Penguins/NHL
Observations from today’s scrimmage
Tangradi – Jeffrey – Johnson
The most dominating line in today’s scrimmage was the top line of Eric Tangradi – Dustin Jeffrey – Nick Johnson.
They showed good chemistry and played very well together.
Tangradi is exceptional at using his size at fending off the opposition. For a power forward with his size, he also has above average speed.
What has been most impressive about him all week is the goal scoring ability he has right around the net.
Soft hands and when under pressure, has the abiltiy to make a quick accurate pass.
*Nick Johnson was the top player throughout the entire camp and he had another strong day. Does a lot of little things, wins battles in the corners but his offensive game is starting to evolve.
*Dustin Jeffrey is a good possession player. Doesn’t have great speed which is why scouts want to see him move the puck quicker than he does.
He had a strong game but has a tendency to hold onto the puck too long.
* This may catch people by surprise but the top defenseman today was
* 17 year old Simon Despres. Solid in his own end and on the breakout.
Early in the game he made a great pull-away move in the neutral zone and defensively had good positioning all game and was stepping up at the right time.
Reads the play very well for such a young player. Today was his coming out party in regards to this weeks conditioning camp.
*Luca Caputi scored two goals and had his best day of camp. Effective on the fore-check and always has his stick in the right position
Scored both goals in front of the net which is where he’s going to score most of goals.
His offensive game still has some developing to do. Turns-over the puck when he’s under pressure and he’s going to have to improve his reaction time for when he makes the jump to the NHL.
*Carl Sneep was among the top defensemen in camp, played well today. Good positioning, plays more physical than people give him credit for and his speed is his biggest asset.
Also, his offensive game is really coming around but still passes up too many shots.
*Ben Hanowski has exceptional puck skills in the offensive zone. He’s good in tight against an defender. Smart player, good fundamentals.
*Jon Vitale had a solid camp. Exceptional skater, could be a quality role player down the road.
*Brian Strait was strong in his own end. Plays Rob Scuderi type of game but has more upper body strength and more speed.
Clearly needs time in Wilkes Barre to become more consistent in his own end.
*A talent evaluator told me Kevin Veilleux reminds him of Viktor Kozlov.
*Nathan Longpre (Robert Morris, CHA) has been one of the big surprises in the conditioning camp but as expected he struggled once the game became somewhat physical.
