With November all wrapped up we had a chance to get another big round of views in on the 2009-born American class thanks to some big events and circling back on names that just missed the cut last month. As we head into December, we have now expanded our top-40 to a top-60, with another 20 new additions, and some movement of those previously ranked.
Here's a look at the highlights from our November ranking update for the '09 American class.
Big Risers
In terms of big risers for those already in our ranking, Mission's Kaden Aucoin made the biggest leap, jumping 7 spots from #22 to #15.
Aucoin's teammates at Mission, Oliver McKinney and Thaddeus McMahon, also saw themselves getting minor bumps. McKinney moved into our top-3, displacing Max Dessner, while McMahon found himself in the top 10 going from #12 to #10.
The rest of our movement within the top-60 comes in the form of Massimo Santa Maria jumping 2 spots to 22nd, along with Steven Cover and Diego Gutierrez each jumping one spot. Cover now sits at 18 while Gutierrez continues to climb and cements his status as one of the top defensemen in the nation at 6th.
Big Debuts
It’s difficult to find a player who makes a high debut as many of those in our top-20 in particular, have already established a strong track record of performances to solidify their ranking. Nolan Snyder of the Pittsburgh Pens Elite found his way into our top-20 by brute force, debuting at number 11. Snyder’s high-energy game mixed with great effort, skill, and athleticism, on top of being a strong 200-foot player has him up there amongst some of the top names the class has to offer.
The other name making a high debut Ryland Rooney who comes in at #34. Making a USHS-MN roster as a 2009-born skater is no small feat. Rooney will play with Gentry Academy this season, in which his usage and understanding of size, pace, and usage of lanes will allow him to be an effective player against older opponents.
Further down our debut list we have a pair of Windy City Storm skaters who rank back-to-back at 39th and 40th, in forward Jackson Smith, and defenseman Christian Casady. Both play with great pace and combine a sizeable frame with mobility, puck distribution skills, and consistent play. While watching Windy City Storm these two often are the ones driving the bus from their respective positions for their team.
Buffalo Jr. Sabres forward Louis Gugliuzza makes his debut in our rankings at #44. The 6’0 174 lbs centerman from Buffalo, New York has great speed for his size, wicked athleticism, soft hands in tight, and can overpower defenders with strong moves wide and to the middle lane.
California Love
We've got three players from California-based teams making their first appearance in our rankings. San Jose Jr. Sharks forward Drew Larioza comes in at 47th, Dax Diep of the Anaheim Jr. Ducks at 57th, and Ethan Xu of the California Golden Bears is one spot behind Diep at 58th. California has shown some top end talent in this age group and all three of these players are integral parts of their respective clubs.
Mission add more
Some Chicago Mission skaters saw a strong rise in our rankings update as Oliver McKinney, Thaddeus McMahon, and Kaden Aucoin continue to impress. We also added two more skaters from the Illinois-based powerhouse youth program in William Sorenson at 48, and defenseman Cameron Holyoke at 59.
WB Scranton Knights Continue to Impress
We have two more additions from the WB Scranton Knights club, continuing some strong Pennsylvania representation within our ranks in Matthew Kealey at 60, and a New Jersey representative in Alexander Abolenskiy at 55.
Both are very talented puck handling forwards with great speed, creativity, and flash that play a large role in the WB Scranton Knights’ competitiveness.
The Rest of the Best
We have six players we’ve yet to mention from our ranking expansion, hailing from all over the country. The highest debut of the remaining six being defender Tony Timmerman at 49th from Little Caesars. Fellow defender Sam Gupta from the BK Selects joins him at 51st, along with Julian Meyer debuting at 54th from the Florida Alliance Elite program. Teammate of Meyer, Reese Tracey, is another Florida Alliance skater who joins our rankings, slotting in at 52nd.
Our final two names of note are Ryan Kaczynski of the Mid-Fairfield Rangers at 50th, and Brock Burch of Victory Honda at 56th – both being strong offensive play driving weapon for their respective teams.
Check out the full 2009-born player rankings.