SectionNDeserter
10-23-2011, 08:32 AM
Aaron Borejko (C+) - Continues to be very solid in his own end, and a non-factor at the other end of the ice. Love his speed and positioning, and that huge grin he always has on his face after getting a face full of glove from an opposition player. Great role model for the other players. This is his final season in the WHL, and I hope he is in Red Deer till the end of it.
Kayle Doetzel (B-) - This guy is only 16 years old? Really?!? For those of you that have been following the Rebels for a long time, this is Jesse Wallin 2.0. Big, strong, skates very well, and has been used in all situations so far this season. If the Rebels deal one of their veteran defensemen this season, he will be the reason. With the loss of Weller, Borejko and probably Petrovic next season, I am quite confident that he will be one of the top two defensemen at that time.
Matt Dumba - (B-) - Very rough start from a defensive standpoint, but he finally seems to be settling down and getting it. I don't know if he is ever going to be a great defensemen at both ends of the ice, but he has kept the defensive mistakes in his own end of the ice/neutral zone to a minimum. Some big hits in the first 10, but no HUGE hits that the fans have grown accustomed to seeing. This all changes in game #11 where the D-Train catches rookie forward Taylor Leier in the tracks and absolutely destroys him. He is very likely back next season, and will be the team's #1 defensemen.
Stephen Hak - (C+) - Good young mobile defenseman that likes to gamble a little. When Dumba is not on the ice, the opposition barely even blocks the shooting lanes from the point, because they know that the Rebels generate so little offense from there. I think that this young man, if he continues to improve, might change that. Gets overpowered a bit in his own end, but I think that his offensive upside might make that easier to overlook. With his potential, and the vacancies that there can/will be next season, he could find himself on the second pairing.
Alex Petrovic - (A+) - Big, mobile defenseman with an even bigger reach. Logs just an absurd number of minutes per night, and has the ability to totally control the tempo of a game. His offensive numbers are slightly down over last season so far, but he has been a tad more physical and added a bit more 'nastiness' to his game. I am pretty confident that he plays pro hockey next season, and I think they are going to struggle for a while, with losing the cornerstone of their defense.
Matt Pufahl - (C+) - When he came to the Rebels a few seasons back, I thought he had a big shot from the point, and that he would be a future powerplay QB. A bad shoulder injury and two seasons later, and I see a player that has changed the whole style of his game to remain an important part of the team moving forward. I now see him as a solid stay-at-home defenseman that has a better than average first pass out of the zone, a mini-Borejko if you will. If nothing significant changes, we should see him on the second pairing next season.
Cody Thiel - (C+) - Haven't seen as much of him in the regular season as I would like, but what I have seen from him is a lot more physical player than what I saw in training camp/exhibition. Probably will see him full-time on the third defensive pairing next season.
Justin Weller (B-) - John Persson tweeted the other day "Time for a night snack! I wonder what @Jusweller is getting in him this evening.". I am not sure of the specifics of Justin Weller's late-night diet, but while most people are pouring milk over their cereal in the morning, somewhere Weller is pouring milk over a bowl of WHL forwards--that is to say, he eats them for breakfast. I thought that he might add a bit of offense to his game this season, but with the way he has been ruining opposition forwards on a nightly basis, who really cares if he does or not! He is playing out the final year of his junior eligibility, and will leave a huge gap in the lineup next season.
Goalies:
Patrik Bartosak (A+) - There were a few question marks about the Rebels goaltending going into the season, but he has settled in with the team nicely, and is already amongst the league leaders for goaltenders. He is very quick, has the best glove hand I have seen from a goalie in Red Deer for a long time, positions himself well, and is decent at playing the puck. The only question about him now is, will he get burned out with having to play all of the remaining 61 games? Import players are always a wildcard, but I hope to see him back in Red Deer next season.
Boulton Pouliot (D+) - He struggled in his brief audition last season, and in his lone start this season has a .759 save percentage, and .824 and no wins over 4 career games. From what I saw from Grant Naherniak in camp/exhibition, Pouliot is going to be in very tough to hang on to the backup role next season, much less pushing Bartosak for the starter job this season.
Kayle Doetzel (B-) - This guy is only 16 years old? Really?!? For those of you that have been following the Rebels for a long time, this is Jesse Wallin 2.0. Big, strong, skates very well, and has been used in all situations so far this season. If the Rebels deal one of their veteran defensemen this season, he will be the reason. With the loss of Weller, Borejko and probably Petrovic next season, I am quite confident that he will be one of the top two defensemen at that time.
Matt Dumba - (B-) - Very rough start from a defensive standpoint, but he finally seems to be settling down and getting it. I don't know if he is ever going to be a great defensemen at both ends of the ice, but he has kept the defensive mistakes in his own end of the ice/neutral zone to a minimum. Some big hits in the first 10, but no HUGE hits that the fans have grown accustomed to seeing. This all changes in game #11 where the D-Train catches rookie forward Taylor Leier in the tracks and absolutely destroys him. He is very likely back next season, and will be the team's #1 defensemen.
Stephen Hak - (C+) - Good young mobile defenseman that likes to gamble a little. When Dumba is not on the ice, the opposition barely even blocks the shooting lanes from the point, because they know that the Rebels generate so little offense from there. I think that this young man, if he continues to improve, might change that. Gets overpowered a bit in his own end, but I think that his offensive upside might make that easier to overlook. With his potential, and the vacancies that there can/will be next season, he could find himself on the second pairing.
Alex Petrovic - (A+) - Big, mobile defenseman with an even bigger reach. Logs just an absurd number of minutes per night, and has the ability to totally control the tempo of a game. His offensive numbers are slightly down over last season so far, but he has been a tad more physical and added a bit more 'nastiness' to his game. I am pretty confident that he plays pro hockey next season, and I think they are going to struggle for a while, with losing the cornerstone of their defense.
Matt Pufahl - (C+) - When he came to the Rebels a few seasons back, I thought he had a big shot from the point, and that he would be a future powerplay QB. A bad shoulder injury and two seasons later, and I see a player that has changed the whole style of his game to remain an important part of the team moving forward. I now see him as a solid stay-at-home defenseman that has a better than average first pass out of the zone, a mini-Borejko if you will. If nothing significant changes, we should see him on the second pairing next season.
Cody Thiel - (C+) - Haven't seen as much of him in the regular season as I would like, but what I have seen from him is a lot more physical player than what I saw in training camp/exhibition. Probably will see him full-time on the third defensive pairing next season.
Justin Weller (B-) - John Persson tweeted the other day "Time for a night snack! I wonder what @Jusweller is getting in him this evening.". I am not sure of the specifics of Justin Weller's late-night diet, but while most people are pouring milk over their cereal in the morning, somewhere Weller is pouring milk over a bowl of WHL forwards--that is to say, he eats them for breakfast. I thought that he might add a bit of offense to his game this season, but with the way he has been ruining opposition forwards on a nightly basis, who really cares if he does or not! He is playing out the final year of his junior eligibility, and will leave a huge gap in the lineup next season.
Goalies:
Patrik Bartosak (A+) - There were a few question marks about the Rebels goaltending going into the season, but he has settled in with the team nicely, and is already amongst the league leaders for goaltenders. He is very quick, has the best glove hand I have seen from a goalie in Red Deer for a long time, positions himself well, and is decent at playing the puck. The only question about him now is, will he get burned out with having to play all of the remaining 61 games? Import players are always a wildcard, but I hope to see him back in Red Deer next season.
Boulton Pouliot (D+) - He struggled in his brief audition last season, and in his lone start this season has a .759 save percentage, and .824 and no wins over 4 career games. From what I saw from Grant Naherniak in camp/exhibition, Pouliot is going to be in very tough to hang on to the backup role next season, much less pushing Bartosak for the starter job this season.