| Skyler Bruce | Rink Hockey Academy U14 | CSSBHL | R | F | 5’10” | 165 | Winnipeg Ice | Winnipeg, MB | 2003 | 2020-2021: C |
Neutral Zone NHL’s Ian Moran’s comments, June 2021: Skyler has a slight frame, but I think he’s very smart positionally and has a quick crafty stick. He’s never going to be a thumper, but I think he’s got a professional mentality when it comes to staying on the defensive side during wall battles and winning 50/50 pucks. I think the Skyler you see right now is long way away from the Skyler we will be seeing when he’s 19 or 20 years old. Bantam and midget hockey is filled with kids who put up huge numbers and vanished, but I really don’t think he’s going to be one of them because he’s never been a big kid who survived on speed. He’s always had to think. He’s always had to be one step ahead and you can see that now when he’s calling for the puck early in the play or even before his teammates have gotten the puck. You can see it when he darts behind a sleeping defender into the slot or when he initiates a stretch play. I don’t think Skyler will get drafted this year, but I do think he’s a kid that we will be looking at down the road as an over-ager or free agent signing.
WHL: Winnipeg Ice NHL Prospects, May 2020: Bruce is an intelligent player, who plays with decent speed, and good vision. Bruce has a bit of a short stride, and his top end speed doesn’t jump out to us as elite, but he does get around the sheet fine, and we like his initial burst, and ability to get up to his top end speed quickly. Offensively, Bruce is an excellent facilitator. He is a pass first type player, and has excellent vision. He is able to find streaking teammates and make little adjustments with his feet and hands to create passing lanes and good angles to get pucks to teammates. He plays positionally strong in the neutral zone, and the defensive zone. He plays responsible, and covers areas of the ice really well. But we don’t see a ton of engagement from Bruce. Often times he looks hesitant to engage physically, and this can result in him staying on the fringe of the play, and a lot of times not being as dangerous offensively as he could or even should be. He still has room to grow, and he could still find that confidence needed to play in those tougher areas, but right now, we feel there is more to come with Bruce. Grade: B-
CSSHL Midget Showcase, February 2020: Skyler is an elite playmaking winger and he sees the ice very well with his creative vision. He makes difficult passes look routine and he finished the weekend with four assists over three games. He saw a lot of time on the power play where he was very effective finding open teammates who slide into soft spots in coverage. The ’03 has dangle ability and can undress defenders on the rush while at full speed. His shot is quick with a sneaky release but he is a pass-first player. He is elusive and agile in the corners and a tough guy to handle in open space. He started the event a little slow but had his best game in the team’s third game and was noticeable often. Grade: A-
CSSHL Showcase, February 2018: Skyler displayed a quick release on his shots and the ability to snipe on multiple occasions. He picked the top corner on a few of his goals, showing great accuracy and poise. The 2003 has very quick acceleration and can blow by defenders wide along the boards. He’s very elusive in the corners and can twist and turn away from defenders. He does well to keep his head on a swivel at all times and always seems to be one step ahead of his opponent. The 15 year old finished with 5 points through 4 games and was a consistent threat every game.
U14: Rocky Mountain Classic Bantam, November 2017: Speedy forward who plays with an edge that keeps his opponents honest. Soft hands and a wicked release to his shot. He can be very elusive on the ice and slip through traffic untouched. Good on ice vision as well. Grade: B+