HIFK U20 played two games this past weekend in Helsinki, first losing to TPS in shootout and then winning Kiekko-Vantaa in the other game. Here are scouting notes on some of the team’s top prospects from both games that I attended.
97 C Henrik Borgström (2016 NHL Draft Eligible)
Borgström didn’t play his best game against TPS, he made some unforced errors with the puck, including some turnovers…however, his tying goal in the second period was an excellent play – dangled his way to the net from the wing and scored with a backhander on glove-hand side…scored three goals against Kiekko-Vantaa, showing great separation speed and finishing touch in tight spaces…possesses game-breaking skill…there was one occasion where he had no way to go on the boards, but he was still able to get the puck to an open teammate…has very good hockey sense and ability to make himself available for a pass…able to take pucks to the net, doesn’t stay on the perimeter too much…good skater for his size with speed, but I think his acceleration and mobility will get better once he gets stronger…one thing that could use work is face-offs as he struggled in this area against Kiekko-Vantaa
98 C Juha Jääskä (2016 NHL Draft Eligible)
Jääskä was one of the most consistent HIFK players both games included… had one assist against TPS…strong skater who gets up and down on the ice well…effective stride with solid top-end speed once he reaches it…provides pressure on opponents, he was able to cause one penalty against TPS… also both backchecked and forechecked well against Kiekko-Vantaa, creating one great chance in the slot after a takeaway…has a quick wrist shot that he gets to the net through traffic, also keeps his shots low…has good puck skills and is able to carry the puck up the ice to create space for the wingers…passing accuracy could have been better at times, however…responsible defensively and already has pretty good overall awareness of his position…very solid at face-offs in both games
99 LW Teemu Engberg (2017 NHL Draft Eligible)
Engberg was pretty notable against TPS and recorded his first assist in the U20 league..was moved down from the second line to the fourth line for the other game, as a result didn’t have as big impact…quick, fairly explosive skater with good acceleration…good work rate and commitment to the defensive game…really liked his opportunistic style of play…had a couple of very dangerous wrist shots from bad angles and wasn’t hesitant to shoot at all…going forward, needs to get stronger so that he can hold on to the puck better, especially at the U20 level