck and has the agility to evade forecheckers with tight circles .. makes hard, crisp passes that are generally on target .. missed about a month after the Five Nations Tournament due to an undisclosed injury .. heading into the World Under-18s, had 0 goals and 7 assists in 44 total games .. played 3 games for the Under-17 team in late March coming off injury to get him more icetime and went pointless .. committed to Providence College (2011-12) .. if he plays in the NHL one day, it'll be in a Francis Bouillon undersized-but-physical mold.

Jacob Trouba (2012), D, USA U-18

Already playing a top-four role for the Under-18 team since being "called up" from the Under-17 team in late February after Barrett Kaib went down due to injury .. a bit of a risk taker defensively, as he likes to step up and make open-ice hits in the neutral zone, even on the PK .. plays with a physical edge and has decent size at 6-foot-1, 185 pounds .. lets his gaps close and engages at or near the blueline .. slightly susceptible to speed wide still, as he could use a little more speed backward and work on his angling .. poised and confident with the puck .. doesn't panic under pressure and rush the play .. able to shield the puck well with sweeping stickhandling moves .. also does a good job of protecting the puck with swivels at speed .. able to beat opposing wingers at the point with t-drags and spin-o-ramas and then walk in .. triggerman from the point with significant shot power .. possesses a hard one-timer .. also sports a hard, crisp slapshot .. wristshot from the point is also crisp and fairly hard .. has little concern if the puck isn't settled and just gets the shot off and in on net .. has decent acceleration with the puck and good cruising speed with the puck .. makes smooth, crisp, accurate outlet passes .. transitions the puck well with his d-partner .. point-to-point passes are hard, crisp, and on target .. equally as likely to skate the puck as he is to pass it, but makes good decisions on when to do which .. will join the attack if he's one of the first three and can make some slick plays .. heading into World Under-18s, he had 1 goal and 5 assists in 13 total games for the Under-18 team .. finished the season with 6 goals and 13 assists in 37 games for the Under-17 team .. no college commitment of yet (Kitchener holds his major junior rights) .. looks like a strong candidate to be a first-round pick in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft .. early projection is as a top-two defenseman.

Jake McCabe (2012), D, USA U-18

Solid two-way defenseman played a sixth defenseman role after Jones and Trouba joined the team .. gets down low backward, maintains a wide base, and eliminates crossovers .. good mobility backward and consistently lets his gap close in the neutral zone to engage at the blueline or earlier .. confident in his backward mobility, as he does not panic if his gap is immediately short in the neutral zone due to a turnover by a teammate .. needs to reduce the success rate opponents have of fighting through his checks at the blueline .. a threat to make a hard hip check at the blueline .. transitions the puck with his d-partner a lot .. consistently makes hard, crisp, accurate transition passes .. also makes crisp, accurate breakout passes .. point-to-point passes are, likewise, hard and crisp .. sports a hard slapper from the point and generally keeps it low .. wristshot from the point is only adequate .. sees a regular shift at even strength, but powerplay time has been reduced by additions of Jones and Trouba .. sees regular time on the PK .. adequate size at 6-foot-0, 195 pounds .. missed the preseason and all of October due to injury before coming back in early November just before the Four Nations Cup .. heading into the World Under-18s, he had 4 goals and 11 assists in 38 total games .. committed to Wisconsin (2011-12) .. signing of Jake Gardiner by Toronto off of Wisconsin roster gives McCabe prime chance to be a fourth or fifth defenseman as a freshman in his draft year.

Seth Jones (2013), D, USA U-18

Late 1994 plays a mature game and is already the Under-18 team's second defenseman .. very poised with the puck .. acceleration and speed are decent at best, but rarely panics with the puck .. confident with the puck on his stick and is adept at shielding the puck with his considerable reach .. despite lack of top speed, is oftentimes successful weaving through the neutral zone with sweeping stickhandling moves .. also intelligently circles away from forecheckers to maintain possession or swivels to shield it .. a decent toe-dragger .. able to use his reach well to draw in loose pucks and begin the breakout or the attack .. poised at the point and sees time on the first powerplay unit .. makes hard, smooth, crisp, accurate transition passes and breakout passes .. able to quickly move the puck by receiving it and passing it in one smooth motion .. on the other hand, guilty of hanging onto the puck too long at times .. has a crisp, fairly hard slapper from the point .. also has a crisp wristshot from the point .. generally keeps his shots low and keeps them on target .. pinches in from the point from time to time and can make things happen .. not an overtly physical defenseman at this time .. lets his gaps close, but typically engages at the blueline with a stick check .. an effective stick checker due to his long reach .. susceptible to getting opened up wide by speedy opponents .. needs to improve his explosiveness and top speed, but has significant upside .. currently 6-foot-3, 185 pounds, but his father (Ronald "Popeye" Jones) was a 6-foot-8, 265-pound forward in the NBA .. heading into the World Under-18s, he had 0 goals and 5 assists in 12 total games for the Under-18 team .. finished the season with 4 goals and 17 assists in 37 games for the Under-17 team .. no college commitment of yet (major junior rights held by Everett) .. significant potential to be an early first-round pick of the 2013 Draft.