Wisconsin High School: State Tournament

Every year there is a Wisconsin High School hockey player that utilizes the state tournament to display his potential and this year it was Steven Point's defenseman Aaron Harstad. A junior, Harstad is a terrific package of skill and hockey sense on the backend. McKeen's director of scouting Max Giese was in attendance and filed these notes on Harstad, as well as Joe Fiala, Dan Bartowiak and Kody Novinska.

Aaron Harstad (2010), D, Stevens Point

An offensively gifted defenseman that is committed to Colorado College .. efficient, heads-up skater that covers a lot of ice with his attractive stride .. pivots are silky and his lateral agility is prodigious .. blessed with rangy puck skills and the ability to dangle while fully extending his elongated reach .. executes at full speed and can embarrass opponents by toe-dragging the puck right around them .. left-hander with an explosive wristshot that he just needs to become more accurate with .. scored 22 goals this season in only 20 games .. extremely poised and patient, Harstad's options seem endless, as the moment the opposition seems to bottleneck him he'll become resourceful and evade the pressure before making a great first pass .. sees the ice remarkably well and excels in the transition game .. runs around a bit defensively and needs to step up and take the man more often .. keeps gaps tight and has a good stick, but he is guilty of puck gazing at times .. a competitor that will get physical, although he's skinny and gets pushed around .. a Green Bay Gamblers futures draft pick, Harstad can go end-to-end and beat three guys before scoring the goal at this level, but he should challenge himself at a higher level of play next season .. he's a terrific prospect with all the skill and upside you look for in a young defenseman and should be sought after for the NHL draft.

Joe Fiala (2011), D, Verona

Big defenseman with soft hands .. poised puckmover that can rush the puck with some success because of his hand skill and vision of the ice .. does a good job making the first pass and finessing shots through from the point, although his accuracy on his shot disappears when he tees off .. his skating is the glaring weakness right now, as his bad pivots were exposed here on the larger ice surface .. needs to work on his feet and his first step, as his rigid acceleratory strides hardly pick up any speed at all .. defensively, he's effective when he's asserting himself and taking the body, however he can get caught on his heels and needs to make sure his physical play doesn't waiver going forward .. controls gaps adequately and keeps an active stick .. a prospect with the potential to advance to the higher levels of hockey .. had 2 goals and 17 points in 19 games this season.

Dan Bartowiak (2011), C, Verona

A thinking mans centerman that needs to work on his skating .. an ugly, wide-tracked skater with heavy feet .. skates like he's sitting on a high chair and needs to get lower in his stride to find more speed .. does a nice job coming deep in his own end or becoming the third man high in the offensive zone to sustain healthy defensive coverage .. often in the right place at the right time, but he struggles to finish because of his slow release .. displays nifty hands in the faceoff circle .. a borderline prospect right now, but he does have some upside.

Kody Novinska (2012), C, Rice Lake

Freshman centerman that lead his team in scoring with 17 goals and 20 assists .. a smart player that sees the ice well and has a nose for the net .. fearless going into dirty areas, although he lacks the size to be a physical force .. an opportunistic player that commits himself well to defensive hockey, although his understanding of positioning away from the puck is very raw .. right now, he's not the biggest or fastest player, but his production is attractive as is his mind for the game.