Sky's The Limit For DU Recruit

(above) Most NHL Scouting Services project DU recruit Joe Colborne going in the First Round of the NHL Draft

From: Alberta Junior Hockey League Website
by Larry Fisher

National Hockey League scouts are salivating over Joe Colborne’s size and skill.

The Camrose Kodiaks 17-year-old sophomore forward stands almost 6′5″ and weighs in around 200 pounds, and while he possesses a raw package that leads many to dub him a project pick, the promising prospect is expected to be selected in the first round of the 2008 NHL Entry Draft in Ottawa this upcoming June.

Drawing comparisons to the likes of Joe Thornton and Vincent Lecavalier in scouting circles, Colborne could potentially crack the top 10 with his stock continuing to rise reminiscent of Kyle Turris last year. Turris, another Junior A standout who starred for the BCHL’s Burnaby Express, shot up the draft charts with a strong showing at the inaugural World Junior A Challenge and was subsequently taken third overall by the Phoenix Coyotes. Colborne has achieved similar success, helping team Canada West capture its second-consecutive gold medal at this year’s World Junior A Challenge in Trail and Nelson, B.C. in early November and more recently displaying his talents at the 2007 Heartland Credit Union CJAHL Prospects Game in Winkler, Man. on Dec. 12 where he picked up a pair of assists in a losing cause as his Team West fell 5-3 to Team East.

Still, Colborne managed to leave a lasting impression on the scouts in attendance, and likely cemented his status as a consensus first rounder with McKeen’s pegging him the 12th best prospect in North America, the Red Line Report projecting him to go 20th overall, and International Scouting Services slotting him 29th among draft-eligible players. The Central Scouting Service, meanwhile, will be releasing their mid-term rankings in January and presently have Colborne listed as the lone Canadian Junior A player in their ‘A’ group of prospects predicted to go in the first or second round on draft day.

“Everybody is talking about Joe as a possible first round draft choice,” confirmed Kodiaks coach and general manager Boris Rybalka, adding Colborne drew rave reviews with his performance at the Prospects Game. “The word back was the scouts were very impressed and amazed with how Joe handles the puck in tight quarters for his size. That was the big thing that caught a lot of people’s attention, just that he has very soft hands for a big man.

“It’s entirely up to Joe, but I personally believe he could keep popping himself up the draft rankings and potentially push himself into the top 10 if he keeps playing the way he can. For him to be ranked where he is right now, that is impressive in its own right and a credit to him, but the next few months will tell how high he could go.”

In the midst of a life-altering year, Colborne is almost in awe of the attention he has been getting, but at the same time he is trying to take it in stride, knowing nothing will be handed to him at any stage of his career.

“There is some pressure, but it is no more pressure than I put on myself to perform and to help the team win,” said Colborne, who had amassed 40 goals and 100 points in 82 total AJHL games heading into this past weekend - averaging 1.8 points-per-game this season, including two hat tricks and four game-winning goals. “Ever since you were little, you always dream of getting drafted and playing in the NHL. I would just love to hear my name get called, that would be unbelievable, and I would be happy with wherever and to whoever I went.

“But I try to block all that draft stuff out the best I can and just focus on playing my game. Sometimes people come up and say something and I will be more surprised than they are.”

Passed over in the Western Hockey League’s 2005 Bantam Draft - ironically due to his size, standing just 5′8″ and playing for a tournament team at the time - Colborne finds humour in the fact he is now being touted as a top NHL prospect with untapped potential based solely on his size.

“It’s been quite a change. I’m still growing into my body and getting used to my height, but I’m starting to feel more comfortable with every game,” said Colborne, adding he is humbled by hearing his name in the same sentence as Thornton and Lecavalier, or even former Kodiak greats Mason Raymond and Dan Bertram. “I almost find it a little funny right now that people would compare me to those guys because they have done so much in their careers, but those are the kind of guys I look up to.

“Hopefully one day I will make it to the NHL and those comparisons will be pretty close, but that is still a long way away. I have a lot of work to do to get where they are.”

Despite owning the one attribute that cannot be taught, Colborne has plenty of room for improvement in rounding out his game to rival the NHL’s elite players. He still needs to add an element here or there to dominate the next level, the biggest being a physical dimension.

“He has to become a complete player by playing physical and finishing his checks,” said Rybalka. “That is something Joe is really working on this season, it’s starting to come, and the scouts are taking notice too. He is already a very good hockey player because he handles the puck well and skates well, but now throw in the body contact and it will be pretty tough to stop a guy like that at any level.”

Colborne and the Kodiaks are looking to repeat as AJHL champions this season, and they are certainly the early favourites, sitting with a league-best 29-4-3 record and ranked Number 1 in the nation. Committed to the University of Denver for next season, Colborne will be a key player for Camrose down the stretch and will have to avoid the distraction of his draft status, while keeping the Kodiaks his Number 1 priority.

“I’m not at all concerned about that. It comes on one shoulder and flows off the other, there’s no big head with Joe,” said Rybalka. “Joe is very level-headed, he comes from a great family, and they keep him well grounded and remind him that, ‘yeah it’s great you have accolades or comparisons, but my name is still Joe Colborne and I have to go out and show why Joe Colborne deserves to be drafted.’”