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Brunicke
He’s been really really good. I think some of the “he’s been way above everyone else” narrative that I’ve seen might be a bit overblown and he makes a mistake here and there but I really hope he makes the team this year. He deserves the chance.
Pietila
This is a guy who needs to be talked about more. One thing I’ve seen a lot in the media is how Brunicke is taking on a mentor role in camp which is happening for sure. So I think it’s notable they’ve stuck Pietila next to Brunicke all camp. He’s made a lot of plays, including a great assist and a great goal today.
Horcoff
You can tell he’s the most raw of the three firsts but he’s going to be a player for sure. He skates really well for his size. Glad he’s going back to college but it wouldn’t surprise me if he ends up the best of the three.
Zonnon
He was the best player of day 1 in my opinion. Didn’t see that same quality the other two days. Needs some work on his shot but he’s not that far away from contributing.
Kindle
I don’t think he really stood out enough. I think his best qualities though would show up more in a 200 ft game and it’ll be interesting to see how he does tomorrow. Had a couple nice tip-ins today though.
Miller
Ryan Miller impressed me a ton on day 2 (which was the least competitive of the practices tbf) but his shot looked great and he scored regularly which isn’t even an advertised part of his game. One to watch this year.
Laatsch
I’m biased towards big defensemen but I was really impressed by how he moves with the puck. He’s been easily the best defenseman in the Horcoff group. Would love to see how he does in the AHL this year.
Day 1 notes
Harrison brunicke was listed as the guy who stood out the most so far. Extremely smooth skater with great passing ability and a ton of upside who looks like he could be a top 4 D in the nhl.
Bill zonnon was also listed as a guy who was very impressive. He has excellent compete and a feisty nature to his game as well as a shot that is better than expected and harder than expected. He also is extremely smart and seems to know where to be on the ice and where to get in position to shoot and pass the puck. The hockey news says that he reminds them of prime patric hornqvist with how he competes and can push guys around as well as dominate the crease.
Travis hayes is the last guy who was listed ‘4th round pick this past draft’. Not the most skilled player or the fastest guy, but he’s extremely scrappy and has a ton of compete to his game. Isn’t afraid to throw his body around and he has an edge to his game which is what you’d love to see out of a bottom 6 forward at his peak most likely in the NHL. A guy who’s going to fight for every inch of the ice service and who’s going to play any role you ask him too. Always a spot for a guy like that on your roster.
Day 2
Ben kindel: He undressed harrison brunicke on a 1 on 1 drill. Made brunicke fall on his behind with his edgework and then smoothly beat the goalie by making a couple of slick moves to get the shot past him. Ben looks really good so far and he thinks the game at a high level and sees things before they happen which lets him play at a fast speed on the ice. His skating is also better than expected and he can shift on a dime and stay on his skates while doing so with the puck on his stick. He’s showing his massive potential early and he’s showing why dubas and wes were all in on him.
Oliver tulk: Undrafted guy who was invited to camp after a monster season ’38 goals and 100 points’ playing alongside kindel and tanner howe on one of the most dominant lines in the entire league. He’s small at 5.8 but he makes up for it with his speed and anticipation skills. They mention that you don’t get 100 points just by being a passenger on a line and that he’s looked really good.
Day 3
Mikhail Ilyin: He arrived just recently and looked really good. Slick passing ability, nice hands, and skating isn’t a concern at this juncture. They mention that they’d like to see him use his top end speed some more but otherwise his skating looked fine and they think it’s good for his development that he’s going back to the KHL for another season to improve.
Finn Harding: Was our 7th round pick in last years draft and his development has been outstanding so far. His skating is superb and he can easily go coast to coast with his ability to skate and control the puck as he does so. His offensive game took a huge step forward last season with 57 points in 67 games in the OHL and he’s looking like a steal so far. He’s a prospect on the rise and who could be a big part of the future on defense for us.
Will Horcoff: Out of the 3 first round picks we had, he’s the guy who is the most raw and needs the most development. However his upside is immense and it’s great that he’s going back to michigan to play for a full season and work on his game. Showcased some of his hands today by roofing a couple of shots, and he has underrated passing ability for a kid this raw. He’s a pure upside pick and a guy who if he puts it together, could be an absolute beast at the NHL level.
I’m glad Oliver Tulk got invited to camp. I mentioned him last year on ‘the site that shall not be named.’ Tulk Kindel and Howe were one of the best lines in the whl. But every game I saw Tulk was easily the player that stood out on the ice. I remember googling him at 2nd intermission of the first game I watched because of how much he was dominating play. He was also the hitmen points and goals leader. In the end he only beat kindel by a single point on the season but that’s because he slowed down and little and kindel heated up. Tulk is only 5’8” and a year older so maybe that’s why he went undrafted? At no point in the year did kindel stand out enough on any game I saw for me to even look him up haha maybe I saw his lesser quality games ????????♂️
Yohe mentioned Harding last year. He was talking about him being a prospect that nobody is talking about (last year), but has quickly become one of our best kids.
Getting anything out of a 7th rounder is a miracle, but that’s good to hear 2 years in a row.
FYI Those were all notes I copy/pasted from online, not my observations.
Getting anything out of a 7th rounder is a miracle, but that’s good to hear 2 years in a row.
FYI Those were all notes I copy/pasted from online, not my observations.
after the prospect camp we have like 1.5-months until anything hockey related again.
Is anyone going to the Sweden game?
Getting anything out of a 7th rounder is a miracle, but that’s good to hear 2 years in a row.
FYI Those were all notes I copy/pasted from online, not my observations.
after the prospect camp we have like 1.5-months until anything hockey related again.
Is anyone going to the Sweden game?
Def not. Would be cool but that’s a hell of a lotta money for a hockey game. Sweden ain’t cheap either.
Harrison brunicke: The star of the camp shines bright once again folks. Showcased his excellent skating ability as he smoothly glided around the ice, showcased superb reach ability where he used his stick to stop multiple rushes/chances from happening, and scored a ridiculous goal to boot as well. Wilkes-Barre head coach Kirk MacDonald also spoke highly of brunicke as well in the article ‘they deserve a click so i’m not going to post the entire thing here but suffice to say he’s insanely impressed with his development’.
Will horcoff: Had another extremely impressive performance yesterday, and he’s been getting better and better as camp has moved along. His wrist shot looked completely unstoppable in practice, and he was completely dominating down in the net front areas of the ice all day long by using his size and strength to manhandle people. The hockey news also mentions that he’s more nimble then what you’d expect from a guy his size and they think that he’s going to break out at michigan this season. He’s another guy on the rise and he’s looking like a great get by dubas/wes.
Cruz lucius: The other piece of the guentzel trade looked really good in practice yesterday and he’s completely recovered from the shoulder injury he suffered last season. He was physical, he was creating multiple chances all practice long, and he scored a couple of nice goals as well. He says that he worked on things over the summer and he feels great.
Quinn beauchesne: 5th round draft pick this past draft that had a good day at camp and is someone to monitor they mentioned. They said that his skating stood out and he made plays with the puck whenever he had it on his stick.
Jordan charron: Another 5th round pick from this past draft that is worth keeping an eye on. The hockey news noted that his edgework stood out and was impressive and that he had a nice snipe as well.
Charlie trethewey: One of our 3rd round picks this past draft was showcasing his strong release in camp and his impressive skills. He’s spending next season at boston university to work on his game which should prove beneficial to him and his development moving forward.
Everything I read about horcoff as well is that every day is noticeably better than the last and he could end up being a heck of a pick.
I’ve been very surprised with Horcoff as well. Being big and being able to skate are two things things that are rarely together.
Day 5 camp notes from some dude
1: Harrison brunicke looks pro-ready and a guy who’s ready to contribute right now. He impressed during camp every single day and looked like the best player in camp from the jump. He sniped a shot yesterday with 8.9 seconds on the clock to force a shootout and then he also scored in the shootout with a terrific shot.
The biggest issue with brunicke right now is the fact that he can’t go to the AHL this season because he’s ineligible and must either be on the NHL roster or be sent back to juniors where he has 0 to learn at this juncture. I think the pens send him back until the trade deadline next season and then maybe call him up once they’ve moved guys out.
2: Will horcoff was insanely impressive and alot of people had their eyes on him during camp. Suffice to say that will didn’t disappoint and actually exceeded expectations for a kid this young. He cut around defenders with no issue at all, his skating was slick and smooth, and he also scored a few beautiful goals that showcased his skills.
Will said in an interview that the biggest thing he’s learned during camp is how well the pros train and what he needs to do to hone his body and skills to succeed at an NHL level. He mentions sidney crosby and his work ethic and seeing him around the facility and how that rubbed off on him, and taught him things that he can use to improve his game ‘good role model to have when it comes to working out’.
3: Director of player development tom kostopoulos credited the scouting department and player development department for finding all the undrafted guys and collegiate talent that received invitations to camp. He credits kyle dubas and most importantly ownership for giving him a boatload of resources to be able to hire a bunch of over qualified staff to scout and visit prospects from all over. He says that he feels like he’s part of the LA Dodgers because of how many resources are available to him, and that it’s helped make things alot easier and smoother in terms of identifying talent and scouting.
He also mentions that the players have a ton of resources and coaches available to them that will help them anyway they can and that goes back to ownership willing to spend on staff to help these guys anyway they can. Props to ownership for backing out the brinks trucks for the pens staff and players, and props to them for letting dan muse hire anyone he wants and pay a premium for guys ‘todd nelson’.
4: There’s going to be tough decisions on the blueline for next season. The pens have guys like pickering, brunicke, finn harding, kalle kangas, and chase pietila who are primed to turn pro next season with pickering and brunicke being the closest ones to doing so and the two with the highest ceilings. Kyle dubas mentioned that he’s happy with all of the defensive depth and prospects added to the system, and that it gives the organization a strong nucleus to build around essentially.
The organization also has to make decisions in terms of AHL, juniors, etc when it comes to assigning guys because of how crowded the defensive room is. Great problem to have honestly and the defensive system has slowly been replenished.
5: The organization has more depth/prospects than ever before and fans have noticed. The hockey news mentions that more people then ever were at camp looking on at the prospects, and that people are excited more than ever to witness the youth movement. Fans understand the transition/rebuild and that their was enthusiasm watching the young guys on the ice during camp and doing drills. Glad to see the fans supporting the youth.
I sounds like Horcoff was one of the stars of this camp. Big, skilled and can skate. Man…. we need a player like him to develop. Sounds like Horcoff and Zannon were men against boys. Haase said Kindle’s shot was noticeable, but lack of size and speed weren’t good.
Was listening to Madden yesterday…. He had Yohe on… Said, he thinks one of Rust or Rak are likely gone by the start of the season. Likely both gone by TDL. Also said a few teams want EK if we retain $$$. Said there aren’t many sellers right now, so we should get really good returns. No great revelations here lol. If all 3 of those guys are gone, tank for Mckenna is officially on. I hope they do it.
We are entering the boring as fuck days of summer. Cmon Kyle… cheer my Tuesday up with a good trade.
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