Comments / New

Young Stars 2013 Game 2, Winnipeg Jets 7 : Edmonton Oilers 2

Winnipeg Jets played their second game of the tournament against the Edmonton Oilers prospect squad. I was concentrating more on particular individuals and team play then every individual. So, unless someone really stood out I may have missed minor details. I was also attempting to track as many zone starts, Corsi events and scoring chances as possible.

The first period was heavily slanted for the Jets, with them leading 5v5 Corsi events approximately 15:6. At the end of the period they were leading 3-0 on the scoreboard.

The first half of the second period was almost all Edmonton. They had one shift where they pinned down the Jets for 8 Corsi events but only received one true scoring chance out of it, and Comrie stayed strong. The Jets then woke up again and the game started to look like the first period, again placing three pucks in the back of the net.

The third period the Jets stepped back a bit, becoming a little less engaged with the 6-0 lead. The game was pretty back and forth at this point, with Corsi events being about equal in the third. The Oilers finally solved Comrie twice, but then the Jets buried the final goal for a 7-2 finish.

Lineup (in no particular line order):

Sutter – Scheifele – Kosmachuk

Theoret – Petan – Lipon

Blomqvist – Lowry – Cisse

Dupuy – Olsen – Brassard

/

Morrissey – Trouba

Bell – Kichton

Sol – Kostalek

/

Comrie

Forwards Notes

Lukas Sutter (0 G, 0 A, +1, 3 SOG, 6 PIM)

Sutter was neither bad nor good. Lukas played a little more even keeled than the last game which was good. He used his strength well in the corners and even got three shots in. It was mentioned that the Jets' hope to have him playing pro as soon as possible; however, he may not have adequate skating abilities for that level yet. The only real minuses for Sutter that stood out were a hooking penalty in the third and fanning a nice feed from Scheifele. Overall though a better game from Lukas.

Mark Scheifele (0 G, 1 A, +3, 4 SOG, 0 PIM)

Due to discussing Scheifele's usage from last game, Mark's zone starts were tracked. In the game Scheifele only started out in the neutral or defensive zone, meaning he was specifically being used and evaluated as a defensive player. Mark lead the team in Corsi with a +3 differential for 5v5 situations. He also lead the team again in shots on goal and is also first place in the entire tournament for shots at the this moment in time. While Scheifele has yet to pot a goal in the tournament, the underlying numbers point to him playing a strong two-way game.

Scott Kosmachuk (2 G, 0 A, +3, 3 SOG, 0 PIM)

We have always known at Arctic Ice Hockey that Kosmachuk likes to score goals and that he does it well. Scott's scoring has continued at an impressive rate, currently he leads the tournament with three goals. Both goals were a typical paradigm of Kosmachuks game; the first resulting from a hard drive to the net and the second from a rocket of a wrist shot. Kosmachuk will be one of the favorites for the OHL scoring title next season.

Mitchell Theoret (1 G, 1 A, +0, 2 SOG, 0 PIM) (nondrafted)

Theoret continued both his play and success from yesterday. He has thrived getting into the dirty areas and has been reward with two points each game, tying him for tournament lead. As we discussed yesterday, Mitchell could be earning his way into a spot on the IceCaps, or at the very least a tryout.

Nicolas Petan (1 G, 1 A, +0, 3 SOG, 0 PIM)

Nicolas continues to show how smart of a player he is. Petan has also been disproving the doubters that his offense was merely a side effect of his linemates. While the competition level is far from that of the NHL, we have to remember that Petan is one of the youngest out there. Petan's line had the worst Corsi of the team at -2, but almost all the negatives came from one shift where they were pinned in for eight shot attempts against.

J.C. Lipon (0 G, 0 A, +0, 0 SOG, 2 PIM)

Lipon was not as obvious as yesterday, but he still did the right things. His mix of grit, skill and drive should make him a fan favorite with Lowry for the IceCaps next season. There wasn't much offensive contribution from Lipon last night, although he did have one scoring chance with a two-on-one with Petan.

Axel Blomqvist (2 G, 0 A, +3, 3  SOG, 0 PIM) (nondrafted)

Blomqvist stepped up his game last night, and not just with the two goals. He seemed to be skating better. He was also strong on the forecheck and played a role in keeping the physicality at a high level. His first goal came off of a juicy rebound from Scheifele. His second came from a great turnover due to some aggressive forechecking. It will be interesting to see what the Jets management does with Blomqvist.

Adam Lowry (0 G, 0 A, +0, 1 SOG, 4 PIM)

Lowry has been left off the scoresheet thus far but overall has had a solid tournament. Adam has received some high praise from coach McCambridge for doing the little things right. Overall a solid game in his new position although looks to need a year or two in the AHL for refinement.

Yassin Cisse (0 G, 0 A, +0, 1 SOG, 5 PIM)

Cisse was one time a highly regarded middle pick prospect. But with injuries keeping him to only 84 games played over the last 4 seasons combined, he drifted slowly into the unknowns. He has already been given an AHL contract to play for IceCaps, so he will be trying hard to earn an ELC much like John Albert before him. He went back to the QMJHL to play his OA season, averaging about 2+ shots per a game.

Jean Dupuy (0 G, 0 A, +0, 0 SOG, 5 PIM) (nondrafted)

Much like Verrier the night before, Dupuy didn't stand out too much. He did engage himself physically but wasn't able to contribute much more than that.

Ryan Olsen (1 G, 1 A, +1, 2 SOG, 6 PIM)

Olsen had one of his best games, yet the score keepers decided to remove his success from the books. Olsen was a strong presence physically both infront of the net and at the boards. He scored a breakaway goal, yet somehow the scorekeepers decided to call it Trouba's goal. He also assisted on Kosmachuk's second goal, but yet again the scorekeepers forgot to note it. So, we'll just say we know the truth and place it up there in his stats.

Austen Brassard (0 G, 1 A, +1, 0 SOG, 2 PIM)

Not a huge game for Brassard, but nothing negative to speak about. He didn't do anything dramatically right or wrong but just stayed consistently solid. He did well in covering a few pinches for Trouba twice. Luckily for the mini-Jets, he had some practice playing defense for the Belleville Bulls last season when they were struck with injuries.

Defensemen Notes

Joshua Morrissey (0 G, 2 A, +1, 2 SOG, 17 PIM)

5'11, 185 lbs, goon. To be fair it was not a clean hit at all, but cheap-shotting is not Morrissey's style. He likes to be physically engaged but that was just an unfortunate circumstance. Prior to the hit though Josh was playing a great game. His greatest contribution to the team comes from his ability to move the puck forward, constantly improving the Jets breakouts and possession. He currently sits tied in 2nd place for points by defensemen and overall.

Jacob Trouba (0 G, 1 A, +0, 3 SOG, 0 PIM)

Trouba was trying to force things a little bit less than the previous game, albeit he did get caught a few times. One of the goals against unfortunately resulted from him getting caught up in the offensive play. Overall though he seems to be a net positive, as he is a very dynamic player both physically and offensively. The question that remains is when his game translates to pro as a rookie will he be able to pick his moments right off the bat or will it end up hurting him at first.

Zach Bell (0 G, 0 A, +0, 0 SOG, 0 PIM) (nondrafted)

Bell played a sturdy stay at home game. Low risk, low reward was his style and it seemed to work fine. At 20 Zach, along with Theoret, is hoping to earn himself a pro contract for the next season.

Brenden Kichton (0 G, 1 A, +1, 2 SOG, 0 PIM)

Like Scheifele, the Jets are looking to see what kind of roles Kichton can provide the organization with. After successfully showing his talents as a power play trigger man yesterday, McCambridge put Kichton for a couple shifts as a quarterback, having him shuffle the puck to Trouba. Kichton should be giving the IceCaps a much needed offensive boost from the backend that was lost with the graduation of Zach Redmond and Paul Postma.

Cody Sol (0 G, 1 A, +1, 0 SOG, 2 PIM)

Sol did play a lot better although still not as polished as you would hope from a 22 year old. The big blue liner pushed the play forward a few times and was a little more engaged in the play. His skating did not seem as poor as the previous game but Sol still struggles understanding when to go and the cerebral parts of the game.

Jan Kostalek (0 G, 0 A, +4, 0 SOG, 0 PIM)

In the first game Kostalek started off very strong and then quickly faded after a brutal giveaway. While he was not as strong as his first appearance, he played a very leveled game. Known for being a low mistakes guy that can move the puck forward, Kostalek did just that. He is a long term project but it is possible he may follow the success of fellow late round right handed puck moving defensemen Zach Redmond.

Goaltending Notes

Eric Comrie (36 SA, 2 GA, 0.944 Sv%)

Comrie played a very confident and excellent game. His positioning was very solid and (to steal a quote from a friend) he was very economical in his movements. While goalies are basically a crapshoot when it comes to drafting and developing, there is no doubt that Comrie has some promise in his play and style. The more young goalies have with promise, the better position the organization is in.

Schedule:

Game 1: Jets 5 : Sharks 3

Game 2: Jets 7 : Oilers 2

Game 3: Jets vs Canucks, September 9, 1:30pm

Looking for an easy way to support Arctic Ice Hockey?
Use our Affiliate Link when shopping hockey merch this holiday season!

Talking Points