Prospect Development Camp Review

The Penguins' 2010 Prospect Development camp wrapped up Saturday afternoon with a scrimmage between teams gray and black that involved periods of 5-on-5 play, then a period of 4-on-4 play. In the end, gray prevailed as Joey Haddad and Nick Petersen's goals were one more than the tally Zack Sill scored for the black team.

More importantly, who stood out and who didn't during the camp as a whole?

Eric Tangradi finished the camp as well as he started it, which is to say he was one of the best players on the ice. That's pretty much what the Penguins were hoping to see out of him as he prepares for training camp with the big club in the fall --- a camp which could potentially land him on the NHL roster, depending on how he performs.

The biggest knock on Tangradi is that he's not physical enough for a guy his size. At 6' 4" and about 220 pounds, I'm sure team brass will be watching in that camp whether he uses his body in the abrasive way he's capable of.

Simon Despres, last year's first round draft pick, was another star in camp. After showing just glmpses of his potential at last year's camp, Despres did what Pittsburgh was hoping he would do, and that's grow by leaps and bounds this past year.

Despres is not far from being NHL ready and, when he gets to the league, he's likely to be an impact player on the blueline.

The fact that Tangradi and Despres were among the brighter lights among this year's prospects has to bring a smile to the a face of Pens' GM Ray Shero.

Another guy who had a really solid camp was defenseman Brian Strait.

Strait's game is a lot like Rob Scuderi's was at the same age -- steady and smart. He'll likely play in Wilkes-Barre at least one more season, but if he sticks to what he does best, he can have a solid NHL career in Pittsburgh as a dependable defenseman.

Probably the most interesting surprise from camp was the play of undrafted free agent Alex Smigelski.

Smigelski played at Division III Williams College last year, scoring a league-high 17 goals to go along with 28 points. He's got decent skill and good speed and I thought it was notable that the Penguins paired him with Tangradi -- their best winger prospect -- for most of the entire camp.

What Pittsburgh's intentions are regarding whether or not they feel Smigelski can offer some depth to the organization after his performance this past week will be revealed when fall training camp invitations are sent.

As far as camp disappointments are concerned, defenseman Robert Bortozzo has to be near the top of that list.

Bortozzo -- one of the few untouchable Penguin prospects at this year's trade deadline -- struggled at times in this year's camp, which was a stark contrast from his effort last year. The question for him now is whether he can put that behind him, have a solid camp with the big club in the fall, then be one of the best players in Wilkes-Barre for the baby Penguins this year.

Another guy who didn't impress in camp was last year's 3rd round pick, Ben Hanowski.

Hanowski is still honing his game at the college level, but he was touted as a natural goal scorer when he was drafted out of high school in Minnesota. He's struggling to transition those offensive talents into production against bigger, faster players.

This year's first round pick -- Beau Bennett -- is in somewhat of the same boat. He, too, had a hard time against the stronger players in camp, but the difference is that he is one year behind Hanowski and still has to transition himself to college first. Plus, his offensive upside is higher than Hanowski's.

All in all, it was a good camp for the best and brightest prospects in the Penguins' organization, as it usually is. It always gets you excited to get a closer look and examination of the players the team is bringing through the pipeline.

More later this week.