2013 NHL Draft: Four Nations Cup Game Reports – Ann Arbor Nov. 6-10 2012

 

HockeyProspect.com covered the full week of games in Ann Arbor.

 

November 6, 2012, Team Sweden vs. Team Switzerland

SWE #4 LD Hagg, Robert (2013) -Struggled early but picked his game up as the game went on. Turned over puck over a few times being too fancy and panicking under pressure. His puck play was hit or miss as the game went on. Strong point shot. Stuck with his man well in corners. Has tools…

[sociallocker] but lacked the mindset. Showed some ability to rush the puck end to end.

SWE #6 LD Cederholm, Anton (2013) -Laid some very good hits along the boards. Showed a good stick one on one and handled these situations well. Showed some passing ability launching some accurate long distance passes.

SWE #9 LD Westlund, Wilhelm (2013) -Has a solid point shot which he seemed to always be able to get through the traffic. He was able to do this in overtime and his teammate (Leon Bristedt) deflected it in for the game winning overtime goal.

SWE #13 RC Liljendahl, Tobias (2013) – Showed great hockey sense making smart plays all game long. He didn’t try to force plays choosing the smart safe option. Good hands for a big guy and uses his size well to protect the puck and delivers hits.

SWE #20 RW Bristedt, Leon (2013) -Despite his size, Bristedt was excellent in today’s game. He shows great patience with the puck. He is very elusive and a smooth skater. Works hard along the boards and isn’t afraid to go hard to the net and has good hands. In overtime Bristedt delivered a massive hit deep in Switzerland territory forcing a turnover, then went right to the front of the net just in time to deflect the point shot in to win the game in overtime for Sweden.

SWE #21 LW Nylander Altelius, William (2014) -Very good skating ability and showed good elusiveness on multiple occasions. He has quick hands, a very powerful shot and a lot of skill. Sometimes he tries to do too much with the puck.

SWE #27 RD Hansson, Niklas (2013) -Hansson looked impressive on a 5 on 3 penalty kill using both his size and stick very well. Has a decent shot and was able to get it on net. Really struggled at times with his puck playing ability.

SWE #28 RW Karlsson, Anton (2014) -Cleaned up rebound out front of the net to score the big tying goal to send the game to overtime. Has good size and really likes to hit. He seemed to struggle a little with skating although it was still average.

SUI #14 LD Baltisberger, Phil (2014) -Very intelligently moves the puck up ice. Uses his size very well when battling for positioning. Very effective in his own zone sticking with his man and playing a reliable defensive game.

SUI #17 RW Fiala, Kevin (2014) -Fiala has excellent hands. He shows great patience to go with these hands to score what was at the time the tying goal. Could be a player to watch as the tournament progresses.

SUI #22 LC Wieser, Tim (2013) -Good skater with an excellent shot. He was very easy to knock around. He seemed scared of his own shadow most of the time. Bare minimum contact put him down and he appeared to dive a couple times as well.

SUI #27 LD Busser, Xeno (2013) -Showed very good passing ability. Was able to complete the long distance passes as well as cross ice passes. One of which allowed him to set up a go ahead goal in the third period.

Scouts Notes: A very back and forth game to open the Under-18 Four Nations Cup. Sweden appeared surprised at times by the play of Switzerland. The game went very back and forth in momentum and score. Eventually Sweden came through in Overtime taking a 5-4 victory. In addition to the player reports Sweden’s Victor Crus Rydberg (2013) showed impressive strength along the boards. He has great vision and made things happen with his passing ability. On the other end of the ice Switzerland’s Marc Aeschlimann (2013) made several great defensive plays in his own zone showing that he was without question Switzerland’s best defensive forward.

November 6, 2012, Team Finland vs. Team USA
Four Nations Cup Round Robin

FIN #5 RD Honka, Julius (2014) -Very composed with the puck even under pressure. A good skater who is shifty and always chooses the right options on the rush. Very high level of hockey sense and reads the game quickly. He is likely smaller than listed at 5’10” and his size is really the only thing keeping him out of the first round of the 2014 NHL Entry Draft.

FIN #7 RD Makinen, Atte (2013) -Big physical defenseman punished USA players all game long. He plays very tough on opponents. Finishes his checks whenever possible. Very effective for Finland in one on one situations.

FIN #11 RC Ojantakanen, Kasperi (2013) -Cycles the puck vey effectively. Won battles and finished checks hard. Plays a very North American style of game. He also shows flashes of speed and skill. Definitely a player to watch as the tournament moves on.

FIN #24 RW Kapanen, Kasper (2014) -Good skater who was willing to hit. Puck movement hit or miss and he made some solid passes. Unfortunately he also struggled with some bad turnovers in this game as well.

USA #4 LD Butcher, Will (2013) -Reminded us how not afraid he is to pinch in from the point on a very liberal basis. He made some good plays in the offensive zone. Will also possesses a dangerous shot from the point and usually gets it on net. He will take a space given and turn it into an end to end rush.

USA #9 LW Louis, Anthony (2013) -Shows great patience with the puck. He scored a beauty goal using his speed and hands to beat defenders making it 3-1. Goes hard to the net and sets up shop whenever possible. He’s pretty small and can be a little inconsistent, but he played great today.

USA #13 LC Malone, Sean (2013) -Malone has a powerful release on his shot. He takes up strong positioning in the slot area and battles there effectively. Showed a good ability to deflect pucks regardless of the defensive coverage that was being applied to him.

USA #15 RW Hayden, John (2013) -Protects the puck well using his huge frame to hold off defenders. He used this ability to create a few scoring chances for himself. Played physical and also crashed the net on a regular basis.

USA #16 RD Santini, Steven (2013) -Santini showed both his physical and his puck moving skills in this game. Put together a very level performance where he didn’t make a big difference one way or the other.

USA #22 RW Fasching, Hudson (2013) -Fasching used his size well to intimidate opposing players and kept forcing turnovers. Took a very lazy penalty in the third period.

USA #25 LW Hurley, Connor (2013) -Hurley regularly goes exactly where he’s supposed to be on the ice. He is a very strong skater who works relentlessly hard. He lost his positioning a few times, but it was more based on a defensive first mentality rather than an unawareness.

USA #28 LC Eiserman, Shane (2014) -Eiserman showed tremendous and relentless physicality all game long. He works hard and likes to assert himself regularly. Crashes the net hard whenever he can on the rush. He was pretty reliable defensively as well.

Scouts Notes: Team USA dominated from start to finish wrapping up day one of the Under-18 Four Nations Cup with a 3-1victory. However thanks to a fantastic performance by the diminutive yet lightning quick Juuse Saros (2013). USA outshot Finland by more than a two to one ratio. Saros was the story in net but Thatcher Demko (2014) stepped up for Team USA when the team needed him. USA’s Michael McCarron (2013) showed a tenacious fore check all game long and contributed well on the penalty kill.

November 7, 2012, Team Sweden vs. Team Finland
Four Nations Cup Round Robin

SWE #4 LD Hagg, Robert (2013) -Made smart simple plays with the puck in his own zone. But he showed when he’s given space he can rush the puck and knows when to pass it off. Doesn’t seem to hit unless he feels he absolutely needs to. However on one play he made a textbook stop eliminating time and space from the opponent in a one on one situation then crushed the opposing forward into the boards. He had his misses one on one due to impatience rushing the situation, making the first move allowing the forward to beat him. He got beat with this late in the game with a one goal lead however a big save was made. Hagg showed off some excellent long distance passes in this game and was very accurate. Possesses a very hard and usually pretty accurate point shot.

SWE #9 LD Westlund, Wilhelm (2013) -Rushed the puck effectively and protected it well with his good sized frame at one point drawing a penalty with it. Showed good patience and intelligence with the puck. Makes a lot of smart simple decisions with and without the puck in his own zone. Showed good determination at the offensive blueline falling but maintaining focus and made smart plays with the puck.

SWE #11 LW Henriksson, Alexander (2013) -Henriksson was a consistent threat in the offensive zone. He has a laser of a shot and protects the puck well using his strong frame. He used a strong forecheck to force turnovers on a fairly regular basis.

SWE #13 RC Liljendahl, Tobias (2013) -Slow acceleration but builds up to good speed, especially for his size. Good end to end rush while short handed, beating multiple defenders in the process. Very effective on the penalty kill on a consistent basis.

SWE #15 RC Crus Rydberg, Victor (2013) -Played with a ton of energy in all three zones. Played very well in all game situations. On the penalty kill he forced a lot of turnovers and created headaches for Finland when trying to set up. On the power play he always seemed to have ideal positioning. Quick decisions with the puck and was willing to take a hit to make the play. Great work in the final minute of the game to keep Finland pinned in their own zone leading by a goal.

SWE #20 RW Bristedt, Leon (2013) -Leon is extremely shifty in open ice and is near impossible to contain once he gets going. What made him even more dangerous is the rate in which he forced turnovers in open ice. He plays with a never quit attitude and works extremely hard. Showed good passing in all three zones. He is very dangerous in the slot due to both his quick release and his great ability to deflect pucks. Great work in the final minute of the game to keep Finland pinned in their own zone while leading by one goal.

SWE #21 LW Nylander Altelius, William (2014) -Nylander has a very high level of puck skills and is very tough to contain. He made some excellent passes on the rush. However he also had his moments where he made some plays that really didn’t make much sense, and resulted in turnovers.

SWE #27 RD Hansson, Niklas (2013) -Hansson showed good body positioning to contain forwards in his own zone. He was effective clearing his own zone on the penalty kill. He had good accuracy making solid long distance passes. Niklas moves pretty good while holding down the offensive line moving around and opening himself up for passing lanes.

SWE #28 RW Karlsson, Anton (2014) -Karlsson showed great work ethic and battles hard for loose pucks. He was always visible on the power play shooting the puck, protecting it or making the smart pass. His hockey sense is at a very high level at a young age. He’s a good skater who has a great forecheck on the penalty kill forcing Finland to make mistakes. Anton made a great move in a one on one situation then fired a bullet to score the game winning goal with 2:29 left in the third period. The very next shift he came out and did a great job in the final minute in the offensive zone keeping Finland pinned not allowing them to create any offense.

FIN #5 RD Honka, Julius (2014) -Honka impressed us yet again with his outstanding hands and puck control skills. Honka is extremely intelligent and has a very high level of hockey sense. Size remains the only real concern for this talented defenseman.

FIN #7 RD Makinen, Atte (2013) – Makinen improved on his physical play shown yesterday. While he wasn’t quite as physical today he was very tough along the boards. He started to show flashes of his puck handling skills throwing multiple solid tape to tape passes while under pressure.

FIN #13 LW Antonen, Joose (2013) – Good speed with very quick acceleration which is impressive for a 6’2″ forward. He rushes the puck up ice effectively. He handles the puck very well in traffic. He had a few moments where he struggled with his decision making.

FIN #31 G Saros, Juuse (2013) -Saros has exceptional quickness and he is very technically sound. He gets his pads down then gets back up remarkably quick. Good vision through traffic and he has lightning quick recovery. He is pretty good with the puck. He doesn’t rush decisions and makes the intelligent play with it.

Scouts Notes: Another very close game for Sweden and another great performance by Jusse Saros (2013) made for a great game today. Finland actually took the lead through forty minutes however Sweden got one early and one late in the third to pull out the victory. For Sweden Anton Blidh (2013) landed several massive hits in this game and asserted himself on a regular basis. He showed a few flashes of good playmaking ability. For Finland Saku Kinnunen (2013) was a very good puck mover but it was his cannon of a one-timer that gave Finland the temporary lead in the second period. Niko Ojamaki (2013) was very dangerous in one on one situations beating defensemen regularly.

November 9, 2012, Team Finland vs. Team Switzerland
Four Nations Cup Round Robin

FIN #5 RD Honka, Julius (2014) -Honka won several battles for the puck. He pinched in from the point and forced pressure in the offensive zone which resulted in a goal for Finland.

FIN #7 RD Makinen, Atte (2013) -He showed good puck movement up ice and rushed the fairly well using his big size to protect the puck. He fumbled the puck a little at times.

FIN #11 RC Ojantakanen, Kasperi (2013) -Kasperi picked up a loose puck and used his speed to separate from the defender then wired a perfect hard accurate wrist shot glove side to give Finland a 3-1 lead. He shows very good patience with the puck and moves it very effectively.

FIN #24 RW Kapanen, Kasper (2014) -Kapanen used his puck possession to kill off his team’s penalty. He forces turnovers and always seems to be around the puck. Kapanen delivered some hard hits despite his size. Played hard, showed creative puck control and patience with the puck.

SUI #14 LD Baltisberger, Phil (2014) -Uses his body positioning very well when in a close race for the puck to win the battles. Good along the boards and is hard to beat down low. He struggled a little with his puck movement in the game today.

SUI #21 LC Fuchs, Jason (2013) -Has good speed with hands rushing the puck well up ice and beating opponents one on one. He passes the puck effectively. Fuchs battles hard in his own zone winning defensive battles.

SUI #27 LD Busser, Xeno (2013) -Busser is a strong puck mover who knows when to pass off when rushing up the ice and was very reliable on the power play. Despite being down a few goals at the time, Busser made a huge defensive play with the goaltender out of position saving a sure goal his first shift of the third period.

Scouts Notes: With Switzerland having a shot at making the Gold Medal Game with a victory and Finland already eliminated from Gold Medal contention, this was expected to be a bit of a rout. It was, but not for the favorite in this match-up. Finland scored early and often to surprise a Switzerland team that simply needed to advance to overtime to ensure a shot at the game depending on how the USA/Sweden game went. Finland took this one 5-1.For Finland Janne Puhakka (2013) was pretty quiet through most of this game but he did do a great job winning a race to the puck beat the defenseman with a nice move then beat the goaltender to make it 5-1.

November 9, 2012, Team Sweden vs. Team USA
Four Nations Cup Round Robin

SWE #4 LD Hagg, Robert (2013) -He can generate good speed and likes to use this when on the rush. He has a cannon of a point shot but sometimes tries to force it when he shouldn’t. Sweden had trouble keeping the game close particularly due to some suspicious calls and the frequency in which they were made. Down 3-1 and 4-2 Hagg used a wrist shot, then a big blast to score two goals and reduce those two goal deficits to one helping Sweden have a chance in the late stages of the game.

SWE #15 RC Crus Rydberg, Victor (2013) -Very calm and composed with the puck. He shows a lot of patience not rushing plays and letting the options to come to him. He showed great energy on the penalty kill forcing turnovers.

SWE #20 RW Bristedt, Leon (2013) -Used his speed and worked hard in all game situations. He battles relentlessly on the penalty kill. He is very aggressive along the boards despite his size and does well. Bristedt is always all over the puck carrier forcing turnovers and ends up drawing penalties when his turnover turns into a scoring chance for his team.

SWE #21 LW Nylander Altelius, William (2014) -Likes to do everything fast. He is a quick skater who usually makes quick decisions. He has excellent passing ability but has his moments where he makes bad plays trying to be unnecessarily fancy for no reason which negatively affected his team. He can at times particularly on the power play forget that he’s playing a team sport.

SWE #27 RD Hansson, Niklas (2013) -Good awareness of the play going on around him. He moves the puck effectively on the power play making smart decisions and battles hard when he’s working in the defensive zone.

SWE #28 RW Karlsson, Anton (2014) -Anton always seems to be right in the middle of everything. It’s almost as if the play follows him not the other way around. He’s very physical and works hard forcing a lot of turnovers in all three zones and in all game situations. He used this turnover ability on the power play turning potential clears to scoring chances for Sweden. On the penalty kill he has good defensive zone positioning and knows what he’s doing when setting up defensively.

USA #2 RD Clifton, Connor (2013) -Clifton launched a great long distance pass first shift of the game creating a scoring chance. He tried to get too fancy at one point and turned the puck over leading to a scoring chance against. Very aggressive and effective in one on one situations and takes the body whenever possible.

USA #9 LW Louis, Anthony (2013) -Very quick hands. Anthony is willing to play physical despite his size and forces turnovers with his fore check.

USA #13 LC Malone, Sean (2013) -Sean makes a lot of smart simple plays with the puck around his vision and hockey sense. He has good positioning and goes hard to the net on the rush into the slot with his stick on the ice. He jammed home the opening goal of the game in the slot. He’s really not a flashy player just very smart.

USA #25 LW Hurley, Connor (2013) -Works hard and delivers crushing hits and finishes his checks whenever possible. He combines great passing ability with a great shot although he much prefers to pass over shoot. Very tenacious on the penalty kill making smart plays and clearing his zone.

Scouts Notes: USA opened up with a 3-0 lead and it looked like this one could be a route. However Sweden showed great resiliency making it a one goal game on two separate occasions. However every time Sweden made it a one goal game, Sweden seemed to get penalties that may be best referred to as questionable at best. Team Sweden received 10 minutes in minor penalties throughout the 20 minutes of the third period. Team USA used these power plays to score the two goals they would need to secure a 4-2 goal win. Despite the calls, Team USA were the team who lost their composure at times. Particularly Shane Eiserman (2013) who attacked Alexander Henriksson (2013) after he committed an infraction which would have given USA a potentially critical power play. Also Michael McCarron (2013) who sucker punched a Sweden player in the face about five seconds after Sweden scored their 3-2 goal. Had McCarron been disciplined for this action it could have drastically shifted the momentum of the game. Both cases were easily avoidable through self control. Wilhelm Westlund (2013) made a lot of very smart simple plays with the puck. He battles hard when controlling the puck and drew some obstruction calls in the process. Lucas Wallmark (2013) who has been pretty quiet in this tournament worked hard and effectively won battles along the wall and showed some good speed and elusiveness on the rush. For Team USA John Hayden (2013) was verytenacious on the penalty kill. His forecheck forced turnovers killing time throughout the game. Steven Santini (2013) made an impression physically asserting himself all game long. Hudson Fasching (2013) Uses his strength very effectively along the boards and out front. He scored the 3-0 goal due to his great positioning out front of the Sweden goal. First few steps still need a lot of work.

November 10, 2012, Team Finland vs. Team Switzerland
Four Nations Cup Bronze Medal Game

FIN #7 RD Makinen, Atte (2013) -Quiet through the first two periods but really picked up his physicality in the third. Usually makes good plays with the puck moving it up ice.

FIN #11 RC Ojantakanen, Kasperi (2013) -Works very hard along the boards, wins more battles than his size may suggest. Plays a physical style of game, finishes his checks despite the size the opposing player. A very good skater who shows off some good moves in open ice and hands. He had a few chances to score but was not able to finish. He has good defensive instincts and battles hard in his own zone, even in the slot area covering for defensemen and clearing the players from the front of the net.

FIN #13 LW Antonen, Joose (2013) -Antonen was quiet for some stretches of this game, but then he exploded with flashes of skill. Impressive skater at 6’2″ very quick hands and great moves on breakway to nearly score. Consistently created scoring chances for Finland. However as we got to the third period he seemed to run out of gas well before his line mates. He appeared to wear down within 25-30 seconds of his shift which made him less of a factor.

FIN #19 LW Puhakka, Janne (2013) -Showed some good hands and elusiveness when coming out of the corner with the puck. He weaves through the neutral zone effectively with the puck to acquire the offensive zone. Showed some good passing ability.

FIN #20 LC Koivistoinen, Eetu (2013) -Has great size and made things happen offensively on a consistent basis. He has a powerful shot and a very good skater despite having power forward like size. He moves the puck very well up ice. He is very good out front in the slot always keeping himself available to receive a pass but also screens the goaltender well whenever a teammate is in a good shooting position. He wins races and battles to the puck using his speed and size respectably. Also has a very good turnover rate. Koivistoinen missed some action in this tournament but was able to play in the Bronze Medal game and was one of Finland’s best players.

FIN #24 RW Kapanen, Kasper (2014) -Finished his checks wherever possible. Shows decent speed and good hands on rush resulting in some scoring chances. He picked up physical play as the first period went on. Kasper battles well for position out front which resulted in scoring chances.

SUI #10 LW Pfranger, Ramon (2013) -Had an outstanding shift beating two defensemen one of which was all over him. He shook him off then had a great chance to score. He then followed up on the rebound for two more good chances but was robbed by the quickness of Finland goaltender Juuse Saros. Followed up this play with good physicality.

SUI #14 LD Baltisberger, Phil (2014) -Struggled with turnovers in his own zone. In one on one situations he pivoted too late at times which caused him to get beat more than usual. He uses his frame very effectively in puck battles. Very dangerous on power play with simple puck movement and a cannon one timer. He gets his shot off quickly and usually on net.

SUI #21 LC Fuchs, Jason (2013) -Fuchs has quick hands and good mobility. His first few steps are good he’s very agile and gets the puck deep.

Scouts Notes: After seeing Finland dismantle Switzerland 24 hours ago, one could expect the rematch to be much of the same right? Well when Finland took a 2-0 lead less than five minutes into the game it looked like we were in for much of the same. However those two goals are all Finland would put together. Switzerland found their game once again and put away five unanswered goals to win the Bronze at the Four Nations Tournament 5-2. Finland’s Julius Honka (2014) has shown excellent vision. He makes the right decision nine out of ten times. Niko Ojamaki (2013) banged home a rebound to score the opening goal in the first shift of the game. He also made a nice pass rushing into the offensive zone creating a scoring chance. For Switzerland Kevin Fiala (2014) shows good quickness. He made a great pass cross ice on a well covered two on one to create a great scoring chance. [/sociallocker]