USHL Report: USNTDP Under-17

The USNTDP's Under-17 team took a bit of a hit when Seth Jones and Jacob Trouba were called up to the Under-18 team down the stretch, but the USNTDP's d-corps was still in capable hands, particularly with smaller blueliner Matt Grzelcyk ramping up his game with some newfound speed. McKeen's correspondent Kevin Wey enters notes on Grzelcyk, Brady Skjei, and the rest of the Under-17 team's defensemen that led them to the USHL Clark Cup Playoffs.

Matt Grzelcyk (2012), D, USA U-17

Looked decent against USHL competition early in the season, but made a significant leap forward by the end of the season .. has dramatically upgraded his speed and is skating the puck a lot more .. is now becoming a major threat as a puck-moving defenseman because of his passing abilities and his newfound ability to skate the puck against USHL competition .. has good cruising speed with the puck and can skate it out from behind his net and through the neutral zone .. has developed another gear to separate from opponents with speed bursts .. quickness has improved, allowing him to win short races to the puck consistently .. skating is still a bit upright and he utilizes quick skate turnover more than powerful strides, but he's improving in this area .. able to make tight switchbacks to protect the puck against forecheckers .. smooth circling backward with the puck to transition it .. displays good poise with the puck in all three zones .. transitions the puck well with his d-partners, although, as mentioned previously, he's skating it more than he did early in the season .. consistently makes hard, smooth, crisp, accurate breakout passes .. able to connect on long-distance passes .. wristshot is his shot of choice from the point .. sports a hard, crisp wrister and generally keeps it low .. does have a decent, crisp slapshot and one-timer, too .. defensively, gets down low backward, maintains a wide base, eliminates crossovers, and lets his gaps close .. is smooth backward and has good mobility, but does need to make sure he doesn't back in too much .. capable of smoothly angling opponents toward the boards .. isn't typically an overtly physical defenseman, but is capable of dumping opponents who try to drive the net despite his undersized 5-foot-9, 150-pound frame .. saw regular time on the powerplay and also time on the PK .. has now become a fairly speedy defenseman, but could become scary fast as he fills out and gains more power and strength in his lower body, as hopefully he'll eventually play at 180 to 185 .. with Jones and Trouba up with the Under-18 team, Grzelcyk was the Under-17 team's most impressive defenseman at the end of the season .. ended the season with 2 goals and 16 assists in 55 total games for the Under-17 team .. tallied 1 goal and 6 assists in 14 international games .. his plus-8 rating in 39 USHL games, including preseason and playoffs, was far and away the best amongst U-17 defensemen .. an NHL future is now becoming much more plausible for this small defenseman .. committed to Boston University (2013-14).

Brady Skjei (2012), D, USA U-17

Anchored the U-17 team's first pairing after Seth Jones and Jacob Trouba were added to the Under-18 team .. maintains a low skating stance and has smooth, powerful strides with good extension .. makes smooth pivots in all directions and displays powerful acceleration out of his pivots .. turns are smooth and powers out of his crossovers .. able to make tight switchbacks to evade forecheckers .. powerful stops and starts .. makes hard, smooth, crisp breakout passes .. transitions the puck well with his d-partner down low, but is also a reliable passer up to his forwards .. makes hard, crisp point-to-point passes .. has consistently displayed the ability to thread a long-distance pass through traffic to spring a teammate when the option is there .. every shot in his arsenal has considerable power and looks fairly effortless .. has a hard slapper from the point .. sports a hard one-timer and does a good job of keeping low .. wristshot and snapshot are also hard and crisp .. a heads-up stickhandler who is smooth with the puck .. still displays confidence with the puck, but had simplified his offensive game a bit toward the end of the season .. simplification of his offensive game appears to have successfully reduced his previous propensity to make a major gaff a game .. defensively, maintains a wide base backward, gets low, eliminates crossovers, and lets his gaps close .. has smooth mobility backward, which allows him to angle his man toward the boards well .. has good acceleration backward, which gives him the confidence to keep his gaps close in the neutral zone .. will engage near the blueline, but isn't an overtly physical defenseman .. speed backward allows him to stick with the USHL's finest .. ability to stop backward quickly and smoothly allows him to quickly poke pucks away and to get to them .. likes to make poke checks and is effective doing so .. has decent size at 6-foot-1, 185 pounds .. skating ability and size does make him capable of halting the progress of opponents driving the net .. plus/minus took a beating the final weekend of the season, but his defensive awareness down low did appear improved in these end-of-the-season viewings .. a regular on the powerplay and also saw time on the PK .. wore an "A" toward the end of the season .. projects to be the Under-18 team's third or fourth defenseman next season .. finished the season with 5 goals and 14 assists in 55 total games for the Under-17 team .. put up 3 goals and 6 assists in 14 international games .. had a team-worst minus-18 rating in 39 USHL games, including the preseason and the playoffs .. has high-end potential, but needs to improve his offensive output to be an offensive defenseman at higher levels and need to continue to improve his defensive game if he's going to be a two-way defenseman .. committed to Minnesota (2012-13)

Patrick Sieloff (2012), D, USA U-17

Wasn't quite as intensely physical in late season viewings as in early season viewings, but still the team's most physical defenseman, particularly with Jacob Trouba up with the Under-18 team .. maintains a wide base backward, gets down low, and lets his gaps close .. makes good defensive reads and plays his odd-man rushes well .. still a tad undersized by NHL standards at 6-foot-0, 175 pounds, but can launch into his hits .. a physical presence in all three zones .. able to make big hits down low in his defensive zone, in open ice, and even pinching in from the point .. plays a physical game down low and along the boards .. strong on his skates and consistently withstands attempted hits on him and can level opponents trying to check him .. excellent lateral mobility and can launch into hits near the blueline .. historically, has not put up big offensive numbers and did not this season, either, but has decent offensive tools .. makes hard, crisp, accurate breakout passes .. transitions the puck well with his d-partner by making smooth, hard, crisp passes .. has a hard, crisp wristshot from the point .. also sports hard slapper and one-timer from the point .. displays some vision with the puck from the point and can create some chances by finding teammates down low .. doesn't flash his top speed very often, but does show good quickness to get to loose pucks .. will stand up for his teammates and for himself and is a strong combatant once the gloves come off .. saw time on the powerplay and the penalty kill with d-partner Matt Grzelcyk .. projects as a defensive defenseman with a distinct physical presence who moves the puck reliably .. finished the season with 3 goals and 6 assists in 52 total games for the Under-17 team .. tallied 2 goals and 3 assists in 14 international games ..also played 1 game for the Under-18 team and went without a point .. missed one game due to USHL suspension and the pre-season due to injury .. committed to Miami (2012-13).

Connor Carrick (2012), D, USA U-17

Well-rounded two-way defenseman quietly put up decent offensive numbers .. gets down low backward, maintains a fairly wide base, minimizes crossovers, and lets his gaps close .. executes smooth pivots and stays low .. generally engages around the blueline .. utilizes poke checks often when engaging the opposition near the blueline .. able to make powerful stops backward .. small by NHL standards at 5-foot-10, 185 pounds, but is strong on his skates and plays with some physicality .. able to take out opponents with big hip checks .. will step up for hits in the neutral zone and can level opponents .. does a good job of withstanding attempted hits on him and is a threat to drop the opponent attempting to check him .. makes hard, crisp, accurate breakout passes .. also fires smooth, crisp transition passes to his d-partner .. generally makes simple plays, but is capable of connecting on long-distance passes through traffic to spring teammates .. possesses a crisp, fairly hard wrister from the point .. able to get his shots of quickly and keeps them low .. skating can be slightly railroadish at times, but stride still has decent power .. has good speed with the puck .. able to build speed out of his crossovers from behind his net .. able to get well out over his edges and make sharp cuts .. smooth circling backward with the puck and can also make tight backward circles if necessary .. fairly poised with the puck and doesn't panic when forechecked .. saw some time on both the powerplay and the penalty kill with d-partner Dakota Mermis .. finished the season with 4 goals and 16 assists in 55 total games for the Under-17 team .. tallied 3 goals and 7 assists in 14 international games .. committed to Michigan (2012-13).

Dakota Mermis (2012), D, USA U-17

Best skater amongst the Under-17 team's defensemen and possibly the entire team .. gets down low backward, maintains a wide base, eliminates crossovers, and lets his gaps close .. so smooth backward, and his wide base gives him maximum lateral mobility .. able to explode laterally while moving backward, but is so smooth and controlled doing so .. stays low accelerating backward, which gives him powerful acceleration backward and allows him to keep his gaps close early .. also stays low in his pivots .. executes smooth pivots in all directions .. a smooth, powerful skater with good cruising speed .. able to make powerful, tight circles with the puck .. good acceleration to separate from opponents down low and start the breakout .. smooth circling backward and smooth in his transition from backward to forward .. adept at using each skate as a rudder, allowing him to make subtle changes in course backward to angle his opponents or to stick with them .. makes smooth one-footed stops in all directions .. has added the requisite oomph to his passing game .. makes hard, crisp, accurate passes .. now showing the ability to make some very hard, crisp passes .. able to make quick one-touch passes to transition the puck .. like many of his fellow U-17 blueliners, can thread long-distance passes through traffic to spring forwards .. able to fire hard, accurate saucer passes .. smaller at 5-foot-10, 165 pounds, and isn't an overtly physical defenseman during play, regardless of what his penalty minute total from this season might indicate .. does drop the gloves, though, from time to time .. saw some time on both the powerplay and the penalty kill with d-partner Connor Carrick .. pure skating ability should take him far and has a little more offensive upside than his scoring totals from this season show .. finished the season with 5 goals and 8 assists in 55 total games .. tallied 1 goal and 2 assists in 14 international games .. committed to Denver (2012-13).

Gavin Stoick (2012), D, USA U-17

Generally served as the team's eighth defenseman all season, but made steady progress .. skating has made noteworthy improvement .. skating is still a bit upright, but his stride is much more fluid now and his speed has improved accordingly .. now has decent speed and looks more confident on his edges .. still gets upright accelerating backward and relies on crossovers under acceleration .. does minimize crossovers once he has some speed generated backward .. one-foot stops backward can be awkward .. still a bit susceptible to speed wide, but is getting pretty good utilizing his stick .. now playing his odd-man rushes fairly well and does a good job of clogging passing lanes and intercepting passes or deflecting passes away from their intended target .. also doing a good job of utilizing leg drags to block passes lanes and shots .. capable of making crisp, accurate breakout passes, but needs to make sure he doesn't slap at his passes .. has a hard, crisp wristshot from the point .. needs to make sure he keeps his wrister from the point low .. the Under-17 team's biggest defenseman at 6-foot-3, 205 pounds, but does not yet play the physical game of teammates Trouba and Sieloff, or even Carrick .. saw limited time on special teams .. the most improved player on the Under-17 team during the course of the season and will make the Under-18 team's d-corps rock solid next year if he has a strong summer .. continued improvements in his skating will allow him to become much more than he currently is, whether that be a big defensive defenseman or maybe even a two-way defenseman if such improvements help him add some offense .. finished the season with 1 goal and 3 assists in 54 total games for the Under-18 team .. scored 1 goal and 1 assist in 14 international games .. lone game missed was as a healthy scratch in the team's first playoff game against Muskegon .. no college commitment of yet.

Andy Ryan (2011), D, USA U-17

Move down to the U-17 team at the end of the season appeared to actually improve Ryan's confidence .. maintains a fairly wide base backward and minimizes crossovers, but could afford to get a bit lower .. lets his gaps close and engages near the blueline .. has a decent frame at 6-foot-1, 200 pounds and can step up for effective hits at the blueline .. still needs to improve his skating forward .. a bit upright skating with the puck and his strides can be choppy .. cruising speed is generally only adequate and needs to develop some explosiveness .. however, confidence with the puck increased significantly with the Under-17 team .. seized the opportunity to be a top-four defenseman .. does need to hone his passing game, as his limited role on the Under-18 team seemed to eat away at this area of his game .. needs to work on consistently making hard, crisp, accurate passes .. sometimes his passes need to be firmer, sometimes they have some wobble, and other times they're slightly off target .. also needs to work at not telegraphing his passes by looking where he's going to pass for a long time before he does .. has a decent, crisp wristshot .. same for his slapshot .. saw time on both the powerplay and the penalty kill with d-partner Brady Skjei .. might have been better served by playing on a USHL team and not getting buried on the Under-18 team's depth chart .. despite needing to improve in a number of areas, his physical attitude was so improved by April that there is reason for long-term hope and optimism .. finished the season with 0 goals and 2 assists in 17 total games for the Under-17 team .. scored 0 goals and 3 assists in 34 total games for the Under-18 team .. went without a point in 8 international games for the Under-18 team .. also went without a point in 12 college games for the Under-18 team .. missed the preseason and was out until Oct. 30 due to injury .. committed to Notre Dame (2011-12).

Joe Fiala (2011), D, USA U-17

The final cut from the Under-18 team for the World Under-18 Championships and, unlike Ryan, his game seemed to collapse after the demotion in late March .. didn't get a lot of touches with the puck on the Under-18 team, and his confidence with the puck seemed to go way down after joining the Under-17 team .. after previously displaying good all-compass mobility and a good skating stride, skating now looked a bit railroadish and was slow .. even started stumbling a bit .. typically makes hard, crisp outlet passes .. crisis of confidence with the Under-17 team was also shown in how he struggled to receive hard passes .. has a decent slapper from the point .. also has a crisp wristshot and snapshot from the point .. maintains a wide base backward, stays fairly low, minimizes crossovers, and lets his gaps close .. has decent size at 6-foot-1, 185 pounds, but started backing in more toward the end of the season and engaged less often at the blueline .. capable of stepping up for nice hits and separating opponents from the puck, but seemed to have his checks worked around more the final month of the season .. has good reach with his poke checks and is effective doing so .. with his performance slipping at the end of the season, saw limited time on the special teams .. like Ryan, probably would have been better served playing a larger role on a regular USHL team .. has the talent to be a solid defensive defenseman or even a two-way defenseman with the offensive flashes he showed at times during the past two seasons, but Jeff Blashill will have to rehabilitate his confidence .. finished the season with 0 goals and 1 assist in 6 games for the Under-17 team .. was a healthy scratch for the team's first playoff game against Muskegon .. scored 0 goals and 3 assists in 51 total games for the Under-18 team .. tallied 0 goals and 1 assist in 8 international games for the Under-18 team .. had 0 goals and 1 assist in 16 college games for the Under-18 team .. committed to Western Michigan (2011-12).