Covelli Center – Youngstown, OH: In a weekend series that featured future NCAA stars, the NHL side of Neutral Zone focused their attention on the players who have not been drafted, yet we feel they have the potential to be National Hockey League players.
| Adam Fantilli | Chicago Steel | USHL | L | C | 6’2″ | 190 | Michigan | 2022 | Nobleton, ON | 2004 | 2022-2023: A |
Fantilli is a premier power forward who as an under-ager centers the Steel’s top line. He is, and quite frankly has been for a few years, a powerfully built center who plays with a rare combination of skill, abrasiveness and mean. Offensively Fantilli has an easy first touch on both his forehand and backhand, which allowed him to handle hard passes while opponents were draped all over him. In transition we liked how he showed the understanding that he does not need to be at top speed to be dangerous, yet when he sees open ice or a turnover he showed the explosiveness to win races and pull away from defenders. On offensive line rushes Fantilli recognized where the back-checkers were and showed the ice awareness to mix his pace to what the back-checkers were doing. During these away from the puck situations he not only drove the opposing defender to the top of the crease, but he was able to keep his stick on the ice while looking for downhill tips and or far pad rebounds. We also loved the strength he showed in the slot as he “pushed off” the defender to create open ice for himself. On the power play Fantilli showed the puck poise to look opponents off without the need to stickhandle and his passes had pace when needed or the touch for an easy one-timer. In the defensive zone Fantilli provided consistent low support for his defensemen and did not get trapped along the wall. Again, Fantilli is a premier prospect who will be in the mix to be the number first player off the board in the 2023 National League draft.
| Adam Ingram | Youngstown Phantoms | USHL | L | LW | 6’2″ | 174 | St. Cloud | 2022 | West St. Paul, MB | 2003 | 2021-2022: A |
Ingram is long lean left shot forward who is still adding weight to his frame, but after spending a few years training at St. Cloud State has the mentality and skill to be a very effective professional power forward. After missing the previous six games due to injury we saw him quickly shake off the rust and be an impact player for Youngstown. We liked his ability to extend possession in the offensive zone by using his body to protect the puck and we really liked the strength he showed by controlling the puck with one hand on his stick while keeping his eyes up looking for open teammates. Ingram is not a straight line burner, but he changes direction very quickly and showed a strong outside edge when generating speed after a hard stop. While playing left wing Ingram consistently showed the ability to pull pucks off the wall to make clean passes. In the offensive zone he played with a prepared stick and showed he did not need much space to fire a bullet on net. On Saturday night Ingram scored a goal as the middle drive on a line rush after driving the opposing defender to the crease and keeping his stick placement strong for a downhill tip.
| Jayden Perron | Chicago Steel | USHL | R | F | 5’8″ | 141 | North Dakota | 2023 | Winnipeg, MB | 2005 | 2022-2023: B |
Perron is an undersized right shot forward with a very dynamic combination of edgework and puck poise. Offensively his ability to stutter step and almost bounce from inside edge to outside back to inside on a single foot is something that caused Phantom defenders fits during both games. While cycling he showed the sense to slam on the breaks just as contact was being made and then used the force that was generated during contact to explode into the opposite direction. Perron has a clean first touch on both his forehand or backhand and on more than one occasion he appeared to have the goalie leaning the opposite direction on Friday night. As an 05 there were times when he got bounced around, but we feel that he will be motivated to train this summer and come back next season with the goal of leading the Steel offensively.
| Trey Taylor | Youngstown Phantoms | USHL | L | D | 6’2″ | 185 | Clarkson | 2022 | Richmond, BC | 2002 | 2021-2022: C+ |
Taylor is in his third year of National League draft eligibility and we feel he has played his way into receiving long looks from NHL organizations. The left shot retrieved pucks with pace keeping his head on swivel to locate the easiest route out of the defensive zone. His passes were hard, flat and hit his intended target on the tape and in stride, He also showed the strength to protect the puck while a forechecker was on his back and the skating ability to get the net when he needed to. It is obvious that his teammates view him as a leader on the ice and he backed that up with solid decisions that put the team first. Taylor was a key component of the Phantom’s special teams. He also showed a very quick release from the point and on Friday night scored on a quick release snap shot. Although he is having a very solid offensive season we feel he is two-way defender who has the size, skating ability and offensive vision to play professional hockey after continuing to gain strength and explosiveness at Clarkson.
| Jake Livanavage | Chicago Steel | USHL | L | D | 5’10” | 161 | North Dakota | 2023 | Gilbert, AZ | 2004 | 2021-2022: C+ |
Livanavage is a smooth skating average sized offensively gifted left shot defenseman. He is well balanced, shows a smooth powerful heel to heel stride while pivoting as well as the speed to pull away from forecheckers while they are on his back. We liked his ability to keep the puck on his forehand which allowed him to snap passes in any direction. Positioned on the top of the umbrella or 1-3-1 formation, Livanavage is the quarterback on the Steel’s top powerplay unit where we liked his deception and unpredictability. He showed the stick skills to one-touch passes to either flank and we liked the awareness he showed to collapse into the high slot when the Youngstown penalty killers showed too much respect for the shooters along the dot lanes. Defensively Livanavage used his quickness to contain the puck to the corner and a very active stick to force turnovers. As with any young player Livanavage will need to continue adding lower body strength to defend in the NHL, but his ability to transition the will lead him to hearing his name in Montreal.
| Justin Varner | Youngstown Phantoms | USHL | R | LW/RW | 6’0″ | 174 | Michigan State | 2022 | Shelby Township, MI | 2004 | 2021-2022: C |
Varner is a high compete forward who never gives up on a play and has the mentality to outwork his opponent in every situation. On Friday night he earned a secondary assist after winning a loose puck battle in the defensive zone to start transition. Then rather than sitting back to admire his work, Varner sprinted up the ice to win a wall battle in the offensive zone and then pass the puck his strong side point. It was a shift that highlighted his work ethic and compete. His second assist on Friday night featured more of the same as he won a corner puck battle, used his strong side point and (again) moved his feet to stay in the play and initiated a mid-wall scissor play on the opposite side of the ice. On both plays Varner won 1 on 1 battles that led directly to the scoreboard. On Saturday he picked up the primary assist on Ingram’s goal after he read a line rush correctly by staying in the dot lane before firing a downhill tip to his middle drive. We feel he is player who has gotten better and better as the season has progressed and when he adds some more meat to his frame he has the mentality to be an impactful professional.
| Jack Harvey | Chicago Steel | USHL | L | F | 5’10” | 176 | Boston University | 2022 | Stacy, MN | 2003 | 2021-2022: C |
Harvey is an offensively talented left shot forward who has the ability to score goals. Offensively he was fairly quiet this weekend, but he consistently showed the awareness to find the quiet areas in the offensive zone for scoring opportunities. As the low forward in the defensive end Harvey won loose puck battles and made good outlets to start transition. He is in his second year of draft eligibility.
| Chase Pietila | Youngstown Phantoms | USHL | R | D | 6’2″ | 186 | Michigan Tech | 2022 | Howell, MI | 2004 | 2021-2022: C |
Pietila is a 6’2″ right shot defender who does not need to get on the score sheet to impact games. He played a tough hard nosed style that led to clear shooting lanes for his goaltenders and also seemed to allow him to have a second longer to make a play offensively. As he continues to train gaining strength and explosiveness we feel the combination of his size and defense first approach will make him an attractive defenseman for a professional organization.
| Andon Cerbone | Chicago Steel | USHL | L | C | 5’9″ | 153 | Michigan | 2023 | Stamford, CT | 2004 | 2021-2022: C |
Cerbone is a slightly undersized left shot forward who has excellent balance and uses a powerful cross-under to generate separation out of tight turns or after contact. We liked the awareness he showed when he did not have the puck as he scanned the ice looking for openings and counting opponents to locate where they were on the ice. This allowed him to always be prepared for the next play. As a puck carrier we liked his ability to change pace and on one particular play on Friday night Cerbone noticed that a Steel teammate had gone offsides. Rather than continuing into the offensive zone, he made a tight turn just outside of the blueline looping back into the neutral zone and then attacking the flat footed Phantom’s defenders for an easy zone entry which led to a scoring opportunity. He worked the right mid-wall on the power play where he showed deception and the puck skills to make hard accurate passes on both his forehand or backhand. In the defensive zone Cerbone competed to maintain net side positioning and used his low center of gravity to win loose pucks.
| Jacob Fowler | Youngstown Phantoms | USHL | L | G | 6’2″ | 201 | Clarkson | 2023 | Melbourne, FL | 2004 | 2022-2023: C+ |
Fowler who is not eligible until the 2023 NHL Draft and only played on Saturday night missed having a shutout by about six seconds and possibly a high stick. The highly athletic Clarkson commit did so many little things correctly that in our opinion he had a major impact on the outcome of the game outside of just stopping the puck. We loved his awareness to get whistles slowing the game down, especially when his teammate were forced to ice the puck and not able to change. He also showed the awareness to deflect pucks out of play rather giving juicy rebounds. Fowler showed good footwork while playing the puck on dump-ins, but the thing we loved was his awareness to leave the puck positioned so his defenders could pick up the puck on their forehands. The late 2004 is player to watch closely over the next 16 months.
| Zam Plante | Chicago Steel | USHL | L | F | 5’9″ | 161 | Minnesota Duluth | 2022 | Hermantown, MN | 2004 | 2021-2022: C+ |
Plante is an offensive catalyst who can make decisions or reads while at top speed and has the puck poise to outwait a defender before he finally shoots or makes a play. He picked up a secondary assist on Saturday, but what really stood out to us was his willingness to look for downhill tips or to shoot far pad while a linemate was driving towards the crease. As a puck carrier Plant disguises his change of speed on zone entry very well and has the edge control to cut hard laterally to take advantage of the open ice in the middle. While cycling he showed the strength to maintain puck possession after contact and as an undersized forward would initiate contact to create space for himself.
| Nicholas Moldenhauer | Chicago Steel | USHL | R | C | 5’11” | 170 | Uncomm. | Mississauga, ON | 2004 | 2021-2022: B- |
Moldenhauer did not play in either game versus the Phantoms.
| Michael Emerson | Chicago Steel | USHL | R | F | 6’2″ | 190 | UMass Amherst | 2023 | Yorktown Heights, NY | 2003 | 2021-2022: C |
Emerson did not play either game this weekend and has been out since a February 11th loss to Cedar Rapids.
| Casy Laylin | Chicago Steel | USHL | R | F | 5’8″ | 161 | St. Thomas | 2023 | St. Michael, MN | 2004 | 2021-2022: C |
The recent St. Thomas commit did not play either game this weekend.
Photo Credit: Dan Hickling/Hickling Images