By Aaron Bell
Nazem Kadri is hoping to make a good impression on a familiar ice surface.
The London Knights' star is playing for the Toronto Maple Leafs' prospects team during a tournament in Kitchener this week and is trying to make a case for playing in the big leagues this year. So far, Kadri has impressed the Maple Leafs' brass but that doesn't mean they think he's ready to make the jump this fall.
“After tonight he’s in the hunt,” Maple Leafs' GM Brian Burke told The Kitchener-Waterloo Record on Sunday. “My assessment is he’ll need more time in junior, but he’ll get a chance to show what he can do. I’d love to be wrong.”
Kadri played two seasons at The Aud with the Rangers, including 2007-08, when he helped them win the OHL championship and advance to the final game of the MasterCard Memorial Cup. He moved to the Knights last year and was selected seventh overall by the Maple Leafs in the NHL Entry Draft in June.
He loved his time in London but admitted that he'd rather not come back to the OHL this season.
“That would be a disappointment,” Kadri said. “I want to make this team. I want to make it hard for them to actually cut me.”
Kadri is one of dozens of OHL players that are competing in NHL prospects tournament this week. The Maple Leafs, Pittsburgh Penguins, Ottawa Senators and Boston Bruins are participating in Kitchener while Traverse City, MI is hosting a tournament comprised of the top prospects from eight NHL teams including the host Detroit Red Wings as well as the St. Louis Blues, Carolina Hurricanes, Atlanta Thrashers, Columbus Blue Jackets, Dallas Stars, Minnesota Wild and New York Rangers.
These tournament let the NHL teams see their prospects compete against their peers.
"We got an exciting group of guys - our next wave," Red Wings assistant general manager Jim Nill told Michigan Live. "They're anywhere from two to four years away. Some have a lot of upside. It's a chance for the kids to show what they can do among their own age group. It's a great tool for being able to evaluate players."
Another OHL star looking to make a good impression during the prospects tournament is Niagara IceDogs' captain Alex Pietrangelo. The big defender was the fourth overall pick in the NHL Entry Draft by the Blues a year ago and is hoping to use this week's tournament in Traverse City as a launching pad for his rookie season in the NHL.
"When you see what it's like in the NHL, it makes you want it even more," Pietrangelo told NHL.com. "The Blues gave me a few things to work on. It turned out OK."
So far, the Blues like what they see from one of their prized prospects.
"Alex went back there and did everything we asked - and then he got stronger and more confident with where he's at in our summer training program in St. Louis," said Blues' coach Andy Murray. "I think young players, particularly defensemen, find it difficult to cope with the speed of the game in the NHL. Things obviously happen faster and that's an adjustment that is hard to make. But seeing Alex on the ice now, he seems to be playing with more speed and passion - almost like the game is slowing down for him like it does for a lot of defensemen who play like quarterbacks out there."
Ottawa 67's defender Tyler Cuma is using his experience in Traverse City to show that he has fully recovered from a knee injury that derailed his season last January.
Cuma was a first round pick of the Minnesota Wild last year and was a final cut from their camp last Fall. He may get a chance to make the jump with another successful camp this year.
"What you notice about the kid right away is that he plays with a ton of poise. He has a great sense for the game and a willingness to compete," said Guy Lapointe, Amateur Scouting Coordinator for the Wild. "To me, when you see a veteran coach like Jacques Lemaire keep a youngster like that to the final cuts with the Wild when he's just 18, that just tells you that Tyler is something special."
