At 6'7, it was hard not to notice Burick as soon as he stepped on the ice. The physical tools immediately jumped off the page, and I liked how he tried to leverage them. He was aggressive, trying to use his reach to push pucks around defenders or walk the line toward the middle of the ice and create separation. There was an underlying confidence to his game that when he picked up a puck, he wasn't just doing the simple play every time, but seeing what his options were and, if necessary, trying to execute an escape move to buy him time. While he wasn't always successful in his maneuvers, you could see how things could naturally come together as his mechanics become more refined and he settles into his frame. As he matures and becomes more comfortable, everything should just flow much smoother in his motions, and he'll find more and more success. Given his ambition to attempt high-end plays, if everything settles into place with his physical tools, there could be an interesting player here for a college team down the road.

Sean Burick was perhaps the most perplexing player for me to watch this weekend because I did not know a defenseman of his size could move the way he was over the weekend. The mobility he displayed on the puck in the offensive end was great and he was able to avoid poke checks at the blue line while maintaining possession and even working his way into the slot to create chances for himself and others. He was so difficult to dispossess given his size, skating, and the length of his reach that he really was able to do what he wanted on the puck. He mixed in some great spin-o-ramas that were executed well and earned him some extra space to work within and he then distributed the puck well and assumed his position on the point again. He moved the puck well and had a few point shots that threatened as he packed some serious heat in his slap shot. Defensively he was in shooting lanes and his reach kept players at bay and took away passing lanes and nullified lots of the offensive chances that he faced. He steered traffic to the outside and his long strides and speed were tough for puck carriers to gain a step on and he effectively shut down the outside rushing lanes. He was a very solid performer and even came away with three assists on the weekend.

Another member of the Shattuck St. Mary’s program, Sean Burick made the most of his size and range to intercept pucks, knock away passes, and remain steadfast in the pace of play, keeping square to puck carriers, and displaying some great mobility for a larger player. Listed at 6’7, and 194lbs, the right-shot Burick was an incredibly valuable asset at exiting the zone, with a strong first pass, he could fire up tape-to-tape, simple, but effective breakout passes to teammates. The range via his wingspan to protect the puck is something unseen in the majority of 16-year-olds, factoring in his ability to move laterally and escape pressure for himself, and he was a dominant transitional piece from below his own goal line on zone exits. There wasn’t really ever a play when Burick was pressured where he seemed to have panicked, constantly remaining calm under pressure, he handled the puck softly and consistently made the right play. His defensive play was strong as one would expect, around his own crease he is almost impossible to contend with at this level, overpowering nearly all his peers, and deflecting passes thanks to his great reach. He played a simple game, elevated due to his size, but if you have the size use it, and he used it very well, blending in some impressive skating prowess to go with it.

This was my first introduction to Burick, a player who gets around the ice quite nicely for someone who is 6’6 and 181 lbs. His large frame allows him to cover a lot of ground in the defensive zone, which made up for his lack of footspeed in recoveries and sticking with assignments in coverage. He showed some deception on his regroups in the neutral zone, using shoulder fakes to escape from pressure and create space for himself in order to make a play. From the offensive blueline he showed a tremendous amount of patience with the puck on his stick, often waiting for passing lanes to open up organically and showing the skill to get pucks cross-ice through traffic and onto the stick of a teammate.

I am continually impressed at what he is able to do with the puck given his rangy size, but he moved very well with the puck in the offensive zone and was able to step up nicely and give the defense some trouble. He drew a penalty with some nice stick handling and was able to work his way into the slot and fire off a nice shot. His shooting from the point was helpful as well and he was able to find Sean Miller’s stick with one of his shots to redirect it for a consolation goal.

Though he wasn't necessarily a standout player for too many exciting technical reasons, I thought Sean Burick quietly made a positive impact for Team Orange in this game. He made reliable puck touches in his own zone, using his strength to impose himself against his opponents and then making sustainable zone-exit passes to lead his teammates into space. When given the extra attention it was evident that Burick made the extra effort to evaluate his pass decisions and avoid potentially dangerous plays, even when they were the most obvious outlet. Sean was one of the best defenseman at processing his outlets while using both his feet and his hands to extend possession while he read the ice. In the perfect world, you'd like to be able to make every decision in a split second without needing to extend possession, but in reality, especially as a defenseman you don't always have control of the play sufficiently to put yourself in perfect positions where that is possible. Alternatively, being able to do what Burick did in this game is critical.

Sean is a tall, lanky, fluid skating defender who keeps motion well transitioning back from offense to defense. He certainly isn’t a finished product as of now, but he was cutting back from pressure to his backhand and spinning away from coverage in order to make outlet passes in the neutral zone. He can collect pucks easily and make quicker decisions while moving D to D. I think Sean displayed a simple but effective game today and the evolution of his game could come nicely.