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| Thursday, June 19 THN bios: Prospects No. 51-60 The Hockey News |
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51. Jonathan Filewich "(Filewich) has size and enough skill to become a good power forward in the NHL," said the scout. "He plays at both ends of the rink. He could be a real player." One problem scouts had with Filewich was that he didn't focus on playing a physical game, a trait that made him look somewhat ordinary. "Filewich depends on his skills and he's a good enough skater. I would have liked to see him throw his weight around a lot more." Filewich was also inconsistent and scouts wondered about his work ethic. "Some nights you would not notice him," said another scout. "But people should not read into that too much. Most players are inconsistent at one time or another." "He's good around the net. He has size and I see some upside. It all depends on whether he wants it or not." YEAR TEAM LEA. GP G A Pts. PIM '99-00 S. Park Mid. 48 37 33 70 69 '00-01 P.George WHL 61 9 16 25 32 '01-02 P.George WHL 66 13 19 32 23 '02-03 P.George WHL 51 27 27 54 45The Hockey News says: Power forward
52. Josh Hennessy "He's a very, very good skater. He's very noticeable because it's like he's flying around out there," said the scout. "He has 33 goals and 84 points in 76 games and what's not to like about that?" Besides skating, Hennessy's strengths include stickhandling and competitiveness. He'll go into traffic and can handle the rough stuff. "He competes and he's not afraid," said the scout. "He is an exciting kind of a kid because of his skating, getting breakaways and scoring chances. He has the skills to be a good scorer." Hennessy's speed will be an asset teams won't overlook. One scout said he could end up being a poor man's version of John Madden. "If you taught him more about the defensive game, most teams would find room on the roster for him," said the scout. Another scout found his skills limited. "He may only be a minor-leaguer," said one scout. "I worry about his range." YEAR TEAM LEA. GP G A Pts. PIM '00-01 MSC USHS 28 30 30 60 20 '01-02 Quebec QMJHL 70 20 20 40 24 '02-03 Quebec QMJHL 76 33 51 84 29The Hockey News says: Third-line forward
53. Mike Egener "He's tough as nails and not a lot of fun to play against," said one scout. Egener missed more than 30 games this season and still racked up 210 penalty minutes. "You'll have to wait and see what he's like in a few years," said one scout. "I'm not sure I want to bet my house on this guy, but you never know. I'll give him credit for what we think he will be like." Egener played in the Top Prospect's Game and fared well in the skills competition. He did not win any individual awards, but ranked no lower than ninth in any category, including top-five rankings in the 60-foot dash, full lap, combined skating, average shot and hardest shot. Egener is also involved in a lot of community work in the Calgary area. "There's some Ken Daneyko in him," said one scout of Egener. "He plays like him, but he's a better skater. "He is tough, real tough. He makes guys pay a price and he won't back down." YEAR TEAM LEA. GP G A Pts. PIM '99-00 Calgary Ban. 40 30 45 75 40 '00-01 Calgary WHL 52 1 0 1 91 '01-02 Calgary WHL 68 2 7 9 175 '02-03 Calgary WHL 40 2 8 10 210The Hockey News says: Character defenseman
54. Paul Bissonnette The scouts recall how at the Top Prospects Game, Bissonnette fought Dion Phaneuf after Phaneuf crushed Marc-Antoine Pouliot with a punishing check. "He's a heart and soul kid who gives his all," said a scout. "He works hard on a poor team." "You have to admire this guy's willingness,'' added another scout. "It's the real college try." Bissonnette made major strides in his game this season. There were concerns voiced before the year began that his development had stalled, but the opposite wound up being the case. Bissonnette plays a strong game in his own end and he's a dependable blueliner who thinks of the team first. "He ran that team this year," said a scout. "He was (Saginaw's) best player. He was outstanding in the Top Prospects Game which moved him up many notches. I liked him a lot." One weak area for Bissonnette is his skating. He skates bent over, which makes him appear to be off-balance.
YEAR TEAM LEA. GP G A Pts. PIM
'00-01 Welland Ban. n/a
'01-02 N. Bay OHL 57 3 3 6 21
'02-03 Saginaw OHL 67 7 16 23 57
Canada WU18 7 0 1 1 0
The Hockey News says: Character defenseman
55. Stefan Meyer "He is all about goals," said a scout. "You see that when he is on the ice. He is always sniffing for the net." Meyer goes hard to the cage and he's not afraid to take the punishment that goes with hanging in the slot. He positions himself well for rebounds and peels off his checks smartly. There are knocks in Meyer's game, however. One is his skating. If he was quicker and had better foot speed, he'd almost assuredly be a first-rounder. "It's not that he's a bad skater, but there is room for improvement," said one scout. Meyer also lacks playmaking skills. "He's not good at seeing the open man," said another scout. "You'd think with 36 goals it would be nice to have as many assists. He needs to use his teammates more." Scouts are also concerned about his play away from the puck. "He could use some work on the defensive side, but you can teach him that," said a scout. "The good thing is he's all about goals and you can't teach that."
YEAR TEAM LEA. GP G A Pts. PIM
'00-01 N.D. Mid. 50 36 32 68 71
Med.Hat WHL 4 1 1 2 0
'01-02 Med.Hat WHL 67 18 22 40 48
'02-03 Med.Hat WHL 70 36 16 52 90
The Hockey News says: Goal-scoring forward
56. Alexei Ivanov Alexei Ivanov has the tools to play in the NHL, but people are not sure he will be able to handle the NHL grind on a regular basis. He has good hands, great balance and can skate like the wind. Ivanov also has great imagination and is shifty with the puck. He's a great playmaker with a soft touch around the net. On the down side, Ivanov can be knocked off the puck without a lot of effort. The Russian defensemen he has faced this year pale in comparison to the stronger and bigger blueliners in the NHL. "If he went up against Scott Stevens, it would not be pretty," said a scout. "I'm just not sure he'll play. You would have to play this guy on the first two lines and he doesn't have the size." Detroit selected a skilled half-pint last year in Jiri Hudler (58th overall), who produced points in the Czech Elite League. Ivanov will have to prove he can do the same in Russia. "He's a good little player," said a scout.
YEAR TEAM LEA. GP G A Pts. PIM
'00-01 Russia WU17 5 2 1 3 2
'01-02 Yar.-2 Rus. 26 9 10 19 16
Yaroslavl Jr. 35 22 22 44 82
'02-03 Yaroslavl Jr. 6 5 3 8 0
The Hockey News says: Skilled forward
57. Alexandre Bolduc He was ranked 18th at mid-season and was scoring and skating well. Nobody questioned his character or intensity. But Bolduc had a disappointing second half and he has paid the price. You might say a dark cloud has followed him around lately. "He only scored about five goals in the second half,'' said a Quebec-based scout. "That tells you something. That almost scares you." Bolduc played on Canada's under-18 team and had only one goal, but it was a big one. He scored in overtime to give Canada a 2-1 win over the U.S. in a tournament from which Canada emerged victorious. But that was the only real highlight of his second half of the season, which is a top measuring stick scouts use in assessing a player. "We talked about how he tailed off and people didn't know what to think," said a scout. There's still enough upside that some team could take a chance on him in the second round.
YEAR TEAM LEA. GP G A Pts. PIM
'01-02 R-N QMJHL 64 6 14 20 69
'02-03 R-N QMJHL 66 14 29 43 131
Canada WU18 7 1 0 1 8
The Hockey News says: Project' forward
58. Corey Crawford Crawford has strong fundamentals, positions himself well and does not lose focus on the shooter. He also has great natural ability and it is hard to knock him off his game. "He's one of those great Quebec League prospects in net," said one scout. "He's not as good as top-ranked Marc-Andre Fleury, but he impressed in the second half." At one point in late January, Crawford went undefeated in three starts. But what was most impressive was his 0.67 goals against average and .975 save percentage over the three games. "When he gets in a zone, watch out," said a scout. Scouts feel Crawford has a good chance of playing on Canada's national junior team at the 2004 WJC in Finland. "He can steal a game. He makes saves he's supposed to make and then makes a lot of saves that leave you wondering how he got to the puck," said the scout. "He's a good one." YEAR TEAM LEA. W-L-T SV% GAA '00-01 Gatineau Mid. 17-3-1 .941 1.92 '01-02 Moncton QMJHL 9-20-3 .889 3.74 '02-03 Moncton QMJHL 24-17-6 .915 2.73The Hockey News says: No. 1 goaltender
59. Grigori Shafigulin Scouts see no problem with his skating or his physical play. He likes to work the corner and he's strong along the boards. He can be tenacious on the forecheck and gets back in his end to help out. Shafigulin will run people over to get the puck and he is agile on his skates. He's intimidating with his size and hustles every shift. He has a long reach and his poke-check is an effective tool. He has a heavy shot, but accuracy is a problem. "He works hard all the time," said a European scout. "But that's in Russia. We'll see about the NHL. It has happened before with Russians. They get to the NHL and they stop working." Hogwash, says another European scout. "It used to be that way. He's a kid who played a regular shift at the end of the season in Russia's top league. He may not have great hands, but there's a lot to like about him. He could move up the ladder to the second line."
YEAR TEAM LEA. GP G A Pts. PIM
'01-02 Yaroslavl Jr. 40 18 16 34 77
Russia 5-Nat. 4 0 1 1 0
'02-03 Yaroslavl Jr. 11 0 1 1 4
Russia WU18 4 0 0 0 0
The Hockey News says: Two-way forward
60. Alexander Sulzer The buzz is Sulzer has what it takes to make it to the NHL. But he may miss the boat unless he gets serious about fitness. "He looks chubby and the (German) culture may have something to do with that," said a European scout. "Somebody has to tell him he can't have a sausage and a beer after the game. "The problem is after the games he hangs out with his friends and there goes the discipline." Sulzer's upside is his skating and vision. "He knows how to move the puck and he moves it well," said another scout. "He understands the game, but needs to get into a situation where he'll have more pressure." Sulzer could keep the status quo. He'd make decent money in Germany and gain the status of local hero. It's not a bad lifestyle, but with a change he could succeed in the NHL. "The trouble with German players like him is you wonder how good they will be," the European scout said. "Do they have the same goal of making it to the NHL?"
YEAR TEAM LEA. GP G A Pts. PIM
'00-01 Kauf. Ger.3 38 3 6 9 20
'01-02 Kauf. Ger.3 18 1 9 10 14
'02-03 Hamburg Ger. 18 0 1 1 4
Germany WJC 6 0 2 2 14
The Hockey News says: Two-way defenseman
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