| Scout Truman | Des Moines Buccaneers | USHL | L | F | 5’10” | 181 | UMass Lowell | 2021 | Lethbridge, AB | 2002 | 2020-2021: C |
Neutral Zone NHL’s Ian Moran, December 2020: Scout may be a puck magnet, but it’s because he works and is smart. In the offensive zone he shows great anticipation and there are times that he almost seems to be waiting for the puck after a poor decision by the other team. He has a smooth first touch and he can pull bad passes out of his feet with ease. Although I haven’t seen him one time a ton of pucks, he’s been playing the bumper on the power play and his one touch passes are crisp and he sees passing lanes early. He shows good patience in the neutral zone as an outlet for offensive support, and defensively he shows good awareness by not giving up the lines. A lot of times offensive players aren’t willing to do the little things, but Scout is willing to block shots and maintain shooting lanes while taking away time and space.
USHL: Des Moines vs Sioux Falls, December 2020: Truman contributed two assists in his team’s loss to Sioux Falls and was directly responsible for setting up both goals. On the first goal, Truman won a loose puck battle in front of the net after a point shot resulted in a rebound in the crease area. After winning the one on one battle in front of the net, Truman showed incredible composure, foregoing the obvious shot attempt to slide the puck backdoor to a wide open teammate who was able to easily tuck the puck into the net. Like myself, Truman had everyone fooled, making the extra pass instead of simply whacking the puck towards the goal. On his second assist, Truman was coming in towards the net area, carrying the puck on an odd man rush attack. Truman pushed the defenders back, looked to shoot with his eyes and body, and then at the last second slid the puck back into the second wave of players joining the rush attack for Des Moines, finding his teammate wide open in the slot for a nice goal early in the second period. Truman demonstrated really good play making ability and gave his teammates relatively easy goals because of his play with the puck. Grade: B+
USHL: Dubuque vs Des Moines, November 2020: Truman had a very good game for the Buccaneers and was able to contribute 5 points for his team offensively in the contest. Truman played hard throughout the night and was able to get his head up to make quick plays when the puck was on his stick, always looking to create something around the net. Truman started the Des Moines comeback after they fell to an early 3-0 deficit. On Des Moines’ first goal, Truman collected the puck as it was rimmed around the boards, quickly got his head up and fired a shot/pass to his teammate standing all alone in front for a redirection goal. Truman also displayed his finishing ability late in the third period as he collected a quick pass in front of the net, going forehand to backhand for a really nice goal. Truman also created offense for his team by playing hard, creating turnovers high in the offensive zone, and doing a good job of funneling the puck to the net with his feet moving on the rush. Overall, Truman was really effective in creating offense for his team and did so in a variety of ways. Grade: A
Scout Truman Commits to UMass Lowell, March 2019: Scout has committed to UMass Lowell and is set to join the roster for the 2021-2022 season. NZ scouts have noted Scout’s ability to compete against players several years older than him. He has a knack for setting up his line mates and is an unselfish player.
AJHL Showcase, October 2018: Truman was impressive as an ‘02 player against guys mostly two or three years older than him. Truman is an average size forward who makes an impact with the puck on his stick. He’s a quick thinker, doesn’t need much time if he sees a lane to get a pass through. He’s a setup man for his teammates and will usually dish it off instead of shooting himself. Truman could work on adding some strength as he can get knocked off the puck easily against bigger players. Grade: B-
Photo Credit: Scout Truman