41. Tim Ramholt
Born: Nov. 2, 1984, Zurich, Switz.
2002-03: Zurich Lions
Pos: D | Ht: 6-1 | Wt: 194 | b>Shoots: L
Central Scouting: No. 21 European skater

Sooner or later, Switzerland will produce its first full-time NHLer other than a goalie (David Aebischer of Colorado), and Tim Ramholt is the latest and best candidate.

Ramholt is a big, strong, physical defenseman who makes opponents pay a heavy price for hanging around the slot.

He has blazing speed and brought a few people out of their seats with end-to-end rushes at the World Junior Championship.

Ramholt ended up playing a couple of games near the end of the Swiss league schedule as a forward, and he was definitely a fish out of water.

"He has great processing skills," said a director of player personnel. "He's really competitive."

"He's a solid competitor," added a European scout. "He has good mobility, good size and great hands. He works his butt off."

The thing about Swiss hockey is this: Top prospects get impatient waiting to crack an NHL team, and rather than play in the minors, they head back home where the money is great and the wear and tear on the body is far less.

YEAR    TEAM     LEA.    GP    G    A    Pts. PIM
'00-01  Grass.   Sui.B   37    0    2    2     38
'01-02  Zurich   Sui.A   37    3    0    3     14
'02-03  Zurich   Sui.    30    2    0    2     12
        Switz.   WJC      6    2    2    4      2

42. Petr Vrana
Born: March 29, 1985, Sternberk, Czech Rep.
2002-03: Halifax
Pos: C | Ht: 5-10 | Wt: 174 | Shoots: L
Central Scouting: No. 68 North American skater

One thing Petr Vrana won't be able to do if he makes it to the NHL is look a majority of his teammates and opponents straight in the eyes.

"He's small and he's also slight," said a scout. "But he can play and he has lots of skill."

Vrana is a speedy playmaking center with tons of talent. He's agile on his skates and one of the best stickhandlers in the Quebec League. He works his tail off and competes hard.

He has great footwork -- thanks to the training he received growing up in the Czech Republic --­ and he's at his best when he's in motion with the puck. He has deceptive moves, and scouts like his hockey sense.

"Like all small players, he's real smart with the puck," said a scout. "He's very productive, but size is the only issue."

"I'm not sure how brave he is," said the scout. "You can have all the skill you want, but if you can't take the rough stuff, you'll have a hard time in the NHL.

"But don't get me wrong. He is a talented player, and talent can take you a long way."

YEAR    TEAM        LEA.   GP     G    A    Pts.   PIM
'00-01  Olomouc     Mid.   44    39    51    90    n/a
'01-02  Havirov      Jr.   38    11    12    23    n/a
        Czech Rep. WU17     5     6     9    15     8
'02-03  Halifax   QMJHL    72    37    46    83    32

43. Loui Eriksson
Born: July 17, 1985, Goteborg, Swe.
2002-03: Frolunda Jr.
Pos: C | Ht: 6-1 | Wt: 172 | Shoots: L
Central Scouting: No. 33 European skater

The land that produced Peter Forsberg, Mats Sundin, Markus Naslund, Nicklas Lidstrom and most recently Henrik Zetterberg has fallen on hard times. The Swedish development system has a flat tire, and it may take years to fix.

That means you have to look harder for the diamond in the rough, and there's every chance Loui Eriksson is waiting to be polished.

The center was Sweden's top scorer at the world under-18 tournament. He had a great year and a lot of teams are high on him.

"He was Sweden's best player," said a scout. "He has great speed, and I really like his hands. He competes well and does the little things to win. He goes to the net; he goes to traffic areas."

Eriksson is tough along the boards. He defends his territory well and is very difficult to knock off the puck. He likes a physical game and doesn't back down.

"After Nilsson, he may be the best player in Sweden and Finland," said a European scout. "It's a bad (draft) year in Sweden and he's not a bad player."

YEAR    TEAM      LEA.    GP   G    A    Pts.  PIM
'00-01  Frolunda  Mid.    9    5    3     8      4
'01-02  Frolunda  Jr.    35    7   15    22      2
'02-03  Frolunda  Jr.    30   16   15    31     10
        Sweden    WU18    6    5    2    7      12

44. Kamil Kreps
Born: Nov. 18, 1984, Litomerice, Czech Rep.
2002-03: Brampton
Pos: C | Ht: 6-1½ | Wt: 187 | Shoots: R
Central Scouting: No. 22 North American skater

If you went to a Brampton Battalion game this season, it was hard not to notice Kamil Kreps unless you were asleep or reading the game program.

"He is not a guy you catch by accident because he is flying around and he's hitting this guy and that guy," said a scout. "But you have to watch him a few times to really get an appreciation for what he does."

When he's not running around like a whirling dervish, Kreps shows his skill. He scored some highlight goals during the season and was a human highlight film in the playoffs.

"There were some beauties," said a scout. "He is a talent. When you look at how bad he was when he first came into the league and you look at him now, you are not worried about him."

But there is a downside.

Scouts look at his 12 penalty minutes and wish he was more involved in games.

"I wonder whether he can turn it on and get more aggressive," said a scout. "We know he can score, but I'd like to see him more assertive. That would make him a more attractive guy."

YEAR    TEAM       LEA.   GP    G     A    Pts.  PIM
'00-01  Litvinov   Jr.    42    21   23    44    20
'01-02  Brampton   OHL    68    19   24    43    14
        Czech Rep. WU18    8     3    2     5     6
'02-03  Brampton   OHL    53    19   42    61    12

45. Denis Ezhov
Born: Feb. 28, 1985, Togliatti, Rus.
2002-03: Togliatti
Pos: D | Ht: 6-0 | Wt: 198 | Shoots: L
Central Scouting: No. 25 European skater

Denis Ezhov has the raw material that makes you think he could be a great defenseman, but the question is whether or not he can be refined into a top NHL blueliner.

He makes great outlet passes and is solid in all aspects of the game. He's cool under pressure and is an average skater. He makes up for lack of size with a powerful long stride.

But can he take his game to the next level?

"He's no (Sergei) Zubov, I'll tell you that," said a scout. "If he's in the top four on your team, you are in trouble."

The buzz is Ezhov will likely end up as a depth defenseman. He'll be dependable as a No. 4 or 5 on a team. He won't see any power-play action, and he'll have to show whoever drafts him that he can handle the rough going.

Yes, he plays with an edge and has average hockey sense, but scouts feel there's really not enough here to call him a home run.

"He could end up being a 6-foot guy who plays well. Will be play? Most likely. Will he be a star? Probably not," said another scout.

YEAR    TEAM       LEA.    GP    G    A    Pts. PIM
'01-02  Togliatti  Rus.    15    0    0    0      6
        Russia     WU18     8    0    3    3      4
'02-03  Togliatti  Rus.2   15    2    7    9      4
        Russia     WJC      6    0    0    0      0

46. Igor Mirnov
Born: Sept. 19, 1984, Moscow, Rus.
2002-03: Dynamo
Pos: RW | Ht: 6-0 | Wt: 187 | Shoots: L
Central Scouting: No. 6 European skater

Some scouts feel Igor Mirnov has a lot of splash and dash, and his slickness and creativity will go over well with the team that selects him.

Those who like him say Mirnov has super acceleration, and he can make moves in fourth gear that really catch your eye.

"He scored a great goal in front of a lot of scouts (at a tournament in Russia) that probably moved him up," said one European scout.

Mirnov has good eye-hand coordination and he's slick with the puck. Defensively, he's no Selke threat, but scouts feel he can be taught to find his end of the rink.

Those who are not as warm on the forward say there are two Mirnovs. There's one who performs for scouts in tournaments with other '85-born players.

There's another who is average playing for Dynamo in Russia's top league.

"I question his hockey sense," said another European scout. "He can skate. He can blow past guys, but I don't think he creates that much with his speed. You'd think he would use his speed to be more creative."

YEAR    TEAM      LEA.    GP     G    A    Pts.  PIM
'00-01  Russia    5-Nat.   5     3    3     6     4
'01-02  Dyn.-2    Rus.    30    33   17    50    34
        Russia    5-Nat.   4     3    3     6     2
'02-03  Dynamo    Rus.    50     3    7    10    49

47. Patrick Eaves
Born: May 1, 1984, Faribault, Minn.
2002-03: Boston College
Pos: RW | Ht: 5-10½ | Wt: 173 | Shoots: R
Central Scouting: No. 31 North American skater

Patrick Eaves was in the news this season for the wrong reasons.

He started the season well, establishing himself as a top player in the U.S. college ranks.

He sustained two damaged vertebrae in December and missed the bulk of the season.

He returned in March and was involved with a collision with Merrimack's Joe Exter that sent the goalie into convulsions with a fractured skull. Eaves suffered a concussion.

His father is ex-NHLer Mike Eaves, who also had serious concussion problems.

"He's not big and he plays as hard as can be," said a director of player personnel. "He is a great competitor and a terrific player if you could take away the fear factor that there is an injury history.

"Has he recouped from his injury and will he have more? He has a history of being injured. That's what people are talking about."

The fact Eaves came back and played with his trademark abrasion after his back injury speaks volumes about his character.

"His character is impeccable," said a scout.

YEAR    TEAM    LEA.    GP     G     A    Pts.  PIM
'99-00  Shatt.  USHS    50    23    24    47    n/a
'00-01  USA     U17     47    19    19    38     78
'01-02  USA     U18     49    25    28    53    142
'02-03  B.C.    HE      14    10     8    18     61

48. Marc-Andre Bernier
Born: Feb. 5, 1985, Laval, Que.
2002-03: Halifax
Pos: RW | Ht: 6-3½ | Wt: 198 | Shoots: R
Central Scouting: No. 26 North American skater

What is it about goal-scorers and the Quebec League?

"This guy is a goal-scorer," said a scout. "He may lack some agility, but he can score and score goals in bunches."

But Marc-Andre Bernier did not have a strong second half for Halifax and as a result some scouts go into the draft not as high on Bernier now as they were at the start of the season.

"We saw a couple of things tail off and that worries me," said one scout. Bernier does not have great acceleration and his overall skating is seen as an area in need of improvement.

But Bernier does a lot of little things that win games and scouts like that. Bernier sustained a knee injury early in the playoffs, although it was not serious.

He is a good all-around player with size. He competes hard for the puck and is tough, yet it's still an open question as to how well the package will ultimately come together.

"Is he a power forward?" said one scout. "I'm not sure about that, but there is some upside."

YEAR    TEAM      LEA.    GP     G    A    Pts.  PIM
'99-00  Lav.-L-L  Mid.    15     2    3     5    10
'00-01  Lav.-L-L  Mid.    26     6   18    24    16
'01-02  Halifax   QMJHL   49     0    6     6    20
'02-03  Halifax   QMJHL   67    29   29    58    43

The Hockey News says: Two-way forward

49. Konstantin Zakharov
Born: May 2, 1985, Yunost Minsk, Bel.
2002-03: Minsk
Pos: F | Ht: 6-1 | Wt: 185 | Shoots: R
Central Scouting: No. 24 European skater

Is he or isn't he?

One story making the rounds prior to the draft was about Konstantin Zakharov's age. The whispers were he was 20 and not 18, although according to international officials he's an '85-born player.

Zakharov raised many eyebrows with his play at the world under-18s. He was the tournament's leading scorer with 16 points.

He has quick hands and a very smooth stride. Given his scoring prowess, you'd think teams would be salivating over him.

Not so.

"He's grossly overrated," said a European scout. "He got all those points because he was on a line with Andrei Kastsitsyn. Put me on that line and I'd score 15 points."

The scout pointed out the fact that Zakharov is coached by his father and the feeling is the dad was simply showcasing his son all season to enhance his position in the draft.

"He didn't do much at the World Juniors and that tells me something," the scout said.

Not so fast, said another scout. "He's legit. He can play. He's a talent, believe me."

YEAR    TEAM     LEA.    GP    G    A   Pts.  PIM
'01-02  Belarus  WJC      6    1    1    2     6
'02-03  Minsk     Jr.      ­    ­    ­    ­    ­
        Belarus  WJC      4    1    1    2     4
        Belarus  WU18     6    5   11   16    10

50. Jim Howard
Born: March 26, 1984, Ogdensburg, N.Y.
2002-03: University of Maine
Pos: G | Ht: 6-0 | Wt: 218 | Catches: L
Central Scouting: No. 2 North American goalie

Jim Howard caused a few eyebrows to rise in praise of his work for most of the season. But his play tailed off at the end of the year and in the playoffs.

Don't read into the disappointing finish too much. It's hard for a rookie netminder to carry his team as far as Howard carried Maine.

"I look at so many college goalies who are 20 or 21, and he was every bit as good as them," said one scout.

"He was a rookie and he had a great year despite what happened at the end."

Howard's fundamentals are sound. He plays the shooter square and has great focus on the puck.

He has fast feet and scouts didn't detect any problem with his glove hand. Howard had an 8-1-0 record at Maine prior to the WJC and was the hottest goalie in U.S. college.

He finished the season 14-6-0 with a respectable .916 save percentage.

The feeling among scouts is Howard has the potential to be a top goalie in the NHL.

"He is a guy who rises to the occasion," said one scout. "He is a goalie who can get hot and win games."

YEAR    TEAM    LEA.    W-L-T     SV%     GAA
'01-02  USA     U18    16-8-1    .933    1.89
        USA    WU18     5-1-0    .958    1.17
'02-03  Maine    HE    14-6-0    .916    2.45
        USA     WJC     0-1-0    .800    6.05

Material from The Hockey News.
To subscribe, visit The Hockey News web site at: http://www.thehockeynews.com