Our first Western-Canadian skater, Drayden Uhrina of the Winnipeg Bruins slides in at number 7 on our rankings and was another one of the more physically mature skaters in attendance at the CCM 68. He showed off a well-refined stride; good length, power, stride-rate, and balance. He could carry the puck and pull away from nearby opponents with relative ease. The lengthy reach aided him in shielding the puck and prolonging possession. He connected on several passes as a result of having such a reach, hooking passes around extended sticks, having the extra few inches of reach to slide pucks through certain seams and lanes. His passes were very accurate as well, strong power, and landed flat on the blade of his teammate’s sticks’ repeatedly. His mind was seemingly always focused on creating plays, working hard below the faceoff dots in the offensive zone, he was able to get body positioning to win battles, force turnovers, and quickly send pucks to the middle to teammates in dangerous areas on the ice. When he had the opportunity to fire the puck, the majority of his scoring chances came from some nice independent 1-on-1 play with a defender. Utilizing nice moves to the outside in stride with speed, he could go wide on his man and snap a strong shot in stride to finish off a string of strong moves.

Projection: Top-6 C/W
Projectable Skills: Transition play, Shot power, Size
Development Opportunities: Assertiveness without the puck

This season, Drayden has shown that his pacing through the neutral zone as a puck carrier is really wonderful due to the length of his skating stride and his ability to pull pucks laterally while maintaining speed. He was one of the best transition forwards in the CSSHL U15 Prep division. He can throw in lateral, no-look passes, use toe drags to create heavier shot lanes, and continue possession in the offensive zone by using those same physical giftings. I think his biggest translatable quality is that transition ability but he shows those flashes of dominant scoring in motion, shot accuracy, and ability to play give and go. With improved assertiveness off puck to drive into scoring areas, Uhrina’s effectiveness and dangerous scoring threat level would take another boost. For example, I’ve seen him almost single handedly pull his team back into games by driving possession through the middle and I’ve seen him become more of a play watcher during the Manitoba camp when he was moved to the wing. Finding that next level understanding of when to be aggressive in select situations could make him a truly dominant two-way player. His skating stride will allow him to come back defensively too and battle one-on-one with players. I would imagine he becomes a top-line player in the future but might find value both at C and the wing in the WHL.

I’ve been a fan of his all season as I think his natural puck control, skating power, and ability to transition pucks up the ice are all extremely high value qualities to form a base of play around. I liked seeing him play both C and LW at this event and it gave him opportunities to show a few varieties of his play. He’s someone who still is working on the when and how to use his skills to attack and convert chances. The pieces are all there but he’s another player where video analysis on tweaking his approach might be a key difference maker. I think if he leans on his two-way play and transition abilities while using those touch passes, drop passes, and lateral fakes to set up others, his goal scoring can just come in more natural spots. I thought he is someone who can still unlock more scoring in his game but has been a steady presence all year.

Uhrina was an interesting player for me to follow throughout the tournament as I initially wasn’t enamored with his game, but he grew on me, and I think put forth his best performance in a losing effort in the championship game. My initial concerns centered around his propensity to get a little individualistic at times, however I think it stems more from an intense desire to make things happen that can cross over the line as opposed to any processing issues or lack of vision. As he matures, I think this is an issue that can be coached. The second area that gave me question marks was in his skating, but this was another concern that dulled over time. He is extremely bottom heavy and sits back on his heels a bit, but he has the power to make up for a little stride stiffness and his edgework is a strength. That squatted posture also helps to disguise his directionality and he’d often catch defenders cheating one direction or the other. Where Uhrina really shines is in the offensive zone where he forces the issue with creativity and will. He marries pro-activity with improvisation really well and he punishes defenders that approach plays with mental rigidity. There were multiple examples of him creating something out of nothing in this tournament by exploiting defensive laziness. I still think there is some risk in Uhrina scaling to higher levels but I’m more confident in his unique style now than at the start of the tournament.

A dynamic and powerful forward with the puck on his stick. His skating stride can burst quickly and protect along the exterior while making fierce pull and drag moves to the extension of his reach in heavy traffic. The combination of his power, control, and quickness of motion make his potential very strong.

He skates and moves very well. It combines fluidity with power through the middle of the ice as he showed no hesitation through his crossovers and can handle physicality. He builds power in transition so well. Throw in his ability to fire a heavy flick snapshot or catch-and-release style shots in the slot and his potential appears quite high. He can elevate in tight, make short little ship passes to himself, and pre-plans his posture off the puck to open up and finish opportunities effortlessly. I came away very impressed with this player and am eager to see how his season unfolds next year.

Uhrina scored a goal and added two assists in this game and remained one of Manitoba’s most dangerous offensive threats. He was very opportunistic in this contest spending a lot of time weathering the BC attack but taking advantage of opposition mistakes on the counterattack. His ability to maximize opportunities allowed Manitoba’s rope-a-dope strategy to pay off in victory. His stick skill and control away from his body remains a huge weapon as he changes angles and makes over aggressive defenders look silly.

Uhrina was unable to find the back of the net in this contest but threatened throughout and felt like he was always on the verge of making magic happen. He has that elevated level of skill and a well-rounded offensive arsenal to take over. It starts with his puck-handling where he can make defenders look silly by drastically changing the point of attack, dragging the puck through bodies as he works outside to in. His puck placement is pristine, avoiding stick checks with excellent control away from his body and using his frame to protect as he muscles or dangles his way interior. He excels at slowing the play down and when given time, finds the highest percentage chance. If he improves the explosiveness in his stride and adds a half step, I think he’ll unlock another gear.

Drayden Uhrina was another top-of-the-line skater for Canada 3, the Western Canadian forward did an excellent job at battling through opposition thanks to a powerful stride that in only a few steps let him create separation and leave the man nearest to him in the rearview mirror. His process was relatively simple, he attacked with speed down the wings of the neutral zone and then relied on proper timing and soft puck skills to make a strong move to the middle, the long reach he owned helping him in doing so. From the middle of the ice, he opened plenty more lanes and avenues for himself to work with, dishing pucks out laterally or taking a good look at the net with a hard shot. He was independent in his scoring chance generation, relying on great speed, athleticism, and scoring touch. He won plenty of battles deep in the offensive zone, relentless on puck carriers and those attempting to break the puck out, he would win battles by getting leverage and quickly funnelled pucks through the crease before opponents could adapt to the change in possession. He set up Jackson Bathgate with a wonderful cross-ice pass from high-to-low in the offensive zone to get his teams second goal of the game.

His game was a bit quieter today but his potential was screaming on some shifts. He’d circle around the outside after winning a tough board battle in order to attack the net front again. His spacing and power held up well both to cause turnovers and build speed very quickly. He’s got a lot of power when he gets moving. He can cut heavy and shoot off the front foot, apply pressure on defenders early, and grabbed a couple of open net looks to seal the game late but just missed.