The Bantam Elite League does a good job projecting a year out who the best 100+ players are in Minnesota each season. Each season, twenty to thirty players will stand out. Sometimes it is easy to guess who they will be. Last year, Austin Pratt ('99, Red Deer - WHL) had 12 points in seven games. This year, predictably Ben Brinkman stands out each time he hits the ice for the Wild. But just as there some top players standing out, there are also new players that make a name for themselves.
Last year, Ray Christy busted out of his Highland Central shell and had 18 points in 10 regular season games. Christy went on to play for St. Thomas Academy in the State Tourney as a Freshman. Luke Lamaster had 20 points in the BEL last Summer on the blue line. This past Winter he played Varsity on Duluth East as a ninth grader in the state tourney. Chase Hartje from Bemidji was a star defenseman in the BEL last year on the championship team Rangers. This year he made it to state with Bemidji and was a second round pick of the Des Moines Buccaneers of the USHL.
This year, twenty to thirty more players have jumped off the ice at us here at YHH. Any time we run into college or junior scouts we get different names thrown at us who they "like". Here are five that they all seem to like. How do we know? When we ask, "which guy?" They say, "THAT GUY!"
Tonka's Jack Bayless
Jack Bayless is an accomplished skater with a great nose for the puck. On every shift he seems to always get the puck on his stick and make some type of positive play for his team. He's the type of player coaches need to be aware of if they hope to win.
So far he has 11 points on 8G/3A playing for the Bolts in the BEL. A lot of players play fast and make plays, but there are a rare few that do it as consistently as Bayless has done this Summer.
One BEL coach said of Bayless, "he's so quick, I'd love to have a guy like that on my team..." The Minnetonka ninth grader will be a Bantam player this Winter that will be fun to watch.
Edina's Ben Brinkman
Ben Brinkman has long been considered the best player his age in Minnesota. Holding that high of a standard in a class of hockey players for as long as he has is an amazing feat. There are very few players who have streaked across their youth hockey career to hold that distinction. There were guys named Crowley, Spehar and Rau that did...but for sure not many.
Brinkman was a Wiz Wyatt Winner as a second year PeeWee and Bantam Player of the Year Finalist as a first year Bantam this past year. After a great Spring and Summer he was selected to the US National Camp in New York in July. In Buffalo he showed the top college and junior scouts why he is one of the best 2000 birth year players in the US.
This Summer in the BEL he has shown amazing speed and skill without missing a step playing against the best 2019 players in the state. Brinkman seems to have an answer for any type of situation. If you want defense, he will shut you down. If you want a little nasty - he will get in your face.
Moorhead's Ethan Frisch
One of the best parts of covering the BEL is getting multiple looks at top players from the North. This Summer we've gotten to see the exploits of Ryder Donovan and Landon Langenbrunner on the Devils. We have gotten to see really how good Ryan Ullan and Kaleb Johnson are in the nets. And we've met some new faces from the north like the Baker twins from Cloquet and Tanner Mack from East Grand. These kids are highly skilled and play really hard.
But the one player from the North that does the "wow" things is Ethan Frisch from Moorhead. Each game he flashes skills that God only gives out to a rare few. He is not the biggest defenseman, but he has a rocket of a shot - but what is most impressive is his quick release. Speaking of quick, Frisch has jets on his skates as well. When making a rush, he fools opposing defense all the time with a stop and go move that is really hard to stop. He will rush the puck to the opposing blue line and slow down for a second, giving himself a second to supplant a turbo pack and then he drives fast and hard around the defender for a goal scoring play...it is really fun to watch.
Frisch will be a dynamic Bantam this year for the Spuds on both sides of the ice as Moorhead will look to get back to state again this year.
Until this Spring and Summer, Roseau's Ben Helgeson has always been like the Loch Ness Monster...always heard about, but never seen. Two years ago, he was injured as second year PeeWee during the Rams visit to the Twin Cities. But all reports were really good...even from Warroad people (Section 8 Humor).
We got a brief glimpse of Helgeson in the Spring of '14 in Plymouth. He was one of the best players on the ice - a sheet that included future BEL stars Jake Hale, Grant Silianoff, Ben Doherty and Jack Westlund. He had power and hands that were as good as advertised.
Last season, YHH never crossed path with the first year Bantam, but the stories and scout reviews were very positive. This Summer we've seen eight games so far - each game he displays great skill and energy that make him a joy to watch. He's a northern version of Jack Jensen. No-nonsense type of player. He has the ability to shake and bake if he has to, but rarely wastes his time on the fancy stuff. He'd prefer to get to space and show off his rocket of a shot. After ten games, he as 15 points on 10G/5A.
One BEL coach said to YHH, "how didn't that kid picked to go to NY???" referring to him not being selected to the US National Camp near Buffalo, NY. I said, you need to remember, Casey Mittelstadt did not get picked to the Spring Festival D6 team after racking up 70 points in 44 first year Bantam games in 2014. Fifteen months later, Mittelstadt proved everyone on that committee wrong in spades.
Rochester Fans Celebrate their Quarterfinal win over Edina last year
Watching players in the '19 class is a great honor. YHH started in the 2011-12 season. These skaters and goalies were second year Squirts that season. Jack Jensen has long been considered a top player at this age. The Edina Power Forward has always been a mainstay and force for the Hornet youth teams. Playing with Ben Brinkman, Grant Silianoff and many other greats over the years (Jett Jungels, Mike Vorlicky, etc), Jensen rarely got the recognition that he likely deserved.
This Summer, after not qualifying for the US National Camp in New York, Jensen went back to the basics and continued to grow - both in size and ability. One BEL referee said of Jensen, "I've seen him play for years, he's really coming on - it's fun to see..." What the ref is seeing is a great no frills, punch you in the mouth hockey style. Despite having good hands, Jensen does less stick handling and more power and passing. Besides being a great shooter, Jensen is a sneaky good passer - an aspect of his game that will make him popular player this Winter on whatever team he ends up playing for.