yzerman19

I know we're getting great players, but this west canada pipeline has me a bit uneasy

The world U17 challenge will be interesting. That will be the first time we see the best US 2010's. (Cullen excepted due to Hlinka).

Ahhhh...the great debate. Is undergrad for growth and bettering oneself with education or is it to get a job? I contend that really high paying jobs (working for somebody else) will ultimately still require a professional degree and or licensure. You can always work for yourself or in the trades if you are solely focused on $.

lotta noise outta Michigan, Michigan State, and Minnesota at the start of this cycle.

I have to think this is a precursor to the NDL and that this application coincides with their application for the NDL? The landscape is definitely going to change for elite players, but I think there is enough depth of really good players to maintain MN/ND high school hockey. I mean in today's landscape there are really only a handful of AAA programs that are truly better than top high school teams (SSM, BK, Mount, Mission, Honeybaked, Caesars, Pens). Remember that those teams that are "better" around the country routinely lose players at 16 to the NTDP, USHL, and CHL. Shattuck has operated the "best" elite AAA hockey program an hour south of the cities forever, and they have NOT been historically successful in poaching all the best players from Minnesota. Sure they get some, but look at this year's NTDP. Daley (NY), Morris (AK), Evans (PA) are the Shattuck players that made that team and none are from MN. Meier is very good and a Minnesota kid who went to Shattuck. He will play in Everett this year. Joey Cullen and RJ Thompson are two of the very best players in that birth year and they both played elite AAA (HoneyBaked and Little Caesars) but both came back to play high school hockey in Minnesota.

exactly. The NDL is trying to tie themselves to USHL teams specifically. Regarding kids jumping up to HS hockey the rule of thumb has got to be that you dominated Bantam as a first year and stand to gain nothing playing another year of Bantam AND you are primed to play top 6/4 minutes on the varsity team. I'd even say first line/first pairing. In Minny, RJ THompson and Maverick McKinnon were bantam eligible. They had no business in bantam hockey. These kids and parents need to quit worrying about the next level and focus on where they are. Thompson and McKinnon are not your reference point. They are the 0.001%...for everyone else, deep breath, take your time.

Carter Morris, Mason Schemenauer, Will LoSauro also in that elite tier of player...I don't know how "experts" grade a kid 1 vs 3 vs 9 vs 14. I just know the kids that I see as having the tools and the intangibles to be elite college players and possibly the NHL.

I like Deraney's game

Probably top 20 dman...with projection.

any player leaves early for the NAHL they are dumb and their parents are dumber

Daley you have a great puck moving Dman who can operate anywhere on the ice and change the game. He is kinda a Neidermaier. You notice the offense and transition and don't notice the dzone, reason being he doesn't screw up the dzone. Schultz is probably the best 200 foot forward in the world for 2010s. He's kinda a Bergeron player. Pue is the best pure goal scorer for 2010s. I think he's Pastrnak comparable. Thompson is a pace driven center. He is very smart 200 feet and skates in the top 10 in the world for the birthyear (speed and edgework). Kinda a Dylan Larkin.

I'm sure we are in the mix on all of them. Daley is the long shot being from back east.

4 best uncommitted players in the 2010 birthyear are Daley, Schultz, Pue, and Thompson.

Dozark is a great player. I think he's the #2 Dman in the 2010 birth year after Daley.

I am a hockey nerd and re-watched that game. My takeaways were that our D and C play were pretty bad. Not every shift, but as a whole. Too many centers not playing on the right side of the puck. too many D that just couldn't get pucks up and out and on the tape. Our wingers were good when they were engaged. You need centers who create advantage with or without the puck across all 200 feet and you need D that can move it up

I was frustrated last night and had a couple pops, but the reality is they sent their best and we didn't send Meyer or Fitzy or Nelson or Willis or Sears or Guitierrez. The score reflects that.

Add this too. The kid they tried get exceptional status for in this years OHL draft (Kade O'Rourke) spent the Covid years in Texas and is a US citizen

Schultz and Pue are great and stack up great with the best US 2010's so no knock on them

The Canadian announcers fluffing their feathers...they know the U.S. doesn't send the top dogs...I guess they are just trying to make Canada hopeful after all their recent disappointments. the reality is COVID restrictions destroyed Canadian hockey. Ontario is a full year behind, that's why western canada is leading the charge. The kid who went #2 in the OHL draft was cut from NTDP....just think about that...he was at the 40 man and didn't make it.

Embarrassing...but it was the US JV squad, so that's positive.

not a package deal

Prior to the Hlinka, the last international best on best for the 2010 age group was the U15 WSI

They'd be u18 next year

Be fun if USA sent the NTDP i17 to this next year

In 2010, NTDP got everyone they wanted. Guys who went CHL did not or were not going to make NTDP.