WHL: Spokane Spawns Salmonsson

The Spokane Chiefs are hopeful that a stint with the Swedish World Junior team will awaken touted import Johannes Salmonsson as the Pittsburgh second rounder has fizzled thus far in his WHL debut. Correspondent Patrick King provides an assortment of recent game notes including a trio of NHL draft prospects in Salmonsson, Andy Rogers (TB) and Nicholas Drazenovic (StL).

Johannes Salmonsson (Pit), LW, Spokane

So far, the hype certainly has not translated into results for the highly-touted Swedish import, having recorded only three goals and nine points in his first 26 WHL games with the Chiefs .. this despite playing on the top line with Derek Ryan and Chad Klassen .. interestingly, however, Salmonsson didn't see any time on the power play during this viewing .. a strong skater with good speed once he gets going .. displays strong vision of the ice, particularly in the offensive zone .. made a few nice setups that teammates failed to capitalize on .. despite having a reputation as a deft stickhandler, he played a very passive game and rarely held onto the puck .. seems intimidated by the physical style of the WHL as he often shied away from contact .. didn't always finish his checks either .. doesn't play with a lot of inspiration and only seems to exert full effort when he wants to.

Andy Rogers (TB), D, Prince George

Failed to make the cut for Canada's final world junior roster due in part to an ankle injury that has limited him to just 21 games this season .. known for his effortless mobility and skating, yet did not show great quickness nor range in this contest .. appeared to be holding back and not driving his feet like he is capable of .. veteran is used in all situations, paired with Ty Wishart on special teams .. can be a bit too aggressive at times and will go out of his way looking for the big hit; took a penalty in the offensive zone when he crosschecked an opponent from behind into the boards .. overall, shows a decent upside as a tough defender who can make contributions to the attack, however he's very much a project at this stage and needs to be handled with care .. his overall defensive awareness needs work while his offensive vision appears inadequate to be a prime powerplay QB at the next level .. heck, he's not even producing at this level (21-0-3-3).

Nicholas Drazenovic (StL), C, Prince George

Currently sitting second on the Cougars in goals, assists and points (36-14-19-33) .. left off the invitation list for Team Canada's world junior tryouts .. centers the top unit and also lines up on the top power play with Eric Hunter and Colin Patterson .. occasionally saw some time killing penalties with Hunter but only toward the end of shorthanded situations .. displayed very good speed and acceleration as he only requires four to five strides to reach top gear .. made one particularly nice play coming out from the corner as he danced along the goal line and cut inwards about a foot before unleashing a quick shot .. shows good ability to create shooting lanes .. however, this wasn't one of his more consistent performances .. he hustled well on some shifts but took other ones off .. seemingly will need a lot of work at the next level based on this viewing.

Michael Maniago (2006), G, Kamloops

Appeared in 14 games as a rookie in '04-5 and is up to 11 appearances this season (3-4-0-1, 2.65, .900, 1SO) despite playing backup to workhorse Devan Dubnyk .. second cousin of former NHL goalie Cesare Maniago .. got rattled early in this contest after allowing a few quick goals .. overcommitted on the second, dropping down far too soon and allowing the opposing forward time to cut across to the other side of the net .. can be overly aggressive to the shooter, coming out and standing on white ice, and though his positioning is good for the most part, he is susceptible at times to cross-crease feeds .. also needs to improve on his rebound control .. on the plus side, he does possess potential as his lateral movements are very strong and overall he possesses solid fundamentals .. just needs to simplify his game to be more effective.

Matthew McCue (2006), D, Spokane

Ranked 16th on Central Scouting's preliminary WHL rankings, but will miss up to three weeks after suffering a broken cheekbone last week .. second-round pick, 27th overall, in the 2003 WHL Bantam Draft .. a hulking rearguard who plays with a mean streak .. paired with Jason Lynch and used in all situations .. a regular on the power play where he is a threat due to a howitzer slapshot .. demonstrates keen instincts regarding when to pinch in offensively .. always keeps his shots low and hard, often hitting the target .. plays a very physical style, at times even getting too fixated on making the big hit .. on one sequence, he took himself and the opposing forward out of the play with a big hit at the blueline, which resulted in a two-on-one against .. well-trained defensively as he watches the player instead of the puck when defending one-on-one situations .. also demonstrates a special ability to get under an opponent's skin as, while physical, his hits are predominantly legal .. conversely, his skating will require plenty of attention as he's not very fast on the pins .. could shoot up the rankings if his footspeed progresses over the second half.

Seth Compton (2006), C, Spokane

West Richland, Washington native played 41 games as a rookie in a '04-5 (41-2-5-7), yet has not contributed much on the scoresheet in his second term so far (28-2-2-4) .. an energetic forward with lots of grit and hustle .. plays a strong defensive game and is a regular on the PK .. courageously sacrifices his smallish body to block shots, though did commit too early on one occasion, giving way for the opposing defenseman .. always skating hard, pressuring opponents while shorthanded - created one 2-on-1 for himself through diligent PK work .. willing to take a hit to make a play .. mucks it up and does the thankless dirty work in the corners with exceptional success .. also draws penalties with his work habits .. displays solid defensive awareness at all times, however didn't display much in the way of offensive potential during this viewing.