WHL: Red Deers Kurceba Pearl

To say Paul Kurceba has a good tutor in which to learn the ropes on how to be a dominant defenseman in the WHL would be an understatement as he is paired with WJC hero and Calgary Flames' super prospect Dion Phaneuf. We have notes on Kurceba and some of his teammates from a recent game.

Paul Kurceba (2005), D

Kind of a tweener as he isn't overly physical nor offensive .. primarily partnered with Dion Phaneuf, but did see time with others on the back end .. plays the left side .. moves the puck crisply and on the tape .. was caught watching the play and allowed a man to slip behind him, although no damage occurred .. has very good speed and overall quickness, however, was beaten to the puck by the ultra speedy Mitch Fadden .. will take a hit to make a play .. still needs to add some muscle to his 6'2 frame .. versatile enough to be effective on either point .. picked up his man well .. solid stickhandler and can beat the first wave of forecheckers to clear the zone .. displays poise with the puck, but is far from being a threat to stretch the other team's defense with an end to end rush .. doesn't display the toughness to make the opposition pay a physical price in front of the net .. a regular on the penalty-kill.

Eric Frere (2007), D

Played the entire game on a forward line with Jordan Knackstedt and Tanner Gillies .. has good speed and strength, but not surprisingly looks a bit lost at times as a forward .. received a hard pass through the neutral zone with ease .. appears to have the tools to become a more than capable blueliner as he matures under the steady hand of the Rebel coaching staff.

Jordan Knackstedt (2007),

Youthful winger with size shows some promise .. played on a makeshift line of Tanner Gillies and Eric Frere .. took a lazy hooking penalty deep in the offensive zone .. decent overall speed with a fairly powerful stride for his age, however his mobility and first step quickness need improvement .. not hesitant to play in traffic .. can be overpowered by big, veteran players along the wall and in traffic .. failed to pick up the trailer until the player was past him, but slowed him up with a tug that went uncalled.

Jared Walker (Chi), C

Seventh round pick in last year's draft played on a line with Ashton Rome and Chris Neiszner .. displays tenacity on the forecheck .. closes the gap quickly on the pointman .. tremendous effort fending off a sizeable defender and getting around him and then driving hard to the net only to be stopped by the goaltender on the doorstep .. has surprising speed and strength and protects the puck well .. forced a turnover with good pursuit of the puck carrier in the offensive zone .. made a nice move stickhandling past a checker at center ice, however, lost the puck as it trickled off his stick .. a quality energy forward, solid on the PK, yet could be so much more if only he had a better offensive touch and some vision.