WHL: Giant European Vacation

It was a long time in coming, but the Vancouver Giants appear to have finally struck gold in the CHL import draft with their selections in 2004 of Andrej Meszaros and Marek Schwarz. In this look back at the Everett exhibition tournament we look at the two Vancouver Euros as well as a number of their teammates.

Jason Reese (2006), C

Not ready for prime time 7th overall pick by the Vancouver Giants in the 2003 WHL Bantam Draft .. received time on both special teams .. lined up on the wing and was out-muscled off the face-off .. delivered a seeing-eye pass to a teammate that had broken open in the slot .. took a hit to make a play, but is very inconsistent as one would expect, especially in the physical department .. has the annoying habit of skating with the blade of his stick turned upside down, making him not ready to receive a pass .. generally used on the wing .. still looks a bit tentative in his own end .. showed some grit getting in a pushing match .. seems to be most effective when he gets involved physically although he also tends to be overmatched .. like most first year players will likely be brought along slowly, but should get a shot at making the team full time this season.

J.D. Watt (2005), RW

Rugged rookie winger got in quick on the forecheck and intercepted a pass at the blueline for a breakaway, but shot it well over the net .. has some spring to his first few steps .. excellent zip on his wrist shot .. delivered a punishing hit along the boards .. got in a fight with Shawn Belle and although the decision didn’t go his way he gets full marks for guts and held his own pretty well.

Adam Courchaine (Minnesota Wild), C

Speedy Minnesota draft pick has been told he will indeed be a Vancouver Giant this season as the Wild are full up in their farm system due to the impending work stoppage .. a true force on the PP and PK, in fact if he is going to make it at the NHL level it will likely have to be as a third or fourth line player that kills penalties and adds a goal or two .. excellent composure ragging the puck to take precious time off the clock on a penalty kill .. tremendous speed, acceleration and especially mobility .. continues to be tough as nails in the face-off dot.

Tristan Grant (Philadelphia Flyers), LW

Rugged winger is at his best when he plays with grit and finishes his checks, which is not always the case as he can let his mind wander at times through the season .. his overall skating has improved and so has his pursuit of the puck carrier .. pounded in a one sided fight and received an automatic game misconduct to go along with the fighting major.

Shaun Vey (2005), C

Gigantic rookie center still has to work on his skating as it is a bit lumber-some at times, however he has the strength to push his way to the net .. knocked home his own rebound in close .. will jump up and try to get in the clear to get a home run pass .. once again found his way to the crease and was able to get his stick on a point shot to direct it to the back of the net for his second marker of the period .. lacks above average first step quickness .. on both special teams and showing better puck pursuit.

Andrej Meszaros (Ottawa Senators), D

Skilled Euro defensemen was drafted twice in the first round this year (NHL and CHL) .. looks to be a mainstay on the penalty-kill and powerplay units .. excellent first step, coupled with tremendous anticipation allow him to beat most players to loose pucks .. not afraid to shoot from the point, especially with the man advantage .. took something off a point shot that found it’s way through a crowd to the net and was subsequently knocked home by Shaun Vey .. displays elite vision and offensive awareness .. has a superb breakout pass .. jumped up in to the slot and blasted a low shot past the goalie .. delivered a crushing hit, but took himself out of the play, giving the opposition a two-on-one opportunity .. excellent release on his shots .. does not hesitate to get in on the rush or pinch from the point .. although has been criticized in the past, showed good awareness in the defensive zone and for the most part kept the opposition in between him and the goal.

Mitch Bartley (2005), LW

Hard working industrious winger has the ability to deliver those board rattling hits on the forecheck that will have all but the bravest defender hearing footsteps .. on both special teams .. continues to improve on his skating, but lacks the top gear and elite mobility to be able to transfer his junior success to the next level .. fearless and will pay any price to get to the danger areas .. a real leader that must be a pleasure for any coach to have.

Tyson Marsh (Toronto Maple Leafs), D

Captain Vancouver is a rock on the Giants’ backend, unfortunately for the Junior club it appears that he will be sticking with the Leafs to play in the minors .. makes a nice first pass .. plays with a ton of sandpaper, but must learn to be more disciplined .. jumped up to deliver a stiff check .. communicates well with his defensive partner(s) .. style of play would suggest he should become a competent pro and with seasoning might make a push for full-time employment in a few years .. took a hitting from behind and a slashing pim all in the same period .. tireless worker along the boards and in front of the net where he makes the opposition think twice about hanging around .. can play on either special team units.

Gilbert Brule (2005), C

Appears to be the runner-up in the draft race with Sidney Crosby leading the pack by a long shot .. strong on the face-offs .. paid the price to get open in front of the net and roofed a howitzer of a wrist shot past the goalie .. has the unique ability that only the special players have of avoiding most bone crushing hits .. blessed with blazing speed, mobility and almost as important, confidence that allow him to bring fans out of their seats with highlight reel plays as he showed on a penalty shot in which he deked the goalie out of his jock .. has no hesitation in sticking up for himself and will even go seeking revenge on a perceived cheap shot as he did to an Everett that got him tossed for a slashing major and a subsequent game misconduct assessed by the WHL.

Tim Kraus (2005), C

Improving second year center, however that isn’t as impressive as it sounds due to how far he still has to improve to get on the top two lines .. showed a nice touch stickhandling by a couple of defensemen, before being stopped in close .. competing harder in high traffic areas .. failed to corral a hard breakout pass .. skating doesn’t standout.

Marek Schwarz (St. Louis Blues), G

Lightning quick first round selection by the Blues in the recent NHL Entry Draft .. sensational glove hand .. has a tendency to drop the puck in front of him so that he can freeze it .. loves to challenge shooters by coming way out of his crease .. got down in the butterfly to stop a dangerous shot along the ice .. stood up well on a close in shot and steered the rebound in to the corner .. doesn’t hesitate to make the highlight type acrobatic save twisting upside down to get a pad on the shot .. squares himself to the shooter and has good awareness of where the opposition is on the ice.