John Albert (middle) during pre-game intros. I like this one. OSU has great ice, by the way.
Albert ready to jump off the bench. Again he made great passes, to wingers who didn't finish. I couldn't help but think his production would skyrocket if he had a better finisher on his line. Or was just on a better team generally. He wins faceoffs right to guys who then turnover the puck. He'll need more grit and hustle at higher levels.
While Albert often has the puck, Leveille almost never has it, which is a bit concerning as a center. He's up and down the ice, but not always involved in the play. On one goal against, one D was behind the net, one was in the corner, and he should have picked up the guy at the side of the net. He was nearby, but didn't defend him. It showed how he needs to work on defensive awareness. The one flash of skill in this game was going up the right wing, dipsy doodling around the D for a shot that went wide through the crease. I wanted to see him drop the shoulder and cut in like Marian Hossa, but he didn't. He probably doesn't have the man-strength of Hossa to do that.
The best player on the ice for either team was Jeff Petry, a second-round pick in 2006 of Edmonton. I found myself watching him just to see what he would do. Yes he made some mistakes, but clearly he'll play in the NHL. On the other hand I was not very impressed with Zac Dalpe, Carolina's second-rounder from this year. He just didn't do much. Tim Crowder, a Pittsburgh pick, is big and lumbers a bit but has some potential.
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