PRINCE ALBERT RAIDERS:
|Logan^Linklater^#18|- Logan is a strong positional player. On defense, he covers the middle of the ice
well, staying on his toes and reacting well to the play in front of him. He picks good times to pressure and
create turnovers, and he is an excellent help to his defenseman. He has good pop coming out of his
crossovers, and he is light on his feet. This allows him to react nicely to opponents and keep them in front
of him. He doesn’t play a physical game. He often times stands outside scrums and digs for loose pucks.
Offensively he can be content with staying to the outside, and often times this will limit his impact on the
game. He does play with intelligence. On rushes he fills lanes well, and will even change up his speed to
create layers with and without the puck on zone entry. He has an average shot. His release is good, but
he doesn’t have that real power behind his shot, nor does he display dead eye accuracy when he fires his
shot. He likes to pass the puck, and with time and space, he gets to display his soft hands and ability to
make nice plays to teammates. Again, when he finds himself without that extra second, he isn’t able to
play with the same confidence. Grade: C
|Tyson^Laventure^#28|- Tyson is a big body forward with soft hands. The first thing that jumps out to us is
his shot. And the ability for him to get his shot off quickly. His release is really good, and it leaves his stick
with lots of pace. He also likes to shoot it at awkward times, off his back foot, or in between strides to try
and catch goalies off guard. Tyson also is a nice passer. He sees the ice well, and has a real feel for the
puck. Whether it’s a little three foot touch pass, or zipping a cross ice pass on the rush, pucks leave his
stick with accuracy and the puck lands with ease. Defensively Tyson can be an opposing figure with his
physical play, but the problem with his game that we see is his inconsistency to be able to use his body
and be a physical presence. At both ends of the ice this can be true. Defensively we notice a big hit, and
feel like he could easily do more, but often times he doesn’t like to engage, and prefers to stay on the
perimeter fishing for loose pucks. In front of the net on the power play he can set a great screen, and his
large frame covers up a lot of vision, but too many times he is happy to just skate through the slot and not
plant himself there where he can best utilize his shot and his frame. Skating wise Tyson plays with a
decent top end speed. He doesn’t play with a ton of agility, and his stride at times can look clumsy. But he
is strong on his skates, and he can protect the puck well in the offensive zone when he chooses. We think
here is potential for a skilled big man here, but he needs to continue to build confidence in his physical
game. Grade: C+
|Adam^Mcnutt^3|- Adam is a typical stay at home defenseman. It is never an easy night for opponents
when they have to go up against him. He plays physical and mean. He battles hard in the corners and
along the boards, and really utilizes his strength and aggression in these areas to kills momentum for the
offense. He protects the front of his net with ferocious physical play, and will use his body and stick
equally to deter any opponents who want to set a screen in front of the net. Adam’s feet are okay. He is
strong on his skates, but he is lacking agility and quickness. He can be exposed on the rush against
faster opponents, and covering puck carriers in zone can be tough if they have any misdirection to their
game. Where he really shines is in his willingness to play in the hard areas, to be willing to block shots
and protect his own net. He does show some poise with the puck, but mostly, Adam is looking to make
straightforward safe plays. It keeps him out of trouble for the most part, but it can also mean that his team
doesn’t get to possess the puck as much as they’d like at times. Grade: C+
|Nolan^Allan^#2|- The headline for Allan as a prospect is that he is an elite skating defenseman. His
transitional game is excellent. He can move pucks out of his zone with both his feet and his passing. He
skates with the puck with confidence and great eyes. He is able to use his edge work to dodge would be
attackers and he can create separation with his low smooth stride. Against the rush defensively he keeps
gaps really tight. He attacks puck carriers with confidence, and uses his speed, attack angles, and stick to
take away time and space. He stops rushes time and again by forcing a dump in at the blue line, winning
the race to the puck, and moving it out himself with crisp passing, or using his quick feet. He frustrates
opponents with his ability to cover so much ground and seemingly stick to them like glue. He plays with a
calmness that just oozes confidence out of him. We aren’t sure his heart rate ever gets high. Offensively
is where we see that Allan still needs development. The confidence he shows in puck moving, and
defending, seemingly doesn’t exist in the o-zone. He doesn’t play with any deceptions, and doesn’t like to
possess the puck long. Often he takes quick shots from the point. While there is something to be said
about his ability to get those shots through to the goalie quite often, he needs to start skating with the
puck more, using his mobility to attack areas, or change angles. He doesn’t do that yet. And while he will
jump in the rush to create odd man rushes, he doesn’t drive to the net like a man looking to score, we can
see when he does this, he is still very much thinking about his defensive responsibilities. To us, Allan is
an elite defender, but his offensive number might have him slide in some peoples minds. Grade: B+
|Tayem^Gislason^#5|- Gislason is an intriguing prospect. Offensively he plays with real aggression away
from the puck. He pinches regularly, and isn’t afraid to jump in the rush. His pinches in particular are a
result of him reading the play well, and getting to where the puck is going to be before it gets there. He’s
also able to get there with his initial stride. He really has an explosive first step that covers a lot of ground.
He seemingly surprises opponents with his ability to get into their space quicker than they were
anticipating. Offensively this means, he is often than not able to keep the offensive pressure up, and
defensively against the rush, he is able to force guys into hurried decisions, or force them to the outside.
But other then that first and second stride, Gislason does look to us like he has average top end speed
and struggles with containment in his own zone against opponents who like to play more East-West.
Gislason has a nice set of hands, and moves the puck quickly out of his own zone. He doesn’t force
pucks into areas, and makes good decisions, and confident puck plays up the ice. Grade: C+
|Terrell^Goldsmith^#20|- The future looks bright with Terrell on the back end for Prince Albert. This 2005
born player already stands at 6’3 and 215 pounds. He is the rare combination of size, strength, and
mobility that can allude bigger bodies. In his own end he dominates tight area battles. He isn’t afraid to
mix it up with the veterans, and his size and strength are often overpowering anyways. While he plays
hard nosed in those areas, he also plays with good mobility and an active stick. Away from the puck he
has good awareness and is able to take away time and space with his long stride and stick. On the
penalty kill, he shows a good understanding of shooting lanes, and covering the far post. He challenges
puck carriers without leaving himself vulnerable to attack. In transition, he isn’t afraid to step up and make
a hit. His smooth stride and strong edge work allow him to adjust confidently on the fly and make plays.
He is still gaining confidence in this area, and could potentially be more aggressive at times, but he still
does well to keep his gaps tight. On offense he doesn’t get many prime minutes yet, nor does he create
much from the back end, but he does show poise with the puck, and isn’t afraid to skate the blue line
looking for a shooting lane. Terrell also possesses nice hands. His poise against a forecheck is really
good. He shows nice little puck skills to buy himself an extra half second, or a better passing angle, and
he keeps his head up the entire time. His ability to make those two to ten feet touch passes to his d-
partner, or centre man against the grain of a forecheck might go unnoticed by some, but it always results
in the Raiders transitioning to offense quickly. Goldsmith is certainly an exciting prospect, who won’t be
eligible for the draft for another three years. Grade: B