Ontario Hockey League
Game Played in Tribute Communities Centre
Scout: Marlin Muylaert
| Lucas Moore | Hamilton Bulldogs | OHL | R | D | 5’10” | 174 | Hamilton Bulldogs | 2021 | Peterborough, ON | 2005 | 2022-2023: C+ |
This was my first viewing of right handed defenseman Lucas Moore and I came away very impressed. Lucas only player 34 games last season in the OHL, his first, so he yet has a year of experience. However he played against the Oshawa Generals on this viewing like a seasoned veteran. Lucas skating in my opinion is above league average for a defenseman. His stride is smooth, his edge control is excellent and he displays above average speed both forward and backward. With his quick feet Lucas is excellent at pivoting for puck retrievals and getting to loose pucks first. Forwards who tried to test Lucas wide always got pinched off the boards and ran out of ice due to his pivot ability and ability to close the gap quickly on opponents. He was first to dumped pucks all night and if under fore checking pressure had the great edge control to evade a lot of checking pressure with quick turns. If being chased behind the net Lucas was up to full speed quickly, cut the post tight and would carry the puck away from pressure creating separation with his speed. He seldom looked to rush the puck himself. He would carry and as a pass opened up Lucas would zip and very hard accurate pass to teammates. His pass decisions were excellent, usually away from pressure and to the right man. And Lucas was excellent recognizing trouble and staying away from forced passes into traffic. In these circumstances he made several excellent board chips out of his zone and put pucks into open ice areas for his teammates. His excellent skating was also apparent in transition where he could catch pucks while skating backwards, transition and move into forwards skating while executing great passes. On the opponents blueline Lucas utilized his skating strengths by moving across the blue line quickly with the puck away from his check and snapping hard low shots that got through to the net. He would also penetrate off the blueline into the slot in order to provide passing options for his low forwards. With his quick feet Lucas was also excellent at OZ and NZ pinches, collapsing quickly, closing gap and being at the puck in time to break up a pass or keep a puck in the OZ end. I was also impressed with Lucas’s IQ. In his end he identified his check properly, was aware of surroundings and pressure, kept box out position to defend his net yet could still explode past his check to jump loose pucks. He demonstrated his IQ all night with great pass selections, and good judgement on pinches, never vacating his area for a pinch unless he read he had support. In his 34 games last year as a rookie he had a 3 goal and 7 assist campaign which would translate into a 20 point rookie year, pretty good for a rookie D man. This year in 9 games Lucas already has 6 assists and is on track for a 45 point campaign. He was not included on Central Scouting’s October list and I believe this was an oversight. He is only approaching 5’11 so that may be a knock against him but his skating and IQ compensates for a lot of that. If his game continues to grow throughout the season Lucas will work his way into the draft discussion. Game Grade: B+
| Braeden O’Keefe | Hamilton Bulldogs | OHL | L | F | 5’9″ | 160 | Hamilton Bulldogs | 2021 | St. Catherines, ON | 2005 | Not yet rated |
Braeden is a small forward whose primary asset is that he has good speed, agility and quickness. There were shifts were I thought he did little with his speed, closing gap on puck carriers but either swinging a stick without contact of not finishing a hit. He was equal part scorer/playmaker at the minor level, leading his team in scoring. Last year, his first at the OHL level he managed a single goal and 5 assists in 21 games. If he is to develop into an effective scoring forward at this level Braeden is going to have to work on becoming more of an effective small forward. He needs to get on guys quicker, develop a faster stick and some body contact finish, learn how to use his speed to create turnovers, and then capitalize on turnovers offensively. Game Grade: C
| Cole Brown | Hamilton Bulldogs | OHL | L | RW | 6’3″ | 170 | Hamilton Bulldogs | 2021 | Aurora, ON | 2005 | 2022-2023: C+ |
This was my first viewing of Cole since he was a Major Bantam with the York Simcoe Express. His play to date has landed him as a C candidate with NHL Central Scouting and he certainly has a skill set to continue development. Physically he is listed at 6’3 and 170 pounds so I would expect to see him add another 15-20 pounds over the course of the next year, and certainly he has the frame to get there. At present he is playing second line right wing, so he has some coaches confidence obviously. He is also used as the bumper man with the first powerplay, another testament to the potential his coach sees in him. Cole is a good skater, above league average and has command of his edges using them for good agility and mobility. He was strong on the wall in his end, made good pass decisions, and relied on chips past defenders under pressure. He has puck skills, but he does not use them all over the ice trying to dangle his way through everyone. Instead he moves pucks to linemates, finds open ice, and puts himself in position to receive pucks back. He does not hesitate to use speed to net drive without puck, forcing the defense to back up, and putting pressure on the goaltender. In the bumper position I found him to be a bit hesitant, likely because he has yet to develop any OHL goal scoring confidence. But when he got pucks in the slot it seemed to me he wanted to pass off when he could have been shooting. This will need to change if he is to be successful in that position. He did get a couple of shots away in this area, and he displayed a quick release, he needs to improve on both velocity of shot and accuracy as he seemed to hit the goalie. Definitely has the skill set and skating to work his way into the draft conversation if he continues to develop. Game Grade: B
| Blake Smith | Oshawa Generals | OHL | L | D | 6’4″ | 205 | Oshawa Generals | 2021 | Oshawa, ON | 2004 | 2022-2023: C |
Blake is a big, good sized defensive defenseman, reliable, plays within his strengths and takes care of his own end. His skating is league average. He is strong on his skates but he is not terribly quick or fast. He plays under control, maintains good defensive positioning, and when he gets pucks he either passes really quickly or makes the safe out. He is listed as a C prospect on Central Scouting, and likely because of his size and defensive focus. However to play at an elite level Blake is going to need to add assets into his game. I don’t find him terribly aggressive defensively. He will make pretty good neutral zone pinch decisions if he has support, but in these situations or when going into corners in his end of the ice to compete, I feel he needs to develop a bit of a mean streak, hit harder, compete with more intensity and become feared. He in not going to every develop into a point producing 2 way defenseman so if he is to hang his hat on his size and taking care of his own end he will need more bite than he is displaying at present. Game Grade: B
| Calum Ritchie | Oshawa Generals | OHL | R | C | 6’2″ | 187 | Oshawa Generals | 2021 | Oakville, ON | 2005 | 2022-2023: A |
Calum Ritchie is listed as an A candidate with NHL Central Scouting. I have watched him lots at the Minor Hockey level and this year to know his skating and skill set combined with his creative IQ make him a high draft pick consideration. Tonight, for alot of the night, was not his best effort. I thought he lacked effort and intensity tonight, and was a little too loose sloppy with passes, like high backhand sauce passes in the neutral zone that were easily intercepted rather that respecting good puck management principles. On the powerplay he looked sluggish on battles, arriving a bit late and lacking the intensity in his compete to be real effective. I was disappointed in his effort and his play last night. Then trailing 2-1 half way through the 3d period Calum did what big time players do on their off nights, he found a way to impact the game positively. On the tying goal he took a puck from his end, finally displayed speed lugging it through the NZ, took the OZ wide, delayed and found a streaking open linemate who he fed leading to the tying goal. Then made short work of his opponents in overtime scoring the winner at the 40 second mark. So a bad night for Calum with a helper on the tying goal and scoring the winner. Not too bad for an off night. Game Grade: B+
Photo Credit: Dan Hickling/Hickling Images