Vitals:Position: Forward
Year in School: Junior
Shoots Left
Height: 6-5
Weight: 222
Hometown: Neenah, WI
Previous Team: Indiana (USHL) in 05/06
NHL Considerations: John received interest from a few teams in the off season to sign as a free agent. He attended the Minnesota Wild prospect camp over the summer.
07/08 Stats: 40 games, 8-5-13, +4, 49 PIM
06/07 Stats: 18 games, 1-2-3, E, 21 PIM
08/09 Role: Grind Line, PP
07/08 Recap: John was by far the most improved player on the team last season, and was voted so by the team following the season. He went from a awkward looking forward lost on the ice, to an important part of the "grind line" and scorer for the Badgers. You can't teach size, the one thing John definately has, but he definately make huge progress learning the things the coaching taught him. John's best highlight was the out of no where breakaway speed he showed against Denver in the regional when he used his long strides to pull away and score on Mannino. One season a part time player, the next season he is receiving interest from NHL franchises.
08/09 Thoughts: Where can John take his game this season? I'm still hoping Eaves leaves the "grind line" of Mitchell/Dolan/Grotting together. Depsite their obvious ability to play as a checking/disruption line, I think they can notch more goals this season too. Leading the way in that effort could be Big John. John needs to use his body a little more too this season. One article labeled his as a wrecking ball, while I haven't seen that yet, I would like to.
Prediction: 34 games, 10-4-14
Photo from uwbadgers.com
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