These are from Neutral Zone, a great source for prospect information. It is a paid service, but worth the $$ if you are obsessed with #cawlidgehockey. We have a number of extremely high end prospects committed to BC. Enjoy!
NTDP Evaluation Camp Rankings
Posted on March 31, 2017
Neutral Zone scouts were in attendance for the entire NTDP Evaluation Camp. While we would have had some different players invited, overall it was a good crop of talent headlined by Jack Hughes, this years soon to be OHL first overall pick. He was a full cut above the rest and cemented his place as the best ’01 in North America. Below Hughes was a small group of “A” prospects, but a longer list of “B” prospects. The goaltending and left shot defenseman are the strength of this group. The forward group is a little thin in prospects and lacks size and the right shot defense group lacks depth. Overall, the team could struggle next year against junior competition as the forward group, outside of Hughes, lacks a ton of fire power and size and the defense group has a lot of raw prospects who are a year or two away.
This year instead of compiling a basic ranking, we decided to evaluate every player, analyze their performance and give the case for making it and the case against making it. While every scout will differ on certain players, this method outlines the pro’s and con’s of each players game and their reason or not for making the team.
The last thing we will say is that USA Hockey always gets some bad press on the “misses” as this year’s NHL Draft could potentially have 5-6 Americans in the first round and none of them coming from NTDP. However, this is a big undertaking and they don’t have an NHL staff to do it, so they have to rely on tournament scouting, the Select 15 Festival and agents/coaches. With that being said, there were some players invited that shouldn’t have been and there were some players such as Shattuck St. Mary’s Grant Silianoff who most certainly should have been.
Team Blue
Forwards:
#22 Matthew Boldy (L, Dexter, ’01) Boldy is an intriguing prospect who was probably on the “outside” heading into camp but very well may have earned his way onto the team. He has a thin build which limits what he can do, but his speed, puck control and effortless passing ability were on full display. He scored a few goals, demonstrated good sense and awareness and showed poise under duress. He impressed us in his ability to handle the puck and make decisions at full speed. College: Boston College Grade: B+
The Case for: Played really well here at camp. Scored goals, set up plays, showed speed, poise and sense. His frame looks like he’ll continue to grow and he is only at the start of his development curve.
The Case against: He’s thin, got knocked off pucks and doesn’t have one particular skill that stands out.
#18 Patrick Moynihan (R, Nobles & Greenough, ’01) You could tell Moynihan played against older, stronger competition because despite his lack of size, he makes quick, smart decisions with the puck and displays good habits. He wins draws, supports the puck in his end and plays a controlled, purposeful game. He’s a cerebral style, has excellent vision and sense and a rocket wrist shot. He can play with poise and slow it down to make plays or he can play fast with his speed and intuitive offensive instincts. College: Boston College Grade: A-
The Case for: Smart, playmaking center who can play a complimentary role or a finishers role. He has the speed, the sense and the skill to compete for top six time on this team.
The Case Against: Can be a bit perimeter at times, he needs to get stronger and there is a lot of talent at the center position on this team.
Defense:
#4 Cam York (L, Shattuck St. Mary’s Prep, ’01) We have seen York play over 15 times this season and never seen a bad game. This was more of the same. He’s got size, he moves pucks quickly and efficiently in all three zones, he can run a power play, he can kill penalties and pick up garbage in front of the net. He wins battles behind the goal and in the corners, he can strip pucks off opponents and plays a sound positional game. He scored a few goals off catch and shoot plays where he collapsed down from the blue line. He has good sense and timing knowing when to pinch, when to jump up and join the offense and when to step up and make a hit or retreat and angle them outside. He also showed his sense with the puck making smart decisions, especially on the breakout where he felt pressure, skated to open ice and several times hit the center in the middle of the ice instead of rimming it around the wall or throwing it blindly to the wing. He’s mature beyond his years and showed that he should have no problem making the jump to junior hockey next season. College: Boston College Grade: A-
The Case for: The most junior ready defenseman in the entire group. He has the foundation in his skill set, size and style of play to develop into a draft pick.
The Case against: N/A
Defense:
#5 Drew Helleson (R, Shattuck St. Mary’s U16, ’01) Helleson is a really solid defenseman. He does everything and does it well. He skates well, he defends well, he manages the puck well, he gets shots through traffic, he takes the body, he makes a smart, accurate first pass and he plays a low risk game. He was solid here as well; doesn’t make mistakes, doesn’t turn pucks over, plays reliable, shut down defense and made some excellent passes out of his end while under pressure. He’s got size, he’s got athleticism and he doesn’t get beat. He’s one of the more junior ready defenseman in the group in the short term while still having considerable long term upside. College: Boston College Grade: A-
The Case for: He’s got everything you want in a defenseman; size, skating, passing ability and defensive awareness and instincts. He played well at camp and is coming off a strong season at Shattuck where he led all defenseman in points, plays a ton of minutes and is used in every situation.
The Case against: To appreciate Helleson’s complete game takes a trained eye and sometimes NTDP has a tendency to go for the “eye test” players who are easier to spot.
#3 Ryan Siedem (R, Avon Old Farms, ’01) Siedem is a player who’s really come on during his freshman season at Avon Old Farms. He’s a smooth skater, with a tall, thin frame and ideal athleticism for a defenseman. He showed off his stride and poise with the puck here and made several smart, crisp breakout passes that led to rushes the other way. He also carried it end to end a few times when he had time and space and his ease up the ice with the puck catches the eye. He isn’t that physical yet and struggled defending in front of the net and against net drives off the wall/corner, but that will likely improve as he gets bigger and stronger. College: Boston College Grade: B+
The Case for: High upside prospect with size, skating and puck moving ability. He’s also a right shot which is severely lacking in this group. Has a younger brother who is a high end talent as well.
The Case against: He’s thin and doesn’t play a very aggressive defensive style. Might be tough task to play at the junior level next season.
Goalies:
***Goalies played on different teams throuhgout the week
Spencer Knight (Catches Left, Avon Old Farms, ’01) Other than Hughes, Knight is the second most obvious selection. He has the size, the athleticism, the technical ability, the vision, the poise and the skill to make any save. He take the net away from shooters, he smothers the first shot and allowed very few second chance opportunities. He plays the puck better than anyone here and can connect on long distance passes up ice. A complete goalie with obvious NHL upside. College: Boston College Grade: A+
The Case for: He had the best season, he had the best camp and projects to have the most upside of any goalie in the group.
The Case against: N/A
NTDP Evaluation Camp Rankings
Posted on March 31, 2017
Neutral Zone scouts were in attendance for the entire NTDP Evaluation Camp. While we would have had some different players invited, overall it was a good crop of talent headlined by Jack Hughes, this years soon to be OHL first overall pick. He was a full cut above the rest and cemented his place as the best ’01 in North America. Below Hughes was a small group of “A” prospects, but a longer list of “B” prospects. The goaltending and left shot defenseman are the strength of this group. The forward group is a little thin in prospects and lacks size and the right shot defense group lacks depth. Overall, the team could struggle next year against junior competition as the forward group, outside of Hughes, lacks a ton of fire power and size and the defense group has a lot of raw prospects who are a year or two away.
This year instead of compiling a basic ranking, we decided to evaluate every player, analyze their performance and give the case for making it and the case against making it. While every scout will differ on certain players, this method outlines the pro’s and con’s of each players game and their reason or not for making the team.
The last thing we will say is that USA Hockey always gets some bad press on the “misses” as this year’s NHL Draft could potentially have 5-6 Americans in the first round and none of them coming from NTDP. However, this is a big undertaking and they don’t have an NHL staff to do it, so they have to rely on tournament scouting, the Select 15 Festival and agents/coaches. With that being said, there were some players invited that shouldn’t have been and there were some players such as Shattuck St. Mary’s Grant Silianoff who most certainly should have been.
Team Blue
Forwards:
#22 Matthew Boldy (L, Dexter, ’01) Boldy is an intriguing prospect who was probably on the “outside” heading into camp but very well may have earned his way onto the team. He has a thin build which limits what he can do, but his speed, puck control and effortless passing ability were on full display. He scored a few goals, demonstrated good sense and awareness and showed poise under duress. He impressed us in his ability to handle the puck and make decisions at full speed. College: Boston College Grade: B+
The Case for: Played really well here at camp. Scored goals, set up plays, showed speed, poise and sense. His frame looks like he’ll continue to grow and he is only at the start of his development curve.
The Case against: He’s thin, got knocked off pucks and doesn’t have one particular skill that stands out.
#18 Patrick Moynihan (R, Nobles & Greenough, ’01) You could tell Moynihan played against older, stronger competition because despite his lack of size, he makes quick, smart decisions with the puck and displays good habits. He wins draws, supports the puck in his end and plays a controlled, purposeful game. He’s a cerebral style, has excellent vision and sense and a rocket wrist shot. He can play with poise and slow it down to make plays or he can play fast with his speed and intuitive offensive instincts. College: Boston College Grade: A-
The Case for: Smart, playmaking center who can play a complimentary role or a finishers role. He has the speed, the sense and the skill to compete for top six time on this team.
The Case Against: Can be a bit perimeter at times, he needs to get stronger and there is a lot of talent at the center position on this team.
Defense:
#4 Cam York (L, Shattuck St. Mary’s Prep, ’01) We have seen York play over 15 times this season and never seen a bad game. This was more of the same. He’s got size, he moves pucks quickly and efficiently in all three zones, he can run a power play, he can kill penalties and pick up garbage in front of the net. He wins battles behind the goal and in the corners, he can strip pucks off opponents and plays a sound positional game. He scored a few goals off catch and shoot plays where he collapsed down from the blue line. He has good sense and timing knowing when to pinch, when to jump up and join the offense and when to step up and make a hit or retreat and angle them outside. He also showed his sense with the puck making smart decisions, especially on the breakout where he felt pressure, skated to open ice and several times hit the center in the middle of the ice instead of rimming it around the wall or throwing it blindly to the wing. He’s mature beyond his years and showed that he should have no problem making the jump to junior hockey next season. College: Boston College Grade: A-
The Case for: The most junior ready defenseman in the entire group. He has the foundation in his skill set, size and style of play to develop into a draft pick.
The Case against: N/A
Defense:
#5 Drew Helleson (R, Shattuck St. Mary’s U16, ’01) Helleson is a really solid defenseman. He does everything and does it well. He skates well, he defends well, he manages the puck well, he gets shots through traffic, he takes the body, he makes a smart, accurate first pass and he plays a low risk game. He was solid here as well; doesn’t make mistakes, doesn’t turn pucks over, plays reliable, shut down defense and made some excellent passes out of his end while under pressure. He’s got size, he’s got athleticism and he doesn’t get beat. He’s one of the more junior ready defenseman in the group in the short term while still having considerable long term upside. College: Boston College Grade: A-
The Case for: He’s got everything you want in a defenseman; size, skating, passing ability and defensive awareness and instincts. He played well at camp and is coming off a strong season at Shattuck where he led all defenseman in points, plays a ton of minutes and is used in every situation.
The Case against: To appreciate Helleson’s complete game takes a trained eye and sometimes NTDP has a tendency to go for the “eye test” players who are easier to spot.
#3 Ryan Siedem (R, Avon Old Farms, ’01) Siedem is a player who’s really come on during his freshman season at Avon Old Farms. He’s a smooth skater, with a tall, thin frame and ideal athleticism for a defenseman. He showed off his stride and poise with the puck here and made several smart, crisp breakout passes that led to rushes the other way. He also carried it end to end a few times when he had time and space and his ease up the ice with the puck catches the eye. He isn’t that physical yet and struggled defending in front of the net and against net drives off the wall/corner, but that will likely improve as he gets bigger and stronger. College: Boston College Grade: B+
The Case for: High upside prospect with size, skating and puck moving ability. He’s also a right shot which is severely lacking in this group. Has a younger brother who is a high end talent as well.
The Case against: He’s thin and doesn’t play a very aggressive defensive style. Might be tough task to play at the junior level next season.
Goalies:
***Goalies played on different teams throuhgout the week
Spencer Knight (Catches Left, Avon Old Farms, ’01) Other than Hughes, Knight is the second most obvious selection. He has the size, the athleticism, the technical ability, the vision, the poise and the skill to make any save. He take the net away from shooters, he smothers the first shot and allowed very few second chance opportunities. He plays the puck better than anyone here and can connect on long distance passes up ice. A complete goalie with obvious NHL upside. College: Boston College Grade: A+
The Case for: He had the best season, he had the best camp and projects to have the most upside of any goalie in the group.
The Case against: N/A
