The NHL held their scouting Combine last week. You can see the top ten scores for each test here.It's really up for debate about how much stock you want to put into the physical testing. As per usual, the US Development Program kids came out exceptionally well in the testing, which is a testament to the work they do there. Among the interviews, North Dakota recruit JT Miller reportedly told teams he was open to signing with the Plymouth Whalers of the OHL if the team that selected him wanted him to.
It was a busy week for the QMJHL. The league's only American club, the Lewiston MAINEiacs, said 'Thanks for coming out' and were dissolved by the league. Sad news for the people of Maine, but a big victory for fans of spelling and grammar.
Meanwhile, in the same week, the QMJHL also passed a new rule, to be put into place next year, saying that all teams must draft at least two Americans per year in an attempt to draw more American players to the league. The Q has fallen to an even more distant third in terms of prestige among the three CHL leagues, partly because they've failed to capitalize on the huge increase in available American talent in recent years--though it should be noted that the New England-area hasn't quite seen the same boom in talent in recent years.
Finally, the QMJHL held their entry draft/game of chicken on Saturday morning. Shattuck's Nathan MacKinnon was selected first overall by Baie-Comeau Drakkar, but MacKinnon spent the day skating at Omaha Lancers tryout camp, almost more of symbolic message than anything. Neate Sager, at the prior link, is correct that it looks bad for the QMJHL to have a GM of a team impotently holding up a jersey of a kid that would never play for them on draft day, but it would look much, much worse for the league if they never got the kid to report at all. A deal will likely get done this summer, though it would be nice if the USHL got him for a season. The odds of him playing two years in the USHL and then making it to the NCAA are still pretty much slim to none.
Other noteworthy items from the draft: American Adam Erne, a BU recruit, was selected in the second round of the draft. Rumors seem pretty strong that he's likely to sign at some point. Moncton took American Brandon Shea in the first round, which is very interesting. Shea is maybe just that good that he's worth the risk, and he's already signed on to the NTDP, so I'm pretty sure he'd have to play at least a year there, but that would be pretty huge for Rimouski if they could sign him. Anthony Duclair dropped to the third round, which seem to be pretty good for his chances of playing in college.
Speaking of the USHL tryout circuit, a few of the league's teams started holding their tryout camps this past weekend, including Sioux Falls. I was able to make it down for the camp's all-star game on Sunday night. The Stampede are doing some pretty heavy rebuilding this summer. In addition to the normal attrition every junior team faces, the Stampede lost all three of the Reilly brothers to Penticton of the BCHL. The Stampede also traded the rights to Mario Lucia to Des Moines, reportedly because of a falling out between Don Lucia and Stampede staff. It might not be all bad though, since Lucia apparently hasn't committed to playing in the USHL yet, and the Stampede received Justin Selman in return, who was arguably the best player at the camp Sunday night. Former NTDPer Matt VanVoorhis was also impressive, and the Stampede seemed to make some pretty solid Futures picks in Michael Sabatini and Reed Whiteside. Also, goalie Victor Adamo made a beautiful save by reaching behind himself and putting his paddle to stop an easy goal, though that was only the second best save of his career.