| Anton Castro | Northeast Generals | NAHL | L | G | 6’2″ | 180 | Boston University | 2021 | Mendota Heights, MN | 2003 | Not yet rated |
NAHL: New Jersey Titans vs Northeast Generals, January 28, 2021: One of the main reasons why the Generals won this particular game was because they had a brick wall in between the pipes. Anton Castro stands just above 6 feet tall, but one would have thought he was 7 feet tall with the way he played during this game. You could find Anton consistently at the top of his crease, and utilizing his size effectively to cut down on a shooter’s angle. Additionally, Anton did an excellent job tracking the puck during any mad scrambles that occurred around him. However, on the first goal scored by the Titans, Castro didn’t track the puck so well. He was tricked into pushing off to his right side, giving the shooter a target to aim for, because the shooter was able to change his angle of release by performing a toe drag. Grade A-
Neutral Zone NHL’s Ian Moran, December 2020: What I like about Anton is his composure and ability to stay focused while things look seemingly out of control around him. He fights through traffic to see pucks and does not get rattled when bodies are in his crease. Don’t get me wrong. He’s competitive and will use his stick to keep his sight lines, but he stays focused on the puck while having the game awareness to anticipate what’s going on around him. I’m excited to see how he does in a more controlled environment with more defensive structure from his teammates. By that I mean the NAHL or junior hockey in general. The Avs do a great job developing their players, but in general The Beast is a run and gun league where goalies are often times defending unlimited odd man attacks over the weekend. In my mind there’s no doubt that Anton is a goalie we should be paying attention to.
NAHL Goalie Report: Pre-Christmas Edition, December 2020: Castro is a good sized goalie who made his NAHL debut this weekend, and was near perfect picking up the win. Stopping 34 of 35 shots he showcased his ability well, and played with great composure too. He excelled at staying compact, especially in tight scenarios where he used his positioning and size well. He possesses good skating abilities and is able to recover to his feet from the butterfly position quickly and efficiently. He showed really good composure and calmness on good scoring chances he faced, and did a good job of not making unnecessary movements in the crease. Most impressive was his ability to always identify situations and adjust his depth and positioning accordingly, he can almost always be seen scanning the ice well. Overall it was a great start to his junior hockey career and will be one to keep an eye on going forward. Grade: A
Northeast Pack U16 Showcase, November 2019: Neutral Zone felt he had the game of the Showcase and was already marking down shutout next to his name before Buffalo would tally 2 extra attacker goals in the final minute and a half to steal a point from North Jersey. None the less he would get the tie while making 36 saves and clearly the First Star of the game. What was impressive the most about his game is how quiet and composed he was whether he had a clear look or through traffic. He tracked and really made every puck look routine. His glove was lethal and making numerous saves again look easy. He is a big goalie that seals the bottom of the net well. Square and athletic . Played 3 games in a short span so was given Sunday morning off. Continued play of this caliber and he will be getting the much deserved attention on recruiting trails for Division I. Grade A
ECC Labor Day U16, September 2019: Castro is the big man with the big flow (great lettuce) and we really liked numerous aspects of his game in the net. He is easily over 6’ tall and as a result he is able to take away a great deal of the net especially using his big leg pads. We particularly like that for a bigger goalie he can slide nimbly across the crease and cover from post to post effectively when he has to adjust for shots. Because of his height he can get above the skaters and see through traffic effectively which gives him a leg up in recognizing the shot before it’s taken. We also like that he’s not afraid to use the poke check for forwards that come too close to the blue paint for comfort. Most notably we like his feet and his skating ability: he was the best skating goalie in this division. He processes the game quickly and that translates well to his feet: he is able to get behind the net, stop the puck and shuffle back and front quicker than most goalies at his age. There is no hesitation in his mind to play the puck around the net because he can skate himself out of trouble if something goes awry. Athletic and intriguing netminder who will be worth keeping an eye on over the next couple of seasons. Grade: A-