| Ryan Ufko | Chicago Steel | USHL | R | D | 5’9″ | 170 | UMass Amherst | 2021 | Smithtown, NY | 2003 | 2020-2021: C |
USHL: June 2021: Ryan was named to the All USHL First Team after a 10g-29a-39pts season.
USHL: Clark Cup Finals Game 2: Fargo vs Chicago, May 2021: Ufko is a smart, mobile defenseman for the Steel who is a critical part of his team’s success on both ends of the ice. Defensively, he is sound positionally, always in the right spot to shut down options. The University of Massachusetts commit is able to read the play extremely well in front of him, which allows him to anticipate where the puck will go next. He combines this asset with his skating, making him almost impossible to beat one on one, especially on the rush. His skating allows him to take great angles, and he consistently has his stick in a good position which eliminates possible outs for opponents. Ufko is then quick to look for transition opportunities. He has great vision and smooth hands and feet, allowing him to push the puck up ice quickly. Whether it’s with his feet, hands, or vision, Ufko was responsible for generating a number of quality odd-man rush opportunities from the back end with his effectiveness defensively and tendency to immediately look to transition. In the offensive zone, he is smooth on the point, showing patience and poise up top, especially on the powerplay. Overall, Ufko is an elite player on both sides of the puck and when he is on his game the Steel are hard to beat. Grade: A
2021 USHL: Biosteel All American Game, April 2021: Ufko had the lone goal for the USHL squad in this contest and looked solid throughout the night. He is a smart, skilled defenseman who plays the game with his head up. In his own zone, Ufko does a great job on the breakout, using his feet to create separation from forecheckers and make plays up ice. He is smart with how he handles pressure and often uses close bumps or passes to break the forecheck. Defensively he uses his feet to close space and stay with opponents when they try to create separation. The UMass commit has an active stick and does a good job of guiding his opponents into tight spaces. Offensively, he is active in the rush and the offensive blueline. In the offensive zone, he reads the play well and works the point smoothly, using shot fakes and his edges to find shooting lanes to the net. Overall, he is a smart, skilled, and consistent player who has the ability to control the game from the back end. Grade: A
USHL: Chicago Steel vs. Green Bay Gamblers, March 26, 2021: Ufko is a skilled puck moving, offensive-minded defenseman who is only an ‘03 but in his second season with the Steel. He is at his best with the puck on his stick; he can process the play quickly and make instant distributions up ice. He shakes off forecheckers with slippery puck handling and quick spin moves and he always has his head up looking for passing lanes. He is undersized but strong and balanced on his edges and can absorb checks and knock opponents off the puck. He has more grit than he gets credit for and was good here checking the stick and taking the puck away from opponents behind the net and in the corners. Ufko can run a power play, he can stretch the ice and does a nice job activating from the offensive blue line to be fourth forward in the zone. He’s built up an impressive stat line with 10 goals and 26 assists over just 44 games which has gotten NHL teams attention as many were here tonight watching him (among others). He saw a lot of ice tonight in all situations, killing penalties, running the power play and 5v5 and looks to be rounding out his overall game. College: UMass Amherst Grade: B+
USHL: Chicago Steel vs Green Bay Gamblers, February 10, 2021: Ufko has a very high hockey IQ and thinks the game at a higher level than most of his peers. On defence, he did a great job of using his skating to keep tight gaps and use angles to eliminate time and space. He has an active stick and uses it well to create loose pucks and take away options for the puck carrier. On the breakout, Ufko does an excellent job of working with his partner to use small bumps and passes to beat the first forechecker. He then made a number of crisp passes or used his feet to start the rush attack up ice. The UMASS commit also registered two assists in the game, both coming on the powerplay. He is patient at the point and uses his vision to create scoring chances for his teammates. Overall, his hockey IQ stands out and he is highly skilled on both sides of the puck. Grade: A
USHL: Waterloo vs Chicago, January 28, 2021: Ufko is a mobile defender who has an extremely high hockey IQ, is strong on his skates, and makes poised plays with the puck. The UMASS commit was on another level, reading the play in front of him and making mature decisions with the puck. He is patient and uses his edges to turn back or create space if he doesn’t like the options in front of him. His vision up ice is elite and he has an innate ability to slow the game down, allowing his options to develop before deciding on which play he should make. On the offensive blueline Ufko is calm and distributes the puck like a professional. He uses his eyes to throw subtle fakes that create seams for him to exploit. He also showed off his physicality, absorbing a number of checks and protecting the puck well from opponents. Ufko had one of the best open ice hip checks I have seen in a long time. It was reminiscent of Scott Stevens as Ufko was able to send his man head over feet with a massive open ice hit while defending a one on one against. The hit was clean and the timing was perfect as Ufko delivered it around his own blueline. Overall, he has high end skills, but his hockey sense is off the charts and separates Ufko from his peers. Grade: A
USHL: Youngstown Phantoms vs Chicago Steel, January 27, 2021: Ufko is a mobile defender who breaks the puck out of his zone well and is effective on the offensive blueline. He had a high hockey IQ and shows that in the way he distributes the puck and lets the play develop in front of him. On defense he uses his feet and stick to eliminate space and ride opponents hard into the boards. In the offensive zone the UMASS commit has excellent patience and vision on the blueline. This is most evident on the Steel power play where Ufko runs the point up top. Overall, Ufko is a smart, smooth defenseman who is effective on both ends of the ice. Grade: A-
Neutral Zone NHL’s Ian Moran’s comments, December 2020: Ryan is a breakout machine. He pulls forecheckers in one direction by subtly looking up the strong side or looking to the middle all the while he’s setting them up for a quick smooth pass to the opposite side of the ice. His skill set and elite processing will make him a true commodity in today’s National League.
USHL: Chicago Steel vs Youngstown Phantoms, December 16, 2020: Ufko is an elite offensive defenseman that is a smooth skater and has great vision from the backend. In his defensive end, Ufko does an excellent job of using his skating to shut down rush attacks against him and eliminate plays in the offensive zone. He extends his stick and directs opponents into tight areas where he is able to deflect passes or take the puck, then transitioning his team to offense. On breakouts Ufko is smooth, making small support plays to break the forecheck, or carry the puck, using his feet to create separation and start the rush up ice. In the offensive zone Ufko plays with his eyes up, always looking for shot/tips in front of the net to teammates who are streaking through the scoring area. He can also fire the puck himself from the point, demonstrating this on Chicago’s third goal when he let a wrist shot go through traffic that found its way into the back of the net. On the powerplay Ufko distributes very well from the top of the umbrella, using fakes to move defenders out of position. Overall, Ufko is an elite offensive defenseman that creates for his team but also uses his skillset to defend effectively. Grade: A
USHL: Chicago vs Green Bay, November 2020: Ufko is a mobile and skilled defender that had a nice game for the Steel and was a presence on their backend, especially with the puck on his stick. Ufko did a very nice job of breaking his team out of their own zone consistently throughout the game. He uses headchecks and his skill well, always aware of where the forecheck is coming from, and making a heads up first pass to his teammates to start the breakout. He also uses his feet well, escaping from defenders if they are too aggressive in their pursuit. In the offensive zone, Ufko works well on the blueline, playing with his head up and distributing the puck quickly and effectively. He runs Chicago’s powerplay from the top and does a good job of using his eyes to mislead defenders and give his teammates time and space to make plays. Overall, Ufko is a mobile and skilled defenseman that uses his skillset well to generate offense from the backend and break the opposing forecheck. Grade: B+
U16 USA Hockey Nationals, May 2019: Ufko is an savvy, two-way defenseman with a quick first step and poise with the puck. He was excellent on the breakout both getting back and retrieving pucks but also evading forecheck pressure and making a firm, tape to tape outlet pass. An effortless puck carrier, he skates with his head up and is always looking for an open lane to skate it or move the puck. He’s quick, efficient and plays a smart, heady game. He didn’t force passes; he didn’t over handle or try to do too much and didn’t hesitate to move the puck when a lane opened. He reads the play well defensively, plays tight gaps given his skating ability and uses his stick well to poke pucks and pick off passes. He has a quick release from the point and finds ways to get it through traffic and on net. He ended the week with a 2-2-4 line leading all defenders on his team in points. He was an NTDP Camp Invite and was tendered in the USHL a few weeks after. A smart player with the skill to make plays offensively and the mobility that makes him hard to get around. College: UMass Amherst
NTDP Evaluation Camp Report, March 2019: Ufko had a strong showing here as a smart, efficient puck moving defender who makes swift, savvy decisions with the puck. He didn’t have a ton of possession time because he makes a nifty move and passes it quickly. He’s smart, he sees the whole ice and knows what he is going to do with the puck before he gets it typically. He didn’t overhandle or take big risks; he’d make swift moves on forecheckers and make crisp passes up ice. He’s a gifted poke checker, he plays tight, swarming defense and is quick to get on his opponents especially going into the corners to win pucks. At the offensive blue line he moves well laterally, he can find seams and gets snap shots off quickly. He’ll take the space that he has and when pressure comes he moves it instantly to the open area without panic. Defensively he isn’t overly physical but he does step up at the blue lines and forces a lot of dump ins. He was one of the best breakout defenders in the camp and showed both the ability to run a power play or the concentration and instincts to pick off passes in the neutral zone, pinch on the blue lines to keep pucks in and break up rushes with his skating ability and stick work. College: UMass Amherst
HPHL/Beast Showcase U16, October 2018: Balanced right-shot defender that didn’t make many mistakes on the weekend. He doesn’t force his skill on the game and takes what is available to him. When he wants to be creative he has the tools to do so. He keeps good gaps through the neutral zone and on zone entries. He plays physical, especially in his own zone. Tough player that has his best hockey in front of him. College: UMass-Amherst Grade: A-
Liberty Bell Games, June 2018: Ufko is a very mature 2003. Defended hard despite being only 5’7”. His balance is elite and he used leverage to win pucks. Transitioned quickly to the breakout as he worked to get off checks, find the puck and move it to his forwards or partner. In the neutral zone, it was much of the same as he kept his gaps tight, squeezed off the rush and started transition. Used his backhand to make quick passes through seams and facilitated clean zone entries on regroups. Got pucks deep and used the wall when he had to. His approach is simple and effective. Played a solid game all weekend against older, bigger players. High upside player.
U14 Nationals, April 2018: Ufko doesn’t do one thing that jumps out but his combined skills and approach make him a very good player. He has good four-way mobility and forced opponents to spots where he could quickly defend and start plays up ice. He made short simple outlets, used the wall, used the middle and can snap pucks to the stretch guy. The Rangers were the best team here in transition and he was a big reason why. He does not dust the puck off but he moves it quickly and puts his forwards in great spots up ice. Started lots of scoring plays, goes back to front with possession quickly and played smart at the blue lines. Showed well on the power play as his ability to pass was on display along with his hard, quick shot. Waited for screens and shot to tips. Reliable, consistent, all situations type that coaches love. Poised played with a diverse skill set.
2003 Crimson Combine, August 2017: We have written him up a few times, he keeps it so simple and mistake free. He is undersized but sticks to his strengths and makes a great first pass out of the zone. Does not take any chances, supports his partner all over the ice. He feels the pressure and escapes with ease.
Beantown Prospects Division, August 2017: Ufko is a steady two-way defensemen. His first pass is always tape to tape. He is efficient and his head is always up and looking to head man the puck and put his forwards in good spots. Ryan is a smooth skater and uses that to get back and retrieve pucks, control his gaps and start transition. He constantly gets shots through traffic in the O-Zone to create scoring chances. Ryan plays tough in his own end and competes hard to win battles. Very poised with the puck and his decision making. Grade: A-
Mini Chowder Cup, August 2017: Average size puck moving defenseman. He is a very smart and efficient on the back end. He sticks to his strengths by constantly moving pucks north to his team mates. Stays in control and plays with his head up looking to make plays. Good tight gap control.