BOSTON — It's Harvard Crimson Combine week. While I focused on the 2010-born players on Monday, I watched the 2011s on Wednesday.
The 2011s are just beginning to enter their 14U year, which is when we start to watch them. Needless to say, this was my first viewing of a 2011 event.
There were three teams of 2011s at the Crimson Combine. Many of these players will be in prep hockey in the coming years.
Here are 13 who caught my attention.
Sam Archibald
Mount St. Charles, 2/2/2011, D, right shot
Hometown: Canton, Mass.Â
Archibald was the most dominant player across the three teams, and it wasn't particularly close. His mix of size, speed and skill was too much to handle in most instances. When he rushed pucks, he didn't just use his size to get to the middle — he stick-handled around players in transition. After watching him just once, there's no doubt the U.S. National Team Development Program will want to keep an eye on him.
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Kyle Brennan
Cape Cod Whalers, 8/24/2011, G, catches left, 5-10/150
Hometown: Hanson, Mass.Â
Hand up — I don't have a great eye for goalies, especially younger ones. But Brennan's poise and how technically sound he was stood out in a way I'm not sure I've seen from a young netminder. He gobbled up rebounds, and his strong lateral movement helped him cut off wraparounds and low shots.
Brayden Campanale
Boston Jr. Terriers, 3/15/2011, F, left shot
Hometown: Canton, Mass.Â
Campanale reminded me quite a bit of St. Sebastian's center Jack Queally (Milton, Mass.). Campanale showed himself as a powerful, north-south forward. He covered a lot of ground with his stride and got up ice quickly, driving play well. He was great in his wall battles and protecting pucks along the wall in the cycle game, too. Campanale also supported his defensemen in the defensive zone.
George Gritsas
Lac St-Louis Lions, 6/7/2011, D, right shot
Hometown: Quebec City, CanadaÂ
Gristas was a stout, shutdown defenseman with a great stick. He broke up plays, especially at his own blue line. He went up against Robbie McCann (who we'll get to in a bit) in the corner. McCann has outstanding skill, but Gritsas calmly shadowed him and waited for the perfect time to knock the puck loose and get a breakout going the other way.
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Jack Irwin
Middlesex Islanders, 1/21/2011, D, right shot
Hometown: Windham, N.H.Â
After Archibald, Irwin was the second-best player among the '11s in attendance. A common worry with the best players at this age is whether or not it will continue as they become 14Us, 15O, 16Us and so on. Irwin's game and abilities should age really well. He has a high hockey IQ and made smart decisions with the puck and maintained good gaps on forwards. He was elusive in getting away from pressure. Against Team 2, he rushed the puck, earned a 2-on-1 and slid a pass to Evan Miller for a goal. When Irwin faced Team 1, he took the puck all around the offensive zone and eventually found a teammate with a saucer pass. He followed the play, got a loose puck and scored on a nice shot from in tight.
Justin Kim
New Jersey Rockets, 5/12/2011, F, right shot
Home state: New JerseyÂ
Kim played a heavy game with the puck. He was able to fend off defenders and overpower them when driving to the net. Against Team 1, he read a D-to-D pass and went in for a breakaway. It felt like when there was a lot of pressure on Kim, he always found a way to get through it with the puck still on his stick.
Robbie McCann
Mount St. Charles, 6/28/2011, F, right shot
Hometown: Worcester, Mass.Â
The biggest thing with McCann was his hands, especially in 1-on-1 situations. McCann showcased a nice mix of high compete and hands to get around defenders. He notched a hat trick against Team 1, scoring on a wraparound and then two hard, accurate shots off the rush.
Drew McElaney
Cape Cod Whalers, 5/4/2011, D, left shot
Hometown: Hingham, Mass.Â
McElaney showed loads of poise with the puck, especially in the offensive zone as he skated across the blue line and around the zone, looking for passing and shooting lanes. On one sequence, he took it himself and, upon entering the offensive zone, stopped and waited for the defender to fly by. He hit Gavin Touhy across the zone with a pass, who then sifted it to Max Cohen for a goal.
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Evan Miller
Cape Cod Whalers, 3/31/2011, D, right shot
Home state: MassachusettsÂ
Miller was the best skater there. He can flat-out fly. His speed was evident when he retrieved pucks in his own zone and zipped down the ice for chances. Here's an example to give you an idea of how fast he was. When penalties are called, the player who drew it gets to start at the red line with the puck, while everyone on the ice chases them from the blue line. Miller was on the blue line and actually caught up and broke up the breakaway in one instance. I was highly impressed with Miller's dynamic skating.
Gabriel Nurhan
New Jersey Titans, 1/6/2011, D, right shot
Home state: New JerseyÂ
Nurhan's mobility and poise as a defenseman were impressive. He was able to use his good hands to navigate to space on breakouts. He maintained good gap control defending the rush, and picked the right times to step up. In one instance, he broke up a rush with his stick, grabbed the puck and turned it up ice. He wasn't afraid to throw hits around either.
Joseph Pelle
Woodbridge Wolfpack, 12/17/2011, F, right shot
Hometown: Haddon Heights, N.J.Â
I was a huge fan of Pelle's game. He reminded me of a younger Landan Resendes (Marlboro, Mass.). Pelle had fantastic hands and was extremely patient with the puck. Despite being small, he took his time protecting pucks and waiting for passing lanes to open. His hands and good, shifty skating helped him get out of danger. At one point, he took a smart route forechecking Miller to force a turnover, which resulted in a long offensive zone sequence.
Dominic Scaparotti
Hillside School, 3/14/2011, F, left shot
Hometown: Pelham, N.H.Â
Scaparotti showed himself with good mobility and strength. Against Team 3, he fought off defenders and scored on a nice dangle around the goalie. He was able to power through pressure well.
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Luke Seariac
Boston Junior Eagles, 7/8/2011, G, catches left
Hometown: Framingham, Mass.Â
Seariac first came to my attention when he dove across the crease to make a fantastic save that got some cheers from the bench. On a breakaway, he came out to cut down the shooting angle. His rebound control was solid and on a point-blank shot from the slot, he turned it away with his blocker.
