Zach Hamill

Ok, time to start pumping up one of the best rookies / 16-year-olds in the WHL...

Right now the top North American rookie scoring leader in the WHL is Silvertips forward Zach Hamill. The Port Coquitlam, B.C. native has impressed many with his poise and play making ability as a 16 year old playing in his first full season in the WHL. Hamill is ranked 3rd overall in rookie scoring and 2nd on the Silvertips hockey club with 5 goals and 16 assists for 21 points. The Silvertips 1st round selection (3rd overall) in the 2003 WHL Bantam Draft also is tied for the team lead with a +9 rating and the team leader with 16 assists. Already this season, Hamill has registered two or more points in 7 games. Hamill will represent Team Pacific in the 2004 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge in Lethbridge, Alberta during the Christmas break.

Watch out for this kid! Between him and Brady Calla, we have some great years ahead...

... top North American rookie scoring leader in the WHL ...

... ranked 3rd overall in rookie scoring ...

:dunno:

Numbers 1 & 2 are Europeans...

I've only seen him once this year, on top of a few times last year in the playoffs, but wow is he impressive. He seems to be dangerous all the time, and he has very good instincts in the offensive zone. It's early, but he is definitely a player to watch for in the 2007 draft. He looks to be a top 10 calibre talent.

I look forward to seeing him on Friday, unless he will already be gone to the U17s by then. Anyone know when players leave for that?

I've seen him play for poco a few times. Very talented guy.

I'm not sure when they leave for that, but the Tips have no less than 6 guys playing, so hopefully it not until after the break otherwise the Tips bench will be alonely place.

Rookie makes team GM think of Gretzky

By Jim Riley

Special to The Seattle Times

Zach Hamill still is a rookie in the Western Hockey League, but he has such poise and presence that he occasionally evokes the "G" comparison.

"His sense of anticipation is almost Gretzky-like," Everett Silvertips General Manager Doug Soetaert gushed about his 16-year-old center.

"You almost hate to say that, but he does have this spider sense of knowing where people are. He's a very special hockey player."

Soetaert doesn't note the resemblance between a young Wayne Gretzky and Hamill lightly.

"Zach is just an all-around good hockey player and is very valuable to us right now," Soetaert said. "When he gets older and naturally gets bigger and faster, he can dominate."

Hamill is no ordinary rookie. He got a full season of experience during Everett's run in the playoffs last year.

The Port Coquitlam, B.C., native took advantage of a league rule that allows underage players to compete in the playoffs and ended up in 24 Everett games last season.

So even though he is listed as a rookie, his Western Hockey League career now spans 55 games.

"I still have a lot of stuff to learn in this league, both offensively and defensively," Hamill said, before making a veteran move by deftly passing off praise to line mates Tyler Dietrich and Brady Calla.

"Last year in the playoffs, I was on the wing and only worried about scoring. I didn't really know anything about defense until this year."

Hamill has learned quickly and said he now takes considerable pride in his plus-minus rating, a system that awards each player a point if he's on the ice when his team scores and deducts one if the opposition scores.

So far this season, Hamill is at plus-11, one point behind Calla for the team lead.

"I'm really enjoying being on the plus side," Hamill said. "I know our system much better this year and don't have to try and think and play hockey at the same time. I can just react."

Soetaert selected Hamill in the first round of the 2003 bantam draft with the third overall pick. He said he would have taken him even if Everett had had the No. 1 pick.

"He's very quick to react, and his hand-eye coordination is phenomenal," Soetaert said. "He has above-average speed and is uncanny at anticipating where the play is going."

That ability seems to keep Hamill a stride ahead of the play. And at 5 feet 11 and 163 pounds, he's still growing, still getting better.

"He already knows what it takes to play at this level and is a cornerstone of our hockey team," Soetaert said. "All the [National Hockey League] scouts already know his name."