Played March 14, 2024
General Game Notes: March 14th, 2023 – USHL action between the Omaha Lancers and the Lincoln Stars. A back and forth affair saw some wild third period action, as Lincoln was able to get the equalizer with 3 seconds left to send it to overtime. Unfortunately for them, the momentum stopped there and Omaha was able to prevail by a score of 4-3.
Adam Kleber (D, R, 6’5″, 203, Lincoln Stars, 03/24/2006, Minnesota Duluth)
Game Grade: B
Kleber is a big, strong defender who plays well at both ends of the ice. He is physical in his own end, killing plays along the walls, sticking his pins and not letting his opponents breath. He is mean, and hard to play against not giving anyone free ice, making sure he leans on his opponents with a heavy stick and body position. Additionally, offensively he can control pucks and get them towards the net. He does have decent vision, showing good passing skills as well.
Justin Mexico (LW, L, 5’10”, 170, Lincoln Stars, 12/05/2003, AIC)
Game Grade: B-
Mexico brings speed and skill to the lineup. He always keeps his feet moving as he pushes the pace, especially off the rush. He can change the angle of his hands and feet to evade checks, which allows him to place pucks in areas for his teammates to find. He threw pucks to the net-front area, created offense in the process.
German Yavash (LW, L, 6’3″, 209, Lincoln Stars, 05/07/2003, AIC)
Game Grade: B+
Yavash is a power-forward who is hard to contain in all three zones. For a bigger player, he owns good speed and can bull-doze through his opponents in any situation, with or without the puck. He is extremely dangerous along the walls in the offensive zone as he can shield pucks with his body, protect it and then drive towards the net. He doesn’t over stick-handle pucks, instead pushes it in front of him, using his arms and body to shield it and fend off defenders from taking it from him. Has good offensive instincts to go with his physicality.
Ryan Spinale (RW, R, 6’5″, 205, Lincoln Stars, 02/09/2004, Colgate)
Game Grade: C+
Spinale is a towering forward who moves well for his size. He gets in on the forecheck bringing a physical element, finishing his checks when necessary. He can carry pucks into the offensive zone, making plays off the rush as well, pushing pucks out in front of him with his long reach and shooting pucks with emphasis.
Matthew Maltais (C, L, 6’2″, 183, Lincoln Stars, 09/02/2004, Nebraska Omaha)
Game Grade: C+
Maltais, despite having a quiet night on the score-sheet did a lot of little things right. He created offense by working off the shot, creating chaos in the net-front for himself and his linemates to have second chance opportunities. He continually filtered into scoring areas, where he could catch and release pucks quickly, following his shot to the net to control rebounds and maintain puck possession.
Kai Janviriya (D, R, 5’8″, 170, Lincoln Stars, 04/02/2005, Connecticut)
Game Grade: B
Janviriya, despite being on the smaller side, plays a hard game defensively. He kills plays in the defensive zone with an active stick, and regains control of pucks often. He makes clean first passes and has a high skill-set with the puck. In the offensive zone, controls plays by holding onto pucks and not panicking. Instead, he drags defenders towards him and distributes to his teammates with more open ice. Brings a complete game in all three zones, logging a lot of minutes in all situations.
Jared Mangan (C, L, 5’10”, 172, Lincoln Stars, 04/08/2003, Clarkson)
Game Grade: B+
Mangan owns excellent edgework and utilizes it along the walls while holding onto pucks. He can turn on a dime and when he is about to get checked, he can spin off his opponents, maintaining possession of the puck, and making plays from there. He shows grit and tenacity in all three zones, winning puck battles and committing to play on both sides of the puck. He is the type of player you want on the ice in all situations, and he ended up getting a huge goal for his team with the goalie pulled to force OT.
Blake Montgomery (LW, L, 6’3″, 181, Lincoln Stars, 05/04/2005, Wisconsin)
Game Grade: B
Montgomery is a skilled, power-forward type player. He owns a long, effortless skating stride that allows him to collect pucks, get a step on his opponents and penetrate the offensive zone. He owns a nice set of hands and can make plays off the rush, whether its taking it to the net himself, or utilizing his outlets going towards the net. He owns a long reach, which can be tricky to defend against because with a flick of a wrist, he can shoot the puck quickly and with power.
Mikhail Yegorov (G, L, 6’5″, 182, Omaha Lancers, 03/07/2006, Boston University)
Game Grade: A-
Yegorov has it all. He is big, athletic and aggressive. He reads plays before they happen, understanding where he needs to push to make the lateral saves. He covers the low ice well with his long legs and recovers well to his rebounds. He is fast on his feet, and shows intensity every time the opponent enters the zone. His rebound control is good from afar as he utilizes his body to get in the way of pucks, swallowing up anything that comes his way. He has active hands, catching and putting pucks into areas away from pressure. Has the ability to steal games and can be considered a game-changer. Although, there were some goals he may like to have back, he made plenty of grade A saves throughout the game to help his team get the win. He has all the tools to be a successful goaltender at a high-level.
Nick Pierre (LW, L, 5’8″, 164, Omaha Lancers, 04/09/2004, Merrimack)
Game Grade: B
Pierre is a skilled forward who excels on the PP. He is effective when given time and space, hence is ability to control pucks, gain valuable ice and get pucks towards the net. He does a lot at full speed, but remains calm and collected with pucks. He works down-hill on the PP, often walking down the flank area and shooting pucks with a quick release and power behind it.
Charlie Lieberman (D, R, 6’5″, 225, Youngstown Phantoms, 01/12/2004, UMass Amherst)
Game Grade: B-
Lieberman is a big, right shot defenseman with plenty of upside to his game. He skates well for a big man, owning a long stride which he utilizes to retrieve pucks in his own end. He can make a good first pass, and isn’t afraid to join the rush as a second wave of offense. He can kill plays early in the neutral zone by stepping up and closing in on his opponents. He can also bring a physical element to the game in the d-zone.
Ethan Fredericks (RW, R, 6’2″, 207, Omaha Lancers, 11/22/2004, Northeastern)
Game Grade: B-
Fredericks is a solid 2-way player who back-checks hard, chasing his stick back into the defensive zone. Once getting there, he stops on pucks, supporting his teammates low in the d-zone to collect pucks and either break it out cleanly, or chip it out. He owns a long reach and can win 50/50 puck battles because he leads with his stick, and big frame second. He has skill and a heavy shot, particularly on the PP, flanking out, hitting one-timers on net.
Aleksi Kivioja (LW, R, 6’5″, 219, Omaha Lancers, 08/02/2003, Providence)
Game Grade: B+
Kivioja is a big, strong forward who plays a hard, complete game. He chips pucks into the offensive zone, gets in on the forecheck and does everything he can to win back the puck. He finishes his checks, constantly wearing down his opponents and has an active stick in the process. Creates his offense by going to the net with a purpose, relishing box-outs, having his stick in a position to whack at second chance opportunities, or be a screen/tip option.
Mikhail Katin (D, L, 6’6″, 201, Omaha Lancers, 10/24/2006)
Game Grade: B
Katin is a long, rangy defender who has upside in both the offensive and defensive zone. At times, he looks a bit uncoordinated, but he’s got raw abilities with or without the puck. He scored a goal by jumping into the net-front area (as a defenseman), receiving a pass and whacking it in past the goaltender. The goal exemplified his confidence to be aggressive and take chances in the offensive zone, especially being down a goal in the 3rd period.
Noah Jones (D, R, 6’4″, 212, Omaha Lancers, 02/22/2004, Northeastern)
Game Grade: A
Jones made two big-time plays that resulted in his team having a chance to win. The first, was the third goal of the game where he filtered into the middle ice and hammered a one-timer that was tipped in by his teammate to give his team the lead late in the 3rd period. The second, was the OT winning goal where he grabbed the puck in his own end, wheeled it through all three zones, challenged his opponent in a 1 on 1 situation, ultimately scoring on an individual effort. He did it all. He blocked shots, killed plays, and was solid defensively. He also moved pucks up the ice, and contributed offensively by joining into the rush or filtering into areas where he could get his shot towards the goal. He has a high skill-set, moves well for a big man, and plays a complete 2-way game.
David Deputy (C, R, 5’9″, 161, Omaha Lancers, 06/25/2004, RIT)
Game Grade: C+
Deputy did a good job at creating cycle plays with his line-mates, and eventually getting pucks to dangerous areas. He was able to filter into the middle ice where he could catch and release pucks on net with a quick release and good awareness where the traffic was in the net-front area.
Photo Credit: Dan Hickling/Hickling Images
Scout: Mike Garteig