Terrance fits in nicely for U.S. at U

The 2023 NHL Scouting Combine presented by adidas is taking place this week at KeyBank Center and HarborCenter in Buffalo. The combine will allow NHL teams an opportunity to conduct interviews and provide physical and medical assessments of the top prospects eligible for the 2023 Upper Deck NHL Draft. NHL.com will bring you all the sights and sounds from the event.

BUFFALO -- Carey Terrance didn't know what to expect when he got the call to join the United States at the 2023 IIHF Under-18 World Championship in Switzerland after his season with Erie in the Ontario Hockey League ended in March.

The 18-year-old center of Akwesasne, New York, was joining a group of players that he knew of, but not personally.

"I was fortunate to get the call from USA Hockey to go to Switzerland with them since my OHL team, Erie, didn't qualify for the OHL playoffs," Terrance said. "I was there in Michigan a week before they left for the tournament and that was big.

"Obviously, it's not easy for me and that team was playing together for two years, so it wasn't easy on them. They didn't know me, and I knew of them, but not personally. But they kind of took my hand, brought me into their circle ... so a lot of credit goes to them for bringing me in and it was a great time. We won gold."

Terrance (6-foot, 175 pounds), No. 38 on NHL Central Scouting's final ranking of North American skaters presented by BioSteel, was even playing in a top-six role on a line with Oliver Moore (No. 8) and Ryan Fine.

"We were all happy to see him come over; he's a really good player, a really good kid," Moore said. "When he introduced himself, you could tell that from the start. I think everyone was kind of ready for him to come in and we all embraced it. He's a really fast player, hard on pucks, and I played on his line and he was really easy to play with."

Terrance tied for the Erie lead with 47 points (30 goals, 17 assists) in 67 games, and had six points (two goals, four assists) in seven games for the United States at the U-18 Worlds.

He has 20 NHL club interviews this week at the NHL Scouting Combine presented by adidas, and has worn an Erie polo shirt and USA Hockey polo shirt on different days.

Terrance said only hockey players would understand the appreciation of a new player joining a team prior to the biggest international tournament of their lives.

"That's how hockey players are ... everyone's friends," Terrance said. "To be honest, it was nerve-wracking at first. When they all came up to me, introduced themselves and kind of created conversation, then it kind of eased my nerves and it was all go from there."

Andrew Cristall of Kelowna in the Western Hockey League has a good activity to remain in shape during the off season in North Vancouver.

He joins locals Connor Bedard (Regina, WHL) and Kent Johnson (Columbus Blue Jackets) in an inline skating league that meets each Wednesday at the Karen Magnussen Arena.

"It's awesome being able to play with Connor and Kent," Cristall said. "They're both pretty sick on the wheels. I'd say Bedard's as good at inline as he is on the ice. He's been playing for a while and the puck is lighter, so I think he shoots it even harder, which is absurd."

Cristall, No. 15 on NHL Central Scouting's final ranking of North American skaters, led Kelowna with 39 goals and 95 points in 54 regular-season games this season. He plays on a line with Bedard, the projected No. 1 pick in the 2023 Upper Deck NHL Draft, in the inline league.

"We kind of spread out the lines," he said. "I'm usually with Connor and Kent's with my brother.

"I think inline hockey is obviously a great way to kind of keep learning and getting better at hockey. There's a lot of things that you can take inline and add into your game but it's also neat to go out there and have some fun in the summer, hang out with your buddies, and still be competitive."

Andrew Cristall (left) and Connor Bedard playing inline hockey

Nick Lardis saw a jump in production and a rise in the rankings after being acquired by Hamilton from Peterborough in a four-player trade and two draft picks on Jan. 7.

"I think the trade went great for both teams but I think a big thing for myself was just getting the opportunity in my draft year to really showcase my greatest strengths ... my speed, skating ability and creative play in the offensive zone," Lardis said. "I thought I did a great job with that, showing that in Hamilton over the last half-season and in the playoffs."

Lardis (5-10, 165) moved to No. 27 on Central Scouting's final ranking of North American skaters after being projected as a third-round pick (No. 96) at the midterm ranking in January. He had 46 points (25 goals, 21 assists) and 133 shots on goal in 33 games with Hamilton after having 19 points (12 goals, seven assists) and 80 shots in 36 games with Peterborough this season.

He finished among the top five in seven of 10 on-ice tests that allowed players the opportunity to showcase their individual strengths while gauging their fitness and skill levels at the CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game in Vancouver on Jan. 25.

Lardis has 26 NHL club interviews at the combine this week.

"Just getting more opportunity and in different roles, the penalty kill, more power-play time," Lardis said. "Getting that kind of impact player role that I really wanted. The Hamilton coaches gave me a great opportunity and I thought it did a great job of running with it over the second half."

Brayden Yager of Moose Jaw (WHL) feels ready for the first big test of the combine when he hops on the stationary bike to do the VO2Max test on Friday.

The test provides scouts and general managers an idea of a particular player's ability to recover from a shift and ability to go out for another while continuing to perform at a high level.

"We didn't have the masks set up at home, but we did it on the air bike without a mask and it was still pretty hard when you're going up through different watts that you have to go to," Yager said. "Our trainer ran us through it. I'm kind of looking forward to all the tests. I think it's kind of exciting to have that little competition between your buddies."

Yager (5-11, 166), No. 11 on Central Scouting's final ranking of North American skaters, had 78 points (28 goals, 50 assists) in 67 regular-season games and 16 points (six goals, 10 assists) in 10 WHL playoff games. He was awarded the Brad Hornung Memorial Trophy as the WHL's most sportsmanlike player for 2022-23.

"I was kind of just viewed as just a straight goal scorer last season, which isn't a bad thing, but I think I kind of just wanted to round out my game," Yager said. "Offensively, adding the playmaking ability and being a little bit more dynamic, finding different ways to produce offense, was important."

Photo credits: Jeep DiCioccio, Erie; IIHF

---

Listen: New episode of NHL Draft Class