| Zach Bookman | Brooks Bandits | AJHL | R | D | 5’10” | 176 | Merrimack | 2022 | Syracuse, NY | 2002 | 2021-2022: C+ |
AJHL: Playoffs Series: Okotoks Oilers vs Brooks Bandits, April 21, 2022: Bookman is a shifty player who has got the moves in tight on goalies and on defenseman. He’s able to keep the puck close to his body and his hands tight so he can make passes quickly out of an explosive turn or a dead stop. He’s a smaller-sized defenseman so he relies on his quick agility to break the puck out of his own zone and an active stick to break up plays. He’s not overly physical but he will close on you quickly forcing you to also make quick plays. He makes up in size by hounding you on defense relentlessly in the corners and will battle hard to box out for positioning. B-
AJHL: 8 Game Reports, January 12, 2022: Bookman is slightly below average size defenseman who has been racking up points all year on a wagon of a Bandits team. He is constantly making passes that lead to scoring chances as he put up another four assists in this game. He assisted on the 1st goal of the game as he sold the shot from the slot which the goalie over-bit on and then slid the puck down to the bottom of the left circle leading to an open net. While on the PK, he stole the puck from an attacking player and turned it into a breakaway the other way but he was stopped on an attempted forehand to backhand move. He assisted on the Bulldogs’ 3rd 1st-period goal by getting a wrist shot through from the point that was deflected in front. He assisted on the Bandits’ 4th goal making a nice backhand backdoor pass to his teammate who was stopped by the goalie but the rebound eventually led to the goal. He set up another great scoring chance in the 2nd when he took the puck deep into the right corner and centered it to a shooter in the low, right slot. He is confident and patient with the puck which allows him to make good transition passes. He skates the puck up the ice with his head up and uses a good change of direction to evade attackers and buy time and space. However, he did occasionally try to do too much leading to a few turnovers. One bad turnover occurred right in his defensive zone slot when he attempted to skate the puck around the attacker losing the puck leading to the Bulldogs’ 1st goal. Grade: A-
AJHL: Brooks Bandits vs Calgary Canucks, April 2021: Zach was once again all over the ice making plays. He is hard not to notice as he has the puck on his stick so often. He is consistently a dangerous threat in the offensive zone and his skating, passing, and puck handling are all superb. His edges, pivots, and transitions are all smooth and he has explosive bursts of speed to beat opponents wide. He loves to circle the offensive zone with his head on a swivel waiting for a lane to open up. His shots are not overly powerful but he does well to place them through traffic and on the net. The ’02 does play a high-risk style like we have seen previously and can give the puck up in bad spots. Grade: B+
AJHL: Drumheller Dragons vs Brooks Bandits, November 2020: Plays the game with so much confidence, not afraid to drive the net on his offensive rushes. Moves the blueline so smoothly that he does it often. This gets the wingers up top who are covering him lost in coverage opening him up for scoring chances. He is a strong defender but also a dangerous threat as a fourth forward each shift he is on the ice. B-
AJHL: Okotoks Oilers vs. Brooks Bandits, October 2020: Zach stuck out from the drop of the puck. One of his first shifts he came back into his own zone and picked up the puck with speed behind the net, made a great head fake at his blue line then passed the puck out wide to his winger but continued to drive through the middle and gets the puck back net front. He was just a strong on the defensive side making a diving save behind his goalie. Zach unlike most does really well joining the rush but getting himself back into defensive positioning quickly and becoming active on the defensive side again. He uses the net to his advantage really well and creates time and space for himself to find clean breakout opportunities. Had another great rush later in the game where he came wide and then jumped through the middle of both defensemen for a chance on net. A+
Brooks-Pingree Tournament 2019, December 2019: Bookman is another new addition to this rebuilt Mustang defense core. Previously Bookman was playing public high school in NY and spent some time playing midget for the Jr Sabres and Syracuse Nationals. He put up video game numbers at those levels and we can understand why after watching him twice during this tournament. He does not have archetypal size for a defenseman but his mobility on the back end is really impressive. He has a smoothness about his skating game that he makes routine plays and retrievals look easy: sharp turns and fluid strides. He has a creative mind with the puck and that mixes well with his quick hands which he uses to slice and dice at both ends. He works just as effectively on his backhand as he does on his forehand: feeding his teammates using both. When he lets it rip from the point he gets a lot behind his shot despite not having as much mass as his other teammates. We also like his selflessness in the defensive zone. At one point he lost his stick and still was able to get himself in shot lanes to make multiple blocks and slid to make another block before retrieving his twig. He knows how to gap up properly and is able to use his stick to defend in order to shut down other opportunities. Certainly seems like a good fit to be a puck-moving defenseman at the next level. Grade: A College: Merrimack
NE Prep: Millbrook at the Belmont Hill-Nichols Tourney, January 2020 (Ian Moran): Zach stood out from the start. In warm-ups the puck was like Velcro to his stick and his rink wide sauce passes (on the Olympic sheet) were crisp flat bullets that his teammates handled easily. Once the game started it was more of the same. His poise and composure while under attack were special. He used his excellent puck skills and edgework to expand passing lanes and create space for his forwards while exiting the defensive zone. And his ability to look off a forechecker while waiting for his forward to stretch in the neutral zone was fantastic. He had multiple stretch sauce passes that were capable of being on TSN’s play of the day. Defensively Zach may cheat at this level, but his skating and agility allow him to get away with it consistently. He contains the cycle and has an excellent stick, which get allowed him to knock sauce passes out of the air. I did not know Zach before this tourney, but he is a player that I will be looking for as he continues to move up the ladder.
ISS Showcase Princeton, December 2018: Bookman showed he is a solid defender but can be inconsistent. He made a few nice outlets passes and showed some ability to rush the puck when given ice. He struggles with pressure at times and needs to be harder to play against in his defensive zone. Grade: C
HPHL/Beast Showcase U16, October 2018: Smaller defender that has a strong base. Great skater and uses his legs to defend. Looks to constantly jump up in the play and create offense. Great edges to escape pressure and retrieves the puck well. Will need to get stronger as he gets muscled off the puck at times in his own end. Good gaps through the neutral zone and will attack forwards and make them make decisions on zone entries. Grade: B+
Blue Line Elite Prep Cup, June 2018: In our last report our scouts noted that he could join the rush more. He had no issue with that here as he was almost like a fourth forward. Smaller, athletic defenseman, he was electric with the puck at times. Went end to end and was able to weave his way away from the forecheck and up the ice on a consistent basis. Used the net to lose oncoming forwards. He has quick hands to snapped the puck on net with his feet moving. Changed pace and direction to create space. He was up ice a lot and even tipped a puck home for a goal. Very good on the PP and quick across the offensive blue line. Can one-time the puck. Strong, balanced and athletic, he will have to improve his passing and be tougher to play against in his end to round out his game. Has tools you cannot teach. Nice upside.
U15 Nationals, April 2018: Zach is a small defenseman but he makes it up with his smarts and patience with the puck. He makes great passes up ice and he is very good playing the point on the power play. He could be more aggressive by joining the rush.
The Cup North American Championship (U14), June 2017: Small but aggressive D man. Used in all situations during the game and has great vision getting his first pass on the tape to the open man.
Photo Credit: Dan Hickling/Hickling Images