USA Prospects to Put Skills on Display

The fifth annual CCM/USA Hockey All-American Prospects Game took place Thursday night in Philadelphia.

The game featured 42 of the top U.S. born players eligible for the 2017 NHL Entry Draft. Of those 42 players, 35 are on the 2016-17 Central Scouting Futures List, which means they have the potential to be selected in the first three rounds of the 2016-17 NHL Entry Draft.

The players represent 18 different states and six different hockey leagues. There are 33 players that have roots in the USHL, which is the top junior league in the United States and it prepares players to compete in NCAA Division I programs and even the NHL. There are 30 players verbally committed to NCAA hockey programs.

Mark Howe (Photo: Centpacrr at en.wikipedia)

The coaches for the game were be John LeClair and Mark Howe.The two are former Philadelphia Flyers and U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame Members. Howe spent 16 seasons in the NHL and 10 of them with the Flyers, while LeClair also spent 10 seasons with the Flyers.

John LeClair (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)

The rosters for each team include some notable players such as Cayden Primeau, son of former NHL player Keith Primeau, who is one of the goaltenders for Team LeClair. Kyle MacLean, son of former NHL player John MacLean, was on Team LeClair. Casey Mittelstadt and Kailer Yamamoto were on the Team Howe roster. For the full rosters and more information on the game, you can visit www.allamericanprospectsgame.com

This is the first time in the five years of the game that it has been held in Philadelphia. The CCM/USA All-American Prospects Game is one of two events being held in Philadelphia as part of the Flyers 50th Anniversary season. The other event will be the induction of the nominees into the US Hockey Hall of Fame. It was previously held in Pittsburgh, New York and Buffalo.