This matchup occurred on November 5th in Calgary, AB, and started with the Tigers having a strong first shift; the Flames quickly turned the momentum in their favor, but it was a 1-1 game heading into the second period. An early goal by Boris Sigachev 40 seconds into the second period gave the Flames an extra jump in their game that carried them to a controlling game-winning 7-1 and outshooting the Tigers 63-17.
Calgary Flames
Ty Hamilton #3 (D, R, 5’7″, 135, Calgary Flames U15, 01/01/2009) – Ty is a smaller defenseman at 5’7″ with a great offensive mindset, strong straight-line skating, and good hands. He was joining on the rush lots throughout the game. Ty found the back of the net when he jumped up on the play to create an odd-man rush. He took the pass on his backhand and quickly got a snap shot off going blocker side just inside the post. Ty is a very smooth skater and maintains good gap control with attackers coming down ice against him. Ty finished the game with 1 goal and 1 assist. Grade: B+
Nixon Mah #31 (G, L, 5’9″, 160, Calgary Flames U15, 07/08/2009) – Nixon let in an early goal but shut down any chances after that until they made a goalie change halfway through the game. Although he wasn’t very busy, he played on top of his crease, being aggressive and challenging the shooter well. His best save came in the second period when the Tigers made a good pass a couple of feet from the top of the crease, making a great save on the one-timer shot. Nixon was very quick on his side-to-side movements and played the puck with confidence, making tape-to-tape passes to his defensemen. He finished the 29 minutes he played, making 9 saves with 1 goal scored. Grade: B
William Matte #10 (F, L, 6’5″, 185, Calgary Flames U15, 05/12/2009) – William is a big 6’5″ forward who can stickhandle, shoot, and skate. He was pointless in the game but still played well. He used the length of his stick well as he was able to poke the puck loose both along the wall and in open ice. William was effective when it came to puck battles because of his stick-checking and using his size to push defenders around. He could be more physical in the body-checking part of the game; he was more focused on the puck when using his body could been more effective. We would like to see William shoot more, as he tends to look for a pass first. He has already matched his goal total from last year and is on a point-per-game pace this season. Grade: B
Cohen Pentney #9 (F, R, 5’9″, 135, Calgary Flames U15, 06/03/2009) – Cohen was the best skating forward in this game; he and Sigachev were a big threat offensively all game. His technique while skating was very smooth and looked effortless. Cohen was the hardest forechecker in the game. His effort level stood out as he was winning almost every foot race to pucks and was quick to backcheck when the play transitioned back to his side of the ice. Cohen’s skating allowed him to be effective in both ends of the ice. He found the back of the net later in the 3rd period. In this play, Cohen won a puck battle in the left corner and walked out into the slot, taking a shot and beating the goalie short side by his ear. He finished the game with 1 goal and 3 assists. Grade: A
Boris Sigachev #8 (F, L, 6’1″, 160, Calgary Flames U15, 02/20/2009) – Boris was all over the ice, had lots of ice time, and was visible the entire game. He played in the defensive end of the ice with a very active stick to eliminate passing lanes and blocked shots from the point a few times. He had a great goal 40 seconds into the second period when he received a pass on his backhand at speed and made a slick move to get around the defender, opening space up for him to cut slightly towards the middle of the ice, taking a powerful snapshot beating the goalie farside between the pad and post. After he scored, he only got better, getting on the scoresheet with two more goals. In the second period, during a faceoff, he won the draw, pushing the puck through the other centreman’s legs and taking a wrist shot between the goalie’s ear and short side post for a clever goal. Grade: A-
Jevyn Singh-Gill #12 (F, R, 5’9″, 170, Calgary Flames U15, 02/24/2009) – What he lacks in size, Jevyn makes up for it with speed and tenacity. He was always engaging in puck battles and forechecked hard, using his speed to cause issues for the Tigers to break out. He got on the scoresheet with 1 goal coming off a play where he received the puck on the left side boards, skating towards the middle with a quick and hard snapshot from the top of the left faceoff circle, putting farside over the glove of the goalie. Jevyn has great skill in how he can protect the puck and bounce off of checks. He is very strong on his stick and uses his edges well when protecting the puck despite his smaller frame. Grade: B-
SEAC Tigers
Grayson Biegel #15 (D, R, 5’7″, 141, SEAC Tigers U15, 01/15/2009) – Grayson is a smaller defenseman at 5’7″, but he plays a strong game and is a great straight-line skater. There were multiple times throughout the game when he joined the rush and found some open ice being an offensive threat, but he was always able to be back to support defensively. Grayson showed a great example of his offensive ability late in the 3rd when two of his forwards had a strong forecheck, causing a turnover. Grayson recognized that and found himself some open ice, taking a wristshot from the left faceoff circle and beating the Flames’ goalie farside. Grade: C
Curtis Martin #7 (D, R, 5’11”, 172, SEAC Tigers U15, 04/02/2009) – Curtis is an excellent skater and is another defenseman at 5’11. He showed great confidence in his skating and puck-carrying ability multiple times throughout the game. Martin had one very good solo rush later in the second period starting from his team’s end of the ice very smooth and effective strides all the way through the neutral zone into the attacking end finishing with a quick release wrist shot and continued after the puck after the shot on net. Martin was positioned well taking away passing lanes and provided a good effort battling in front of his goalie Grade: B-
Paxton Smigelski #31 (G, L, 5’11”, 134, SEAC Tigers U15, 01/09/2010) – Paxton, standing at 5’11”, has decent size and the potential to grow in size. He had a strong first period, making 19 saves on 20 shots. Smigelski is a very calm goaltender with smooth post-to-post movements and an aggressive approach when challenging the shooters. Paxton made his best save of the game late in the 3rd when the Flames made a one-timer pass from left to right, and he got enough of the puck right on the goal line with his stick. Although he allowed 7 goals, the game could have been much more lopsided. Paxton looked defeated midway through the third but continued to battle, finishing the game with 56 saves. Grade: B+
Madden Wright #6 (D, R, 5’11”, 148, SEAC Tigers U15, 04/15/2009) – Madden is a sizeable defenseman at 5’11” who was active in the physical aspect of the game. Despite the score of the game, he was very noticeable in the defensive zone, getting in shooting lanes to block shots, and reacted very quickly to where the puck was being moved. Madden could use some work on his skating ability, but his defensive IQ helped to make up for it by reacting to the play on his end and putting constant pressure on the puck carrier on his side of the ice. Grade: B