WHL: A Kohn Job

Scott Bowles (2005), G

Made a nice pad stop on a quick shot from the point .. not particularly skilled at handling the puck, however, seems to understand his limitations and thusly doesn’t hurt his team .. freezes the puck anytime that his team needs to regroup.

Darryl Yacboski (Col), D

Physical blueliner partnered with Karl Alzner .. took some extra whacks and hacks on a forward in front of the net and was lucky not to receive a penalty .. not hesitant to play aggressive in traffic .. effective at clearing the crease .. threw a solid hit in open ice to knock a puck carrier off the puck .. wears an A .. kills penalties .. solid on his skates and has good, not great overall speed and mobility .. drilled a slap shot from the point that found the back of the net through traffic .. lacks some imagination offensively and when moving the puck tends to make the safe play .. as Brian Burke might say, he’s tougher than a night in jail as he proved when he pounded the daylights out of his opponent .. chosen one of the game stars.

Keegan Dansereau (2006), RW

Played on a line with Riley Merkley and Ryan White .. took the puck off his skates and kicked it up to his stick all in one motion .. needs to use his speed more judiciously as he hasn’t learned to find the holes .. didn’t protect the puck well enough when he was skating through center as had it knocked off his stick rather easily .. must work on not being taken out of the play .. worked hard along the wall and won a battle for possession .. drove to the front of the net and was almost rewarded with a tip in .. turned it over by throwing a pass in to traffic .. still lacks the strength to effectively fend off checkers .. scored a beauty of a goal on a one-timer in the high slot .. chosen a star.

Brodie Dupont (2005), C

Played on a line with Steve Covington and Shaun Landolt .. worked hard along the boards .. good mobility and first step quickness .. nice pass off the boards directly to a teammate to clear the zone .. came back and helped the defense by pressuring the trailer .. took a big hit to clear the zone .. had an opportunity to finish a check, but kind of just grabbed on the guy .. played on the odd power play, although was not a regular on either special teams.

Steve Covington (Det), RW

Played on a line with Brodie Dupont and Shaun Landolt .. pressures the puck carrier using a terrific blend of speed and mobility .. moves the puck quickly and usually on the tape .. played on the PK .. especially effective on the forecheck .. displays good puck pursuit .. sometimes lacks the desperation when fighting to loose pucks .. gives up turnovers when pressured .. tireless skater, but needs to make a better commitment to the physical side of his game.

Shaun Landolt (Tor), C

Played on a line with Steve Covington and Brodie Dupont .. worked hard on the back check .. threw a solid hit along the boards .. got an undisciplined penalty for losing his hand on the puck, which briefly put his team down by two .. uses his stick to close passing lanes, especially on the PK .. quickly got in on the puck carrier to force a turnover .. very good mobility and overall speed .. got in a fight and lost the decision, but still showed that he was a willing combatant.

Andrew Ladd (Car), LW

Played on a line with Pushkarev and Ryan Getzlaf .. amazingly quick getting in on the forecheck .. elite overall speed, acceleration and mobility .. crisp backhand pass to set up a scoring chance in the high slot .. a regular on both special teams units .. drove to the net and just had the pass bounce over his stick .. wonderful give and go with Getzlaf that almost culminated in a goal .. wears an A .. showed a bit of feistiness in the crease to maintain position .. got in a fight late in the game and took a few early on, but came back strong to win the decision with some impressive punches.

Riley Merkley (2005), C

Nothing overly flashy from this '05 draft eligible player that centered a very young line featuring Keegan Dansereau and Ryan White .. cuts down the space and time of the point man on a powerplay .. ties his man up off the draw .. worked hard on the wall and was able to move the puck to his linemate to start the breakout .. snuck in behind the defender and almost got his stick on a long pass .. maintains solid positioning defensively and has excellent awareness of where the other team is at all times .. cuts down passing lanes on the PK .. makes sure to contain the opposing center on the face-off, especially in Calgary’s zone .. tenacious checker .. displayed soft hands while he was being tied up by dishing out a short pass up to a teammate.

Dustin Kohn (2005), D

Partnered with Andy Rogers .. won the battle for a puck behind the net made a safe outlet pass up to his winger along the boards .. dished out a crisp breakout pass showed good puck handling skills on the wall to beat out the forecheckers and move the pass up .. went in deep inn the offensive zone to support the puck carrier .. played on both the PK and PP .. takes a hit to make a play .. has very good overall speed and mobility, but even so can still be exposed by an elite skater as he was when he got beaten to a puck fired down the ice and Kohn had a few stride head start .. allowed his man to get open at the side of the crease .. senselessly over stick-handled at his own blueline and turned it over, instead of moving it up to his forwards .. must be more diligent about not being too fancy, especially in his own zone and or when he’s the last man back .. his breakout passes can be terrific, however he tends to be a bit erratic in this area of his game.

Ryan White (2006), C

Played on a line with Riley Merkley and Keegan Dansereau .. not afraid to take some punishment driving towards the net .. displayed patience as he waited for his teammate to get open, even though he was going to take a hit .. made a poor breakout pass right in to his linemates skates .. nearly found a forward breaking to the net with a terrific leading pass .. played on the PK took a hit to make a play .. solid skater that will create turnovers off of the forecheck .. didn’t hesitate to drop the gloves with a much older player when given a cheap shot and proved that he can handle himself rather well.

Karl Alzner (2007), D

Partnered with Darryl Yacboski .. made a nice play by keeping the puck in at the point .. lost the handle while trying to take a pass on the backhand and trying to move it to his forehand .. has to learn to take the shot when the opportunity presents itself .. moves the puck well on the breakout .. played the man well on a one-on-one, keeping him to the outside.