WHL: Chipchura Chipping Away

Kyle Chipchura (mtl), C

Montreal first rounder played on the top line with Jeremy Colliton and Caine Pearpoint .. wears an A .. excellent speed and mobility .. got very chippy after the Raiders went down a few goals .. has developed wonderful chemistry with Colliton as there ability to know where each other were going to be .. failed to clear the puck on a PK .. played on the PP .. came out from behind the net and was able to get back-to-back scoring chances .. takes a hit to make a play .. will throw a hit, however he tends to use his hands instead of getting his whole body behind it .. gave a nice feed to a wide open player in the slot .. on more than a few occasions took an extra swipe or poke at the puck under the goalie after the whistle .. has elite vision and hands.

Aki Seitsonen (cgy), C

All-purpose forward played on a line with Dane Byers and various other players .. very versatile as shown by the coach’s reliance in using him on defense while on four-on-four or special teams situations .. solid on his skates and looked strong beating the defender wide .. nice overall speed .. worked hard to get the puck while backchecking .. got in quickly on the forecheck and drew a penalty when elbowed .. almost forced a turnover on the forecheck .. one of those types of players that has the ability to play in any and all situations and not hurt the team .. displayed blazing speed driving through traffic.

Jeremy Colliton (nyi), C

The Raiders’ captain centered a line of Kyle Chipchura and Caine Pearpoint .. explosive slap shot, with an effortless release .. ties up the man off the draw .. was robbed on a point blank shot, although he aided the goalie by not picking the corner .. a mainstay on both special teams .. works effectively along the wall and in the dirty areas .. received a wonderful cross-ice feed while on a two man advantage and made no mistake slamming the puck home .. uses his body well to throw hits .. big-league backhanded saucer pass to spring his linemate for a quality scoring chance .. has the ability to rag the puck and slow the game down when his team needs a break .. oozes leadership.

Dane Byers (nyr), LW

Played with Aki Seitsonen and a variety of fill-ins .. received a PIM when he came to the aid of his goalie .. very mobile and really uses this feature to cut down time and space on the forecheck .. strong on the puck .. comes back deep to support the defense .. plays with a nice blend of grit and speed .. drove hard to the net and caused some coverage problems for the opposition .. terrific first step quickness .. doesn’t shy away from playing in traffic.

Rejean Beauchemin (phi), G

Amazing Raider netminder is rumoured to be the odds on favourite to be the starting goalie for Canada at the 2005 World Junior Championships in North Dakota .. made a great shoulder save .. had little chance on the first few goals to beat him as his team was attempting to kill off two 5-on-3 against by an overzealous official .. looked solid on back-to-back shots from the slot .. stays square to the shooter even when he is moving across the crease .. very poised .. quick feet and will come way out to take away the angle .. confident play the puck, but his stickhandling has room to develop .. was like a vacuum when it came to loose pucks .. even the opposition crowd had to give him his due when he absolutely robbed a player on a point blank shot in which he had to go side-to-side to do so .. stands his ground tremendously well on breakaways .. fully deserved to be selected the first star even though he was on the road and his team lost.