| Gavyn Thoreson | Andover HS (MN) | Minnesota HS | L | F | 5’9″ | 183 | St. Cloud | 2023 | Andover, MN | 2004 | 2022-2023: C |
MN-HS: Andover vs Grand Rapids, February 25, 2023: Gavyn is a smooth skating undersized forward. He has an efficient stride and is very shifty on his edges making him a threat with his legs alone. He plays with a low solid base that makes him very hard to bump off the puck. On top of that Thoreson has very quick hands while throwing in a good mixture of deception using head and shoulder fakes to make defenders freeze before either going through or around them. Gayvn created numerous chances for his team in this game; being one of the key factors for generating offensive zone time. For the three players on Andover’s top line in Thoreson, Conway and Casey Gavin is the one who is most willing to go to the dirty areas of the ice. He’s as comfortable holding off defenders in the corner as he is with the puck in space. Grade: A-
MN-HS: Andover vs Maple Grove, February 11, 2023: A complete 200-foot player. Relentless on the forecheck and there is no quit in his game as he is always moving his feet. Several chances to score in the contest. Grade: B
MN-HS: Benilde St. Margaret’s vs Andover, December 23, 2022: Thoreson seems to be the engine for Andover as he plays with pace and he makes his quickness very noticeable on every shift. A real in-your-face player with a tremendous work ethic. Had several quality scoring chances and is a really strong skater. Powerful strides and really difficult to get off the puck. In total he earned 21:29 of ice time including 5:26 while on the power play and 1:29 while shorthanded. He finished the game with 4 shots on goal, 3 grade “A” opportunities, 4 PIMs, went 9/21 on face-offs and had 1 hit. Grade: B+
MN-HS: Andover vs Minnetonka, December 2, 2022: Thoreson was a threat every time he touched the puck as he’s got great awareness and anticipation of the play. When the puck is on his stick, time is going in slow motion for him, as he’s able to scan the ice and find the best available option at his disposal. He didn’t find the scoresheet in the game but still showcased the skillset that makes him such a dangerous player. The St. Cloud State commit has tremendous acceleration and moves around the zone with proficiency. Defenders contained him in this game but could not force a turnover or knock him off the puck due to his strong skating base and excellent puck protection. Thoreson is Andover’s best player and will be an asset in Waterloo of the USHL when he returns to the Black Hawks after the high school season. Grade: A-
USHL Showcase, November 15, 2022: Thoreson is a quick speedy balanced skater who had quite an opening game with a goal and assist 3 shots and +1 rating. His goal came on the power play where he scored on a quick release snap shot where he changed the angle and beat the goalie clean and had an even better play on an assist where he made a centering pass across the slot from the wall. He showed speed on the rush and the ability to cut in on defenders and change direction without having to slow down. He can turn on a dime and has a quick release that he gets off in stride which made it easy for him to get shots off from all over the offensive zone. Thoreson is strong on his edges able to withstand contact and maintain possession in the corners and high traffic areas. He stops on pucks finishes his checks and plays a mature game for a first year junior player. Grade: B+
MN-HS: Class AA Final, Andover vs Maple Grove, March 14, 2022: Thoreson once again came through with another big game for the Huskies, notching a huge tying goal late in the game and two assists to go with it. He assisted on the first goal for Andover with an incredible backhand touch pass over sticks to the far post where Casey was able to tap one in. He knows where he is going with the puck well before it lands on his stick as he anticipates well and always knows where to be. Gavyn was hovering around the net, then after a point shot generated a rebound, instead of firing it back on net, he tossed a backhand pass, back against the grain for Knox to blast home. He uses his legs and instincts to constantly be a scoring threat and create high quality opportunities. Thoreson tied the game with under two minutes remaining pushing the game to overtime. Even with playing every other shift basically all game, he was still buzzing around the ice at a high pace in the second overtime. Gavyn came through in big moments and was a huge part of this win for the Huskies. GRADE: A
MNHS: Class AA Seminal. Andover vs Hill Murray, March 13, 2022: Throeson continued his incredible play with 2 goals and one of the nicest assists of the tournament thus far. His shot gets off instantly and can create space with a quick move then fire the puck without doing too much. His trickery drew a penalty as he was hauled down after slipping passed a defender. Gavyn is always in the scoring areas ready to fire at will and with his size still shows no fear going to the net. He will get greasy and is just as dangerous from the perimeter. He opened up the scoring as he made his way to the high slot undetected and found a puck hit a skate and land right on his stick, then shot it instantly beating the goalie under his blocker. Thoreson’s assist was a highlight reel play as he won a race to a puck in the neutral zone, attacked the defender 1 on 1, as he cut across the goal mouth, dragging the goalie and defender with him, dropped the puck back across to a slashing Casey who finished an easy empty netter. Gavyn sealed the game with the empty netter and is a main factor for the success of the Huskies. GRADE: A
MNHS: Class AA Quarterfinals. Andover vs Moorhead, March 11, 2022: Thoreson scored the eventual game winner in double overtime after driving to the back post for a redirection over the goaltender’s shoulder. It was a well-deserved goal as he was all over the ice creating so many chances for the Huskies and was finally rewarded. He is an undersized, highly skilled offensive talent that can generate chances from all over the zone. Gavyn knifes through traffic while maintaining possession of the puck and bounces off checks with his remarkable balance. At one point he split two defenders, almost sandwiching him getting hit from both sides and somehow remained on his feet to get a shot off from the slot. Thoreson always wanted the puck and found himself in scoring areas every shift. He finds open space and can get shots off in the smallest of windows. Thoreson was a huge factor from the drop of the puck grabbing the OT game winner and an assist on his way. GRADE: A
Final Week MN Elite League, December 7, 2021: Playmaking 2004 forward that plays with pace and constantly looks to create offence. Scored two goals in our viewings and had a few assists. He scored a nice one-timer slipping to space on the Power Play. He also scored by driving the net on an odd-man rush and tapping a pass backdoor. He knows where to be on the ice and slips to the right spots in the offensive zone. He has slick hands which let him make plays in tight and get pucks to teammates in scoring areas. He plays with confidence and pace through the neutral zone and backs defenders down for easy zone entries. He is patient and does not force decisions or passes. Will regroup and curl back to find another route. He is creative with the puck and works well with the extra time and space on the PP. He snapped a puck back door for a tap-in goal. He also plays physically and is not afraid to play in the dirty areas of the rink. Strong stick to fight through pressure. He sees the ice well in transition and made high percentage reads to create chances. Grade: B+
USA Hockey Selects 17’s, July 14, 2021: Thoreson is undersized but dynamic and very fast. He is a balanced skater with the acceleration to burst through seams and stay on track through stick checks and hits. He rode contact and was very strong on the walls. Ij space, he had all sorts of tricks The late 2004 made a ton of plays and as one scout noted he just “sees it.” He sent backhand sauce passes to space. He made defensemen look foolish in the line rush and from below the dots. He made accurate passes in stride cross zone. He won draws cleanly and handled hard, bad and hard, bad passes. He scored his lone goal here as he drove the net and one-touched a pass home. He stayed on pucks and his transition game was elite. He put players in great spots to make plays with his vision. Gavyn processed plays faster than the rest and his pace and puck play backed his brain. He finished with six points and was a factor every shift of every game. He was electric and anyone questioning his size as being an issue is wrong. He was on NZ’s All-Star team but passed over by USA hockey. Grade: B+
2021 Minnesota State Tournament Class AA, April 19, 2021: Thoreson is coming off a dominant 200 pts season in Bantam and already making an immediate impact at the high school level. He’s quick and agile on his feet, he’s crafty with the puck and can spin off checks and protect in tight spaces. He showed acceleration and the ability to pull away from opponents in only a few steps and has the vision and awareness to create chances for his teammates all over the ice. He has slick hands and can break down defenders 1v1 and showed touch in tight finishing with a goal on a net drive rebound play. Underrated ‘04 forward who could get some NCAA/Junior looks this year. Grade: B+
MN-HS: Grand Rapids Thunderhawks vs Andover Huskies, March 26, 2021: Gavyn is a player that has been a perfect fit as a linemate for Schifsky. He has good skating ability, good skill set, however it is his intangibles that make him the player he is. Gavyn made a play on Peart in the second period that is a small microcosm of the game, but it shows the kind of player he is. Peart was winding up and looking to escape from Gavyn’s pressure, Peart faked one way looking to create an offensive opportunity for himself as he already had two forwards beat. Gavyn was able to stay with him, body him into the wall and create a mini 2-1 the other way. He continued in the third with many big blocks and great plays out of the zone. Grade A
U16: SSM vs MN Moose, September 25, 2020: Thoreson scored the tying goal in the last minute of the game making a strong play in front of the net to finish. He played a complete game showing great effort offensively and defensively in all three zones. He also could have had an assist tonight making a great pass from behind the net, but the goal was disallowed for a player in the crease. Thoreson was solid and possesses good skill, but his work ethic made him standout tonight as he was noticeable on both sides of the puck. Grade: B+
MN Bantam Elite League, September 4, 2019: Gavyn did a great job to compliment the new single season scoring leader of the MN Bantam Elite League as he distributed the puck very well. Great on his edges and very difficult to hit with the puck. He escaped from pressure with possessing the puck and found the open man. Soft touch and vision made him very productive in the offensive end. The type of player that would be fun to be on a line with.
2004s: Minnesota CCM High Performance Camp, July 17, 2019: Gavyn is a solid winger who doesn’t always get his head up to make the better plays because of his lack of vision in certain areas. A decent player who hustles but lacks the right attitude, but he uses that animosity on the ice, taking the game to other players. He can create offense from below the goalie at times, although he doesn’t have quite enough ability with his hands to execute. His speed is his greatest asset once he gets going because he can separate himself from the others. He had a day where he was the best forward, however lacked consistency throughout the camp.
T2004s: World Selects Invite, July 10, 2019: Thoreson is a small, crafty, high motor prospect who is both fast and elusive. He is relentless on the forecheck and forced opponents into bad passes and was quick out of the corners and off the walls. He plays bigger than he is and was constantly throwing his weight around in the neutral zone and offensive zone to create turnovers. He scored 3 goals and added an assist but while the stats point to a goal scorer, he was more of a playmaker here making passes to the slot off the rush and finding holes in the penalty kill to exploit. The late ’04 will suit up for Andover HS this upcoming season and will be one to watch in Minnesota High School. Grade: B
U14: USHL Fall Classic, October 24, 2018: Smaller left-shot winger that has quick feet and a high-compete. Flies around the ice and changes direction quickly. He spins off pressure in the offensive zone and is constantly looking to push the pace. He has good edges and agility and a slick set of hands. He is crafty and doesn’t need much time or space to make positive plays. Will need to continue getting stronger so he can play less of a perimeter game and be more effective around the net. Grade: B-
Photo Credit: Dan Hickling/Hickling Images