5:00pm et - Keaton Ellerby has a big frame for a young d-man, but definitely needs to add more meat on the bones. His lack of strength was magnified on the bench and he posted one of the lowest marks on the day with a dismal two reps on the bench press of 150 lbs.
Karl Alzner: after an impressive WJR tourney, this young man's potential could very well be that of a top five pick. Yet, his 6-foot-2 202-pound frame is a little on the soft side and today's showing did not exactly wow the crowd.
True to his surfer form, Californian Jonathan Blum put on a display in the balance test as he seemed well at ease balancing his entire body on the apparatus.
James vanRiemsdyk, although still lacking true definition, does posses a big body frame and ripped up the bench with an 11 rep outing. He and Kyle Turris held the room's attention to close out the day and seemed to feed off each other as they took on each task.
Turris, who many scouts feel might be a couple years away from the pro game, definitely did not embarrass himself. The consensus coming into today was that he needs to add substantial weight and strength to his frame. The weight is still a necessity, but the strength seems to fall in line with other participants at his weight class. He showed excellent agility, balance well above average and handled the media like a seasoned NHL veteran.
Thomas Hickey put on a good show in the sprint portion of the bike testing.
Patrick Kane attracted a lot of attention and did nothing to disappoint teams from taking him with top pick. He looked to be strong and in good shape.
The sleeper of the day might have been Prince George's Dana Tyrell. The 5-foot-11 and 180-pound fireplug looked very lean and fit and had a very impressive 12 reps on the bench, which was easily one of the top perfomances of the day. He showed strength beyond his size. He also ripped it up on the sprint-bike and did well in agility testing.
2:22pm et - Omsk forward Alex Cherepanov looked like a kid coming out for his Midget tryout with his hat on and laid-back approach , and it really showed in the 150-pound bench press as he put up a generous 3 reps. But he did wow his translator and the attendant with a vertical jump that must have been one of the day's best. He also put up a good effort in the bike sprints and the best part of his day might have been the fact he did it all with a smile on his face, which always sets a good precedent for scouts.
Perhaps the biggest question mark of the draft Angelo Esposito did nothing out of the ordinary to change his enigma status. The lanky Quebec leaguer possesses a solid frame and did well on the agility tests and on the bike. But his bench was well below the bar and he did nothing to return his status back to a top 3 pick. The only thing Espo did to distinguish himself from the pack was to secure the best 'do of the day as his hair styling definitely wowed the crowd.
Colton Gillies was also 'single digits' on the bench press., but the big forward looked fairly good on the bike and handled the testing with like a seasoned pro.
11:50am et - The morning group included Sudbury Wolves forward Akim Aliu, ranked 41st among North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting. At 6-3 and over 200 pounds, he impressed a lot of scouts with his frame and athletic build.
Halifax Mooseheads forward Jakub Voracek struggled a bit on the bench press (150 pounds) but seemed to perform up to par the remainder of the morning.
Red Deer Rebels centre Brandon Sutter certainly has the pedigree to be a top prospect, but the body must fill out in hurry if he hopes to play the pro game with the same tenacity as his namesakes. He looked very skinny and lanky for his 6-foot-2, 170-pound frame and a summer of squats appear to be in his immediate future. But that being said, he did make a good impression with the physical testing as he looked like he could go all day on the sit-ups, sprint bike and dominated the agility testing like a man half his height.
Another player who made a good impression was relatively unheralded winger Stefan Legein of the Mississauga IceDogs. He was one of 40 draft-eligible prospects selected to participate in the 2007 CHL Top Prospects Game and won the fastest skater competition with a lap time of 14.109 seconds. He has a smaller frame at 5-foot-10, plenty of lean muscle mass, but looks like a brickhouse who you wouldn't want to meet on open ice. He appeared to be testing well, impressing scouts with his work ethic and impressive physical fitness, appearing almost bored at some points during the tests.
As expected, London Knights forward Sam Gagner is turning a lot of eyes. The majority of the room watched his every move throughout the session and he was all business cutting through each station with a good pace. Perhaps it's the pro pedigree in him or the simple fact that he has performed everywhere he has played, but nobody garnered as much attention on Friday as Mr. Gagner.
Swedish goalie and 'Swedish Idol' Mark Owuya made good impression with his size (6-2, 200 pounds) and strength. He dwarfed he fellow goalies in size and body mass in today's event.
Calgary Hitmen defenceman Alex Plante, a big guy at 6-3, and 225 pounds, did 11 reps on the bench press. Eleven is the standard that no one has broken yet.
There are three new elements - all agility based - at this year's combine.
1. A hexagon is placed on the ground, and a player jumps in and out of the tape making his way around the perimeter as quick as possible. The hexagon exercise judges agility, coordination and balance. Sutter, Turris and Owuya stood out well, Alzner struggled
2. Balance. A piece of wood is placed on a balancein the middle and your goal is to not touch the ground on either side while not using your hands to get you upright. Blum and Turris stood out on this event.
3. A player must also do a 'standing squat,' measuring his leg strength as he bends his knees and jumps as high in the air as possible.
After all the physical testing is done, a player must sit down immediately and write out a questionnaire as part of the mental test. A good way of testing a player's mental abilities and judgements when he is tired.