Oilers Prospect Update: Ike Howard and Matt Savoie survive roster cuts, Tommy Lafrenière scores first goal

Sundin’s confidence with the puck continues to stand out. Even under pressure, he stays calm, finds outlets, and sparks breakouts.

When given room to skate, he eats it up and leads the rush. In one clip, he collects a loose puck, fakes to the middle with clever weight shifts, and gets a shot away.

His offensive instincts remain impressive. If his skating takes another step forward, Sundin could elevate his game even more.

Maxim Beryozkin – Winger – Lokomotiv

There’s no way around it: Beryozkin is in a slump. With zero goals on the year, it’s becoming concerning.

Watching the games, you can’t help but wonder if it’s poor finishing ability or just terrible luck. In two games since the last update, the Russian winger played his usual role with his usual minutes, but I’d like to see him used differently on the power play rather than locked into the net-front spot.

Despite a quiet week, his defensive effort has remained consistent, which is encouraging. Below is a clip of his defensive hustle leading to a breakout. In another, he intercepts a pass and creates a transition chance for himself.

Even in the next clip Beryozkin steals a pass and takes it in transition for a shot on net.

The powerful winger is trying to make a difference in the offensive zone, but he just can’t buy a goal. Below are some clips of the chances Beryozkin had in his two games.

These are all great chances to score your first goal of the season, but unfortunately it wasn’t the case for Maxim this week. The chances are coming, but the 2020 selection needs to find a way to start taking advantage of these opportunities because they don’t come around often in the NHL.

Nikita Yevseyev – Defence – Khabarovsk

In one game since the last update, Yevseyev logged 20:59 in a 3-1 loss to Avtomobilist. It was one of his quieter outings, as he struggled with puck movement. In one clip, you’ll see him rush two passes despite having time and space.

Even with time and space the young defender will still make a rushed pass or play. But then there will be times where he shows off the ability to make the right read and pass as you will see in this next clip with the breakout pass he makes.

Decision-making with the puck is still an area he must improve, but Yevseyev also shows flashes of strong reads, like a clean breakout pass featured below. Defensively, he continues to play physically, sealing off opponents with big hits.

Despite his flaws, the 21-year-old remains Khabarovsk’s leader in ice time per game and is tied for second in team scoring. That workload speaks volumes about his value.

Tommy Lafrenière – Centre – Kamloops

Lafrenière had his best game of the season in a 6-0 win for Kamloops, scoring his first goal on the power play by being in the right spot at the right time.

What really stood out was his speed. In one clip, he flies through the neutral zone in transition. In another, he pulls away for a third-period breakaway. He also used his wheels defensively, skating away from pressure to create clean exits.

In this next clip Lafreniere pulls away for a breakaway chance in the third period.

Not only was the Quebec native using his speed for offence but in the next two clips Lafreniere was using it to skate away from pressure in his own zone leading to clean breakouts.

A strong all-around performance for the third-rounder. His next step will be varying his pace and attacking the middle more in transition.

David Lewandowski – Winger – Saskatoon Blades

Lewandowski had a rough outing in a 4-1 loss to Medicine Hat. The German import was quiet throughout and two of his turnovers directly led to goals against. Still, even in tough games, he flashes skill — like drawing two defenders before slipping a backhand saucer pass for an entry. He also created a couple of chances late in the first period but couldn’t finish.

In the final clip Lewandowski gets some chances late in the first but fails to capitalize on either of them.

It was one of his weakest games to date, but I’m not concerned. Lewandowski has been strong overall, and this feels like a one-off. Expect him to bounce back in Saskatoon’s next set of games.

That’s all for now! I’ll be back in a few days with an update from this upcoming weekend.