Game played on 11/23/2024.
General Game Notes: A three goal first period from the Rough Riders gave them the momentum they needed to complete a full sixty minutes tonight. Chicago pushed in the second with two goals of their own only to be shut down back again in the third by late period goal giving the Rough Riders another two goal lead. This one goal game was not as close as it looked on the scoreboard.
Daniel Astapovich (C, R, 6’3″, 200, Cedar Rapids RoughRiders, 03/13/2005, Merrimack)
Grade: B
Comments: Astapovich does not often make the fancy passes, although he certainly has the skillset for it, but he is a very effective playmaker. He does not make the difficult passes through traffic very often, but he makes the right reads to safely move the puck when he needs to. He seems to have a very good feel for where his teammates are on the ice, especially in the offensive zone. He does a good job of finding teammates in soft spots of the ice to generate scoring chances. He is one of the more visually better players with the puck, when his hands are moving, it is easy to tell he has the skill to make a play. One of his better traits as a passer would have to be his ability to set up zone entries. Besides making the simple plays, he can send the stretch pass through a layer or two of defense into a set up with time and space.
Jason Musa (F, L, 5’8″, 143, Cedar Rapids RoughRiders, 05/09/2007, UMass Amherst)
Grade: B
Comments: Musa was able to get his team on the board three minutes into the game. He did this staying in motion in a great spot for offense but also a good spot for defense if the puck were to get turnover, he stays on top of his guy. A pad rebound popped right to him that he was able to get enough wood on to beat the goalie trying to react to the quick play. Musa is one of the smaller players on the ice, but it is not hard to notice him right away. There are down sides to his size, at times, if he did not draw space up with his speed and gets too close to the opponent, he can be easily sent down to the ice. His skating is not only about speed, but he has also outstanding edge work and agility. He has no problem with changing direction in high end speed, changes the rhythm of the game, and the rush itself.
Cayden Casey (C, L, 6’1″, 185, Cedar Rapids RoughRiders, 10/07/2004, St. Lawrence)
Grade: A-
Comments: Cayden scored both the third and game winning goal proving that his offensive abilities were a threat tonight. Scored a nice goal late in the first period getting a lucky bounce in the slot where he turned around and fired a no looker on the net. He had two goals tonight but his defensive play also needs to be mentioned. A specific play on his defensive physicality. He first utilizes his reach to attempt a poke check that is either successful or forces the opposing player to dodge it. The player maneuvers the poke, which is when Casey decides to be physical. He traps the player into a position where he has maintained puck possession but set himself up to be stapled along the boards. This type of stable one on one play is was consistent from him tonight.
Martin Masa (D, L, 6’1″, 195, Cedar Rapids RoughRiders, 07/14/2005, Providence)
Grade: B
Comments: Masa plays a simple game yet effective in a lot of ways. He showed tonight that Msasa is not the type of defenseman that will often try to dance his way through his opposition using dekes, nor should he. He is more inclined to protect the puck with his body and skate it out of harms way until a safe pass is available. Under pressure, he is able to handle the puck seamlessly, rarely losing control as he skates out of trouble. He can be an intense player with a lot of energy not only to create transition into offense, but also into the defensive duties. Where he was at his best tonight was providing gaps and easy turnovers off rushes against, he stays tight where the opposing forward is forced to dump the puck and most of the time this led to his team being first on retrievals.
Hans Martin Ulvebne (LW, L, 6’0″, 195, Cedar Rapids RoughRiders, 08/25/2004, Princeton)
Grade: B+
Comments: Ulvebne scored a nice goal tonight first winning back a draw that he had lost. The extra compete forced a turnover and led to a scoring chance for his team. After he won back to back draws, he got a nice pass from his defensemen, beat his guy to the net, and made a little forehand backhand play on the goalie that ended up being one of the nicer goals of the night. Ulvebne likes to keep motion and moves well for somewhat of a bigger forward. A typical zone to zone transition from Ulvebne has pace and at least a B- chance at the net. He will pick up a loose puck, use his acceleration, drive around a defender, and create a scoring chance or at least momentum inside the offensive zone. His goal came right after his teams first goal putting them up by two very early in the game, it set the tempo for the rest of the night.
Tomas Mikel (D, R, 6’4″, 190, Cedar Rapids RoughRiders, 04/23/2007, UMass Amherst)
Grade: B-
Comments: Mikel ran the point tonight on the power play, he moved the puck with pace but just did not look confident in the plays he was making. To acknowledge his offense, he does not hesitate to throw the puck on net, particularly if there is traffic in front, but his shot is not overly dangerous. He has good enough accuracy to ensure most of his shots hit the net, but he is not one to snipe one in from the point often. He has a quick release, but does not consistently put himself in situations to utilize it. He moves well for his size and can pivot forwards from backwards efficiently, as he had to do this multiple times looking to be first on dumped pucks.
Alexander Calbeck (D, L, 6’0″, 180, Chicago Steel, 06/20/2006, Western Michigan)
Grade: C+
Comments: Calbeck is strong in his own zone, and where his game is at his best. You can see when his instincts to work defensively on point, in one specific play this time on a rush against. As soon as he reads that the attacking forward is going to shoot, he quickly gets himself into the shooting lane and blocks the shot. Small details make his shifts noticeable. He positions himself well to adjust to any movements made shooters. If he goes down for the block, he rarely lets the shot get by him. His willingness to play a role if other parts of his game are not on shows a maturity lacking at this level at times.
Teddy Mutryn (C, R, 6’1″, 207, Chicago Steel, 02/16/2007, Boston College)
Grade: B
Comments: Mutryn constructed space at the net front using his size and strength. He has a real sturdy center of gravity allowing him to get second chances on rebounds, like his goal, due to opponents having trouble moving him. What he was able to show tonight is that he can hold onto the puck to draw a defender towards him to open up space, he does this knowing he can out muscle most opponents and just an overall skill to keep the puck on his stick. While his straight-line speed isn’t elite, he’s by no means a slow player. Once he gets a couple steps in front of him, his straight line speed can be hard to match off the rush.
Ashton Schultz (RW, R, 5’11”, 180, Chicago Steel, 10/03/2006, North Dakota)
Grade: B+
Comments: Schultz scored a nice goal on the power play late in the game giving his team a desperation chance. Off the rush a man up, Schultz read the openings in the other teams kill formation and took complete advantage of it. Defensively, his game is nothing spectacular, but as an offensive winger, being nothing more than a competent player on the other side of the puck is something that should be a standard given his skill set. The timing of his play is noticeable in the offensive zone. During this one specific play, he attacked the opposition right as they looked down at the puck, any time before or after it would have been moved out of danger. If he waits a bit longer, the opposition would likely have regained control of the puck and pushed up the ice, but instead he strips it and goes in for a mini breakaway creating a chance for.
Aidan Dyer (RW, R, 5’10”, 165, Chicago Steel, 12/28/2005)
Grade: B
Comments: Dyer got the puck back door on a two man breakaway from a turnover in the neutral zone. Sloppy puck management led to a chance where Dyer could capitalize and he did. Dyer was able to show that he also has excellent agility. He has a certain shiftiness to his game where he changes his pace and makes quick cuts to maneuver through the neutral zone and maintain the gap he wants. He is not a defensive standout, but he also is not really a liability in his own end either. Simply put, Dyer is a competent defensive winger that you will not notice a lot when the opposition has possession.
Photo Credit: Dan Hickling/Hickling Images