Courtesy NAPHL.com
The first North American Prospects Hockey League (PHL) event wrapped up this past week in Blaine, Minnesota, which was held in cooperation with the ninth annual NAHL Showcase.
After the first week of competition, which may have been at an all-time high, the Lansing Capitals lead the way in the 18U division with a perfect 5-0 record. In the 16U division, the San Jose Jr. Sharks lead the division with a perfect 5-0 record, and in the 14U division the Pursuit of Excellence made their PHL debut with a perfect 5-0 record.
The season's next event will be held from Oct. 21-24 at Sharks Ice in San Jose, California.
"We had a record number of scouts at the event, not only representing USA Hockey's premier junior hockey leagues, but also over 120 NCAA scouts there as well," said PHL director and commissioner Denny Scanlon. "I thought it was a great first event for our PHL teams that showed a lot of competitiveness and determination from the athletes. It really set the stage for an exciting 2011-12 season.”
MIDGET MAJOR (18U) POINTSTREAK PEAK PERFORMER
Connor Webb, goaltender, Lansing Capitals
Webb, 17, had a great start to the season as he helped the Lansing Capitals 18U team to the only undefeated record after the first weekend of competition at the NAHL Showcase in Blaine, Minnesota. Lansing finished with a 5-0 record and Webb was in goal and won four of those five games.
Two of Webb’s four wins were shutouts, while he surrendered just two goals in the other two games. His best performance of the week may have come in a 3-1 win against Orange County, in which the goaltender from South Lyon, Michigan made 30 saves, which equaled his career high in the PHL.
Through the first PHL event of the season, Webb leads all PHL goalies in wins (4), goals against average (0.50), shutouts (2) and is second in save percentage (96.7%).
Through the first PHL event of the season, Webb leads all PHL goalies in wins (4), goals against average (0.50), shutouts (2) and is second in save percentage (96.7%).
The Capitals hold a one point lead in second place Pittsburgh, who finished the first event with a 4-0-1 record. Pittsburgh forward Heinz Koster leads all PHL 18U scorers with 12 points.
“I thought it was the best Showcase we had ever been to in terms of exposure, and we were fortunate that our team played well,” said Lansing 18U head coach Dean Dixon.
“The amount of buzz around all the scouts there certainly emanated through the lockerroom and a lot of players really stepped their game up including Connor (Webb). He really learned a lot in his first year last season and now he is a player we can rely on to help us win each and every game.”
MIDGET MINOR (16U) POINTSTREAK PEAK PERFORMER
MIDGET MINOR (16U) POINTSTREAK PEAK PERFORMER
Matthew Woodley, forward, San Jose Jr. Sharks
Woodley, 16, a forward from the San Jose Jr. Sharks 16U team, helped his team to a perfect 5-0 record this past week during the first PHL event of the season at the NAHL Showcase in Blaine, Minnesota.
Woodley, who hails from San Jose, California, began the event scoring at least three points in three of his first four games. In wins over New Jersey, Texas and Omaha, Woodley had three points in each of those games, including a hat-trick in the tight 6-4 win over Texas.
San Jose sits atop of the 16U standings with a perfect 5-0 record. They are followed close behind by Orange County (4-0-1), New Jersey (4-1-0) and Las Vegas (4-1-0). Fairbanks and Minnesota also showed well at the event in the 16U division.
“It was early, so it is tough to tell how the team would do, but they responded very well and managed to win in some very close games,” said San Jose Jr. Sharks coach Tony Zasowski. “I thought Matthew got some tough breaks early in the tournament, but hung in there and managed to improve and stay focused each game.”
Other standout performances from the first week of 16U play included that of New Jersey Jr. Titans defensemanTommy Panico, who had nine points in five games and San Jose goalie Geoffrey Grimm, who went 3-0 with a 1.00 goals against average and a 95.7% save percentage.
BANTAM MAJOR (14U) POINTSTREAK PEAK PERFORMER
Tyson Jost, forward, Pursuit of Excellence
Talk about a breakout performance for the PHL’s newest team. Jost, who is just 13 years old, leads all PHL scorers after the first event with 11 goals and 17 points, as his Pursuit of Excellence 14U team made their debut going 5-0 in Blaine, outscoring their opponents 45-1.
Pursuit leads the Phoenix Firebirds (4-1-0) and the St. Louis Selects (3-2-0) in the standings after the first week of competition.
Jost, who hails from Edmonton, Alberta, had a five-point game in his PHL debut against the West Michigan Hounds. The next game, he had four goals and two assists in a win over the Texas Tornado. He followed that up with a three-point game against St. Louis and points in wins over Minnesota and San Jose.
Pursuit’s 14U head coach, Kevin MacKay, was very complimentary about his young forward. “I thought Tyson was very good over the weekend. His game is maturing daily and he protects the puck,” said MacKay. “One of the keys at the younger levels is puck possession, and I think he does that better than anyone.”
Pursuit’s 14U head coach, Kevin MacKay, was very complimentary about his young forward. “I thought Tyson was very good over the weekend. His game is maturing daily and he protects the puck,” said MacKay. “One of the keys at the younger levels is puck possession, and I think he does that better than anyone.”
As far as the first weekend in the PHL went, MacKay was equally as complimentary. “I thought the event in Blaine was first class. It was unlike anything our kids had seen from the scouts, to the facility, to the organization… we were very impressed with every aspect of it. We know that the teams will get better throughout the season, so it should be a very good year.”
The Phoenix Firebirds, who sit right behind Pursuit in the standings also had a couple of good performances over the week from Hunter Lester and Auston Mathews, who each finished with 14 points. The two teams are scheduled to play one another in San Jose at the PHL’s second event in less than a month.
SCOUTING PRESENCE AT AN ALL-TIME HIGH
The scouting presence at the first PHL event of the season at the NAHL Showcase was at an all-time high. In total, over 250 junior, college and professional scouts attended the five-day event, a new Showcase record.
“I really thought it was one of the major benefits of the event,” commented Tony Zasowski, head coach of the 18U and 16U San Jose Jr. Sharks. “Every time you looked around there was someone new watching the games. Bringing everyone together under one roof really makes it convenient for them to assess our player’s abilities in a multi-game environment.”
Barry Schutte, assistant coach at NCAA Division I Bowling Green State University said that seeing players of all different ages under one roof at one time is the most beneficial part. “We are not only looking for players that can come in a play right away as an older veteran junior player, but identifying younger players, who may be on our radar for a few years down the road,” said Schutte. “Players develop at different paces, so you have to try and watch everybody, which is what we can accomplish at an event like the one in Blaine. It is almost overwhelming the amount of players and games a scout can see during the 4-5 days here.”
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