On Saturday, the Tri-City Storm completed their two game weekend sweep against the Youngstown Phantoms.   The Storm’s Jaden Schwartz displayed the skills that have NHL scouts excited about this talented forward. Another draft eligible forward from the Youngstown Phantoms, Nick Czinder, might be the kind of player NHL teams may take a chance on in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft.

Jaden Schwartz     F        5’10         180           Tri-City

Saying that Schwartz was the best player on the ice is not exactly going out on a limb.  Schwartz possesses innate abilities that cannot be taught.  His hockey sense is uncanny as the puck seems to follow him all over the ice.  In addition, Schwartz’s ability to see the ice and the developing plays put his teammates in position for scoring opportunities.  Schwartz was credited with 2 assists but he contributed to several more quality scoring chances with his ability to distribute the puck and in some cases, catching his linemates off guard by threading passess through legs and sticks.  Schwartz also displayed strong skating with separation speed when he had the puck and the ability to quickly transition from backchecking to pouncing on loose pucks in the neutral zone and passing the puck ahead.  Schwartz’s size did not keep him out of the dirty areas in front of the net both offensively and defensively.  He also seemed to find another gear when he was battling for the puck on the boards and rarely lost those battles.  The only thing lacking on this night was the ability to finish on chances Schwartz created on his own.  On one occasion, the puck simply rolled off his blade when he was fed in the slot.  The Colorado College recruit’s ability to score goals this year might be the difference between being a first rounder, or sliding out of the Top 30.

Nick Czinder     F         6’5″          215          Youngstown

NHL.com recently rated Czinder as Youngstown’s best pro prospect for this year’s draft.  He did not play in the previous Phantom’s game I attended but he did play Saturday.  Size is clearly what  Czinder brings to the table.  He displayed decent straight line skating and was able to effectively backcheck and provide puck support offensively.  Also, Czinder was able to throw his weight around and buried the Tri-City defenseman, directly leading to Youngstown’s goal.  However, Czinder must improve his skating in traffic as he often became entangled in other players’ bodies and fell to the ice.  If he improves that aspect of his game, an NHL team could take a shot at him, although he will be a bit of a project to develop.

Also, a quick update on Youngstown defenseman Scott Mayfield who is a 2011 draft eligible.  Mayfield has certainly improved since the beginning of the season.  His skating is slightly better but his confidence with the puck is what was noticeably improved.   Also, Mayfield was on the ice in Penalty Kill situations and could be heard barking out instructions on the ice to his partner.  It will be interesting to see how much further this kid will develop this year.

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Tags: Jaden Schwartz, Nick Czinder, Scott Mayfield

About the Author: Rich Michalowski