Through the early stages of this game Hudson Routh appeared to be one of the more impactful players for Team Navy. Although he was called for a penalty on the play, his early backchecking effort surpassed that of most of his line-mates. He worked hard to gain position over his opponents and neutralize them when possible. In traffic, he jockeyed with his opponents for a clear sight at the puck and battled to make himself available as an outlet. I was impressed with his ability to make quick work of freeing himself for a pass, and making use of the puck, showing no signs of distress from the traffic or pressure. In general, for a smaller player he did an excellent job getting under or over his opponents to give himself the advantage that he needed. He was a hound on his opponents for possession, using discreet stick lifts, and quick feet to limit their decision making time. He uses an active and adaptive stick to take away passing lanes from his opponents, continually reading and adjusting to their posture and in all likelihood, their eyes. He carries the puck with his head up and doesn’t seem to overcomplicate things – getting to open ice and identifying his next move efficiently. He has very quick hands and is able to manipulate his posture at will in order to make an off-balance pass or powerful wrist shot. He showed great agility on his heels that enabled him to make split second adjustments when the direction of the play changed, steering himself towards the puck to recover long before most others were able to adapt. His stride does seem to be a bit unfinished in terms of how he extends his power stride. I think there’s so much to like about his game and this minor detail is something that can certainly be improved to maximize his power.

Confident and skilled both in terms of his skating and puck skill, Hudson Routh might have one of the highest ceilings of any player in this game. The power in his stride was pretty clearly illustrated on a play where he attempted to close the gap on a breakaway when one of his defenders had pinched low. While he was ultimately unable to break up the play, his effort and ability to close the gap was certainly recognized. He tried very hard to make skillful transitions at various points in this game, but the Mid-Fairfield defenders were usually able to impede him in some form or another. While he showed several signs of high puck skill, and used the entire breadth of the ice on several occasions his tendency to try beating defensemen with a deke rather than his superior stride seemed to halt his progress. When he did ultimately opt for a simple move to the outside, and leaned into his skating strengths he was usually successful and able to create a scoring opportunity in some capacity.