By Russ Cohen
Here are some players who looked good for various reasons.
Luke Osburn – Sabres pick – Youngstown – D – He was playing top pairing left side. He has a nice low shot on the power play. On the power play, he was a very good distributor too. I liked his zone entries too. He has some talent for sure.
Austin Moline – Flyers pick – Madison – D – He plays a simple, yet effective game. He has an active stick in the d-zone. He is quick to the puck. He presents his stick well and is always looking for offensive chances. I saw him set up an important goal. He got elevated for some shifts too. He’s off to a very good start this season.
Mikhail Katin – Omaha – D – He’s 2025 NHL Draft eligible – At 6’5″, 209 pounds, he’s lanky. He was playing top-pairing left side. His passing is fine. He does take some chances, but without some risk there isn’t a big reward at times. He stick handles in traffic, some good, some dangerous. His skating is very good. He is one to watch.
Nick Sykora – Omaha – LW – He is the son of Petr. I saw him last year and he’s picked up where he left off. He was playing second line left wing. He is slick on the power play and meshes well with left wing Caden Lee there. He is another good player who has a terrific wrist shot.
Lev Katzin – Green Bay – LW – He was on the top line and is a 5’8″, 172-pound player to watch for the 2025 NHL Draft. I like his skating and his push-back. I will be doing a full profile on him but I liked what I saw out of him and he’s a smart kid who is going to attend Harvard.
More tomorrow.
