Deanovich was the main catalyst for the Reapers from the backend throughout the entirety of the tournament thanks to his overabundance of high-end tools and low panic threshold that allowed him to make plays under pressure. He was able to utilize his edgework on his regroups while battling against a forechecker to evade the pressure, extend his time with the puck and make a powerful drive up the ice before either carrying the puck up himself or moving it up to an open teammate. I really appreciated how effortlessly and consistently he was able to deceptively shake forecheckers on his defensive zone retrievals as well, scanning prior to his touches and calmly moving pucks to open targets to facilitate the breakout. He combined his high-end lateral mobility with strong anticipatory habits to kill a plethora of plays in transition that stymied the opponents rush attack and initiate a quick counterattack. I came away very impressed with Deanovich’s work atop the offensive blueline where he would consistently leverage his lateral mobility to pull pucks off the wall and walk the line with his head up, always staying calm under pressure to assess his options and either fire a hard low shot from the point or distribute shrewdly to extend the offensive zone sequence.

Deanovich was the leader on the back end of this Chicago team, displaying sound defensive zone play while also contributing heavily on the offensive side of the puck. He was often getting in opposing shooter’s way with an active defensive stick, deflecting shot attempts away from the net whether that was in transition, tracking players across the blue line and keeping a tight gap, or during extended possessions in his own end where he used his footwork to quickly close out on opponents and recover on broken plays. His offensive success at this event was a result of his high volume shooting from the blue line that led directly to a handful of goals and chances for his team. He was excellent at placing his heavy point shots, often sifting them through traffic to find his teammates sticks or get a low shot to the net to create second chance opportunities from around the blue paint. He’s a player who plays with a lot of confidence on the ice and looks to be a difference maker on both ends.

Playing with some good speed with the puck, Caleb Deanovich was one of the leading offensive catalysts for his team across the camp. His speed around the perimeter of the offensive zone, along with quick reads and hands, shooting off passes to open teammates through the middle allowed him to apply pressure, and set teammates up in dangerous scoring areas consistently. His acceleration in tight spaces, along with explosiveness cutting laterally, whether it be making a quick inside move in a 1-on-1 to attack the middle lane of the offensive zone or pushing the puck wide and around a man in transition, or upon exiting his defensive zone. He reacted well to incoming forecheckers, making quick breakout passes, both short and long, he was calm and quick to make decisions, capable of skating his way out of trouble, along with forwarding the puck up ice accurately. Some strong pinches in the offensive zone allowed him to further contribute offensively, hemming the puck in, forcing more pressure on his opponents, and even finding some time and space to shoot the puck on net himself.

Playing a similar role to Bobby McGinn, Caleb Deanovich was a solid puck moving defender with great reads, puck touches, and playmaking ability from the blueline. One of his greatest strengths in the offensive zone was the ability to consistently find open ice to put himself in positions to receive passes and always be there to support his forwards as an option when pressured. He played a very structured, calm, and organized offensive game, moved the puck quickly and firmly, making plays with his head up and feet moving, he was able to funnel pucks from high-to-low very quickly, spreading out defenders and taking advantage of sloppy coverage around the goalmouth. He had some nice defensive moments as well, denying attempts to the middle with a lengthy reach and some good anticipation, he was tough to get around thanks to the mobility and stick checking prowess.

An electric force from the blueline, Caleb Deanovich was the heartbeat from the blueline when it came to moving the puck and creating chances from high in the zone. His lateral mobility and quickness made him very difficult to contain as he walked the line. On several plays he was able to lull defenders into a false sense of security with some good fakes through his shoulders and hands, only to quickly explode into the middle lane and into some prime-time ice to get a shot on goal. If there was no play to be made, he was able to execute some very slippery twists and turns under pressure, slipping away from defenders with little room to work with, maintaining possession and keeping things going in the offensive zone. He picked up an assist on the 4-4 tying goal as he utilized his big shot from the line to hammer a puck on net, getting blocked in the process the speed of his shot created a massive rebound that fell to Tyler Cooper. Rounding out his game, Deanovich found space through the neutral zone on a consistent basis, moving fluidly through crowds with great speed. His edgework and speed as a whole was so strong that at times he made other good skaters on the Jr. Mounties look simply mediocre as he navigated his way around pressure exiting his zone and heading up ice.

Deanovich had himself another great game in this tournament. It started in his own end, where he made a couple of really nice breakout passes. His smooth skating and pinpoint accuracy helped transition the puck up the ice effectively. He was calm under pressure and made smart decisions that got things moving in the right direction. On the power play, he was excellent as well. His ability to walk the blue line and distribute the puck with precision was impressive. He also had a few well-placed wrist shots from the point that were clearly aimed for deflections, giving his teammates quality looks in front of the net.

Caleb Deanovich was another key part of the Chicago Reapers blueline in their victory, making strong plays at both ends of the ice, highlighted by his effective skating style that put him in positions to succeed on a consistent basis. On the powerplay he did a great job at moving the puck, extremely evasive and deceptive through his edgework and agility, he can change the direction of his momentum and bail out of plays very well to fool defenders as they pressure him, utilizing quick hands and quick puck movements as well to push-and-pull opponents. He picked up an assist on the 2-0 goal as he sent a pass over to atop the circles with a quick read. His ability to change direction quickly and get going in a hurry made him effective at matching pace of opponents on the defensive side of things. He was tough to shake along with won many races to pucks as opponents dumped it in from center ice. A good display of his skill and skating prowess in this one to lead his team to the semi-finals.

Deanovich took some time to find his footing, but once he settled in, he played like his usual self. He was excellent at jumping into the play and helping create odd-man rushes, adding an extra layer of offense for his team. His presence in the offensive zone was also notable, as his vision and passing from the blue line were outstanding, setting up teammates with high-quality opportunities. Additionally, his wrist shot was a major weapon, as he consistently released it with power, making it tough for goalies to control and often creating prime rebound opportunities for his teammates.

It took a while for Deanovich to get going in this one, but once he did you saw a defender who can really leverage his high-end tool kit to drive his teams transition game from the backend. The skating was the crux of his success throughout this game, utilizing his edgework to peel back on regroups if he didn’t like what saw, reassess his options and work the puck up the ice. There was one moment in this game where he completely toyed with the opposition by skating the puck up ice up through the neutral zone and when he noticed he had no space to enter the offensive zone, he peeled back and maneuvered around a couple more defenders before working his way into space and executing the controlled entry. On DZ retrievals he often opted to wheel the puck out from behind the net, utilizing powerful crossovers and his lengthy stride to separate from forechecking pressure and exit the zone with control using his feet before moving the puck up to a forward. In the offensive zone I liked how he was able to get pucks on net by curling and dragging the puck around opponents from the point to create shooting lanes for himself.

Caleb Deanovich made himself known thanks to make quick, aggressive, plays in the defensive end, stripping opponents of the puck, and using some good acceleration and shiftiness to escape the defensive end, carry the puck up the ice, and establish a bit of rush offense for his team. If the ice was put in front of him, Deanovich had no second-thoughts about going for a skate, carrying the puck well and moving it with good head-up plays as he attacked through the neutral, and offensive zone(s). When in tight quarters and with opponents barreling down on him, he showed quick thinking on his feet, utilizing his hands and feet to skate out of trouble, and at times, seemingly effortlessly escape pressure and move up ice. Firing some shots on goal here-and-there, he has a shooting threat from the line, capping off his offensive abilities seen in this one.

I first noticed his posture when driving back into his end on a puck race and how there are tweaks that can be made to how much he bends over. Other than that, his decision making was sound in all three zones. He was pinching up into the play properly in a cycle, setting up passes well through the neutral zone, and building momentum through his edges quickly in order to react with a depth of stride and cut. He made one really nice stretch pass that I liked too.

I liked Deanovich’s physical presence in this game but also his overall defensive presence as well. Early on, he was looking to anticipate opponents passes and step up on players entering the zone trying to get involved physically and set a tone for his team. When defending, he was good at closing out the space of the puck carrier and following up with contact to take them away from the play. I liked his compete level and the confidence he played with and was a menace in board battles where on one shift, he bull rushed two opponents and managed to push them back and get the puck out of the zone right after.