After taking an excellent route to sneak behind the defender, Lewandowski fakes the shot and lays out a perfect backhand pass to his teammate for the primary assist. Is it safer to shoot? Sure, you could argue the shot is the safe play, but when you can pass the puck like Lewandowski, it becomes the safe play. Below is a clip of the power-play goal the fourth-rounder scored against the Raiders. There\u2019s a reason why people who watch Lewandowski want him to shoot more.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
The power winger is excellent at changing angles, and Lewandowski<\/a> finds the top corner for the power-play marker. It\u2019s a clutch goal; with around a minute and a half left in the game, tied at two, Lewandowski steps up and scores the game-winner. One of the eye-popping moments for me during the game against Prince Albert was on a power-play entry.<\/p>\n I\u2019m starting to believe a bit more in his skating ability; it may not be fast or pretty, but there is a positive showing when it comes to edgework and elusiveness, and he can keep up with the pace of play. Most importantly, his game is efficient. I\u2019m excited to see Lewandowski in his final WHL season; it should be a high-scoring one.<\/p>\n Asher Barnett \u2013 Defence \u2013 Michigan Wolverines\u00a0As I referred to earlier, Asher Barnett opened his sophomore season playing a healthy chunk of his ice time with projected first-overall pick Landon DuPont. The Wolverines ran seven defencemen throughout their two games, which meant it was mixed up throughout the game. However, I found that Barnett<\/a> was playing with either Henry Mews or DuPont. Both defencemen are more offensively leaning, and the defensively sound Barnett allows them to get involved a bit more. The six-foot-one defender doesn\u2019t automatically defer to his defensive partner; Barnett can make a great first pass out of the zone.<\/p>\n Pressure doesn\u2019t get to Barnett. Instead, the stout defender invites it on and makes an excellent pass through the middle. The University of Michigan assistant captain got one assist over the weekend, and it came from inviting extra pressure onto himself, as you will see below.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Barnett draws in two defenders after taking the drop pass from Montreal Canadiens prospect Michael Hage. The fifth-rounder gives it back to Hage, and he lays it on a platter for his linemate, giving Barnett his first point of the campaign. The offence didn\u2019t stop there, as Barnett picks up a loose puck, goes for a skate, and gets a good shot on goal.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Barnett keeps getting better with the puck, and with more college experience, it will continue to improve. The amount of poise Barnett has under pressure will help him continuously move pucks around the ice. Our final highlight of Barnett has to be his excellent gap control that hasn\u2019t gone anywhere over the summer. Barnett applies pressure quickly and often, no matter where the opposition is.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n I don\u2019t expect a lot of points coming from Barnett<\/a>, but that is fine by me. Michigan has a lot of players that will eat up the points; the American defender will be relied on heavily in the crunch moments. When it\u2019s time to defend a one-goal lead, Barnett will be out there. Crucial penalty kill? Barnett will be on the ice. Michigan will be a top team again, and Barnett will play a big role in that ranking.Andrew Robinson \u2013 Defence \u2013 Windsor SpitfiresSpeaking of good starts, Andrew Robinson<\/a> has a goal and six assists in four games played. Robinson\u2019s seven points are tied for second in defenceman scoring (in the OHL); however, the six-foot defender leads defencemen in points per game. Funny enough, Robinson\u2019s one goal came while shorthanded.<\/p>\n While watching Robinson, you wouldn\u2019t expect him to be a big point scorer, but the fifth-rounder is extremely efficient while moving the puck, and I believe he shows some strong fundamentals when it comes to moving the puck. Below is a great example of an average Robinson play to start the year.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n There is nothing overly fancy or creative about the clip above. However, Robinson gains the zone with control, stops up on the defender, and makes a heads-up pass to the middle of the ice. It\u2019s these types of plays that go unnoticed, but if you do it as effectively as Robinson has been doing it, then you will start to stack up some points on the scoresheet. Much like Barnett, I find that the Windsor defenceman likes to invite pressure on and make a play to beat the forechecker.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n I don\u2019t think this will work quite as well at the professional level, but it shows that Robinson is patient with the puck and can use his skating ability to get out of some sticky situations. Standing at six-foot, Robinson will need to continue to rely on his strong skating ability as he moves up the ranks. Keep an eye on Robinson; the early signs of a good pick are there.<\/p>\n Caden Harvey \u2013 Forward \u2013 Windsor SpitfiresCaden Harvey<\/a> opened his campaign up with two goals against Saginaw but has only scored an assist in three games since then. I like Harvey as a two-way forward. I don\u2019t see much offence coming out of him at the professional level, but he\u2019s smart, highly aware defensively, and has a solid skating base. Both of Harvey\u2019s goals came off the rush, with one being on the power play.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Both goals have some positive notes in common. For instance, I loved how Harvey went from west to east and found himself some space using the whole width of the ice after confusing the defender. The power-play goal off the rush was an excellent shot, but I like how he instantly turned it up another gear after receiving the pass. It was a great change of pace and gave him the extra amount of room to bury that puck. I\u2019m going to keep my eye on Harvey as a player who could potentially play in your bottom six one day.<\/p>\n We\u2019re back in the full swing of things now, and I couldn\u2019t be happier. There have been a lot of promising starts throughout the whole Oilers organization, and that should make all Oilers fans smile.<\/p>\n
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