Finland vs Slovakia Exhibition – Dec. 21st
Prospects Breakdown:
SVK #21 (Martin Marincin) Noticeable improvement in skating/pivoting since last year. Marincin played on the top defensive pairing with fellow Oilers draft pick Martin Gernat. Marincin played a pretty steady all-around game for an offensive-minded defenseman. While not overly physical, Marincin used his long reach to keep attackers to the outside. He possesses a nice shot from the point, but he is also content just to flick a shot on net in order to get it through traffic. He is capable of skating the puck out of trouble and likes to stick-handle around defenders when leading the rush.
FIN #2 (Olli Maatta) Very good game from the young defender. Maata showed great mobility paired with a nice two-way game. Maatta was able to lead the rush as well as make a nice outlet pass. He made a couple nice head fakes with the puck that allowed him to create a little space and rush the puck up ice. Maata played pretty well in his own end although he needs to be much more aware of where his man is. He was also guilty of a couple bad decisions about when to pinch.
FIN #5 (Rasmus Ristolainen) Quite possibly the best of the trio of young Finnish defensemen at this year’s WJC. At 6’3, Ristolainen already posseses great size despite not being draft eligible until 2013. Ristolainen has a cannon from the point and Finland was using him on the first PP unit in order to set him up from the top of the umbrella. Skates pretty well for his age and size. Ristolainen possesses tremendous upside although he will need to improve his defensive zone play.
FIN #11 (Markus Granlund) – The younger Granlund brother had an excellent game to the delight of Calgary Flames fans that attended the game. Markus showed much of the same creativity and skill that his older brother did and on this night, Markus was the better of the two brothers. Markus was able to create offense using his speed and skill off the rush and by using his vision and patience with the puck while set up in the offensive zone. He has nice hands, with a quick release on a deadly one-timer.
Scouts Notes: This was a closely contested matchup played at Hockey Canada’s new home at Canada Olympic Park’s Winsport Arena in Calgary. While Finland had the edge in chances, Slovakia had their opportunities to score and had they potted one, this game easily could have turned around. Joel Armia made a nice impression with his size and skill. The former 1st round NHL pick had a goal and looked to be a dominant player at times.
