WHL: Howse, Hughesman Pickard

Ryan Howse (2009), LW, Chilliwack

Sports good hands at the junior level .. boasts excellent anticipation that almost guarantees him at least one prime scoring chance per game .. works hard with or without the puck .. few WHL players are as dangerous from the hash marks in .. loves the give and go and has a knack for getting open .. might not be the fastest skater in this years' draft class, yet he is quite elusive and stickhandles well at top speed .. might not have game breaking speed, however he does get a lot out of the speed he does have .. leads the team with goals and points .. has a reputation of being inconsistent as 12 of his goals have come from four hat-tricks .. although his assist totals are pretty poor, he can be a fairly imaginative passer .. supports the puckcarrier by getting open while keeping his feet moving .. can be dangerous on either the powerplay or the penalty-kill .. low center of gravity and good strength makes him a rather sturdy 5-foot-11, 185-pounder for defenders to handle in the scoring areas .. Bruins chose him in the first round (3rd overall) in the 2006 WHL Bantam Draft. (61gp, 31-13-44)

Adam Hughesman (2009), LW, Tri-City

Not overly strong as he has some difficulty in bullying his way through traffic with the puck .. has a fairly heavy wrist shot .. displays good vision and puck moving skills when getting the puck out of the Americans' zone, in fact dishes out tape-to-tape passes consistently .. works hard all over the ice .. in seven playoff games has five points (1-4-5) .. likes to cycle .. sports good enough acceleration to pressure the point .. only recorded one goal on the powerplay this season .. not an overly exciting or imaginative player that will lift fans out of their seats, but is efficient at the junior level .. showcases solid puck pursuit .. conscientious defensively .. will shoot the puck, yet lacks the touch to be a sniper .. takes a hit to make a play .. joins the rush, however rarely leads it. (71gp, 16-32-48)

Chet Pickard (Nsh), G, Tri-City

Confidence oozes from every pore of the Predators' first rounder from 2008 .. he is able to put some power his passes and thus is quite able to move the puck effectively .. has sports the ability to redirect or push the rebound out of harm's way .. knows when to challenge a shooter and when to back off .. rarely gives an opponent much to shoot at .. does a splendid job keeping body position even as he comes across the crease .. is effective at finding the puck through traffic .. swallows up shots like a sponge .. uses his legs to take away the bottom part of the net .. solid positionally and rarely loses his angles .. there is little doubt that he'll be a top flight goalie in the NHL sooner rather than later. (50gp, GAA 2.28 & 0.921 Sv%)