Photo Credit: Chicago Steel
Sam Colangelo is coming off of his first full season with the USHL’s Chicago Steel. Steel general manager Ryan Hardy built a great Steel roster last season. Colangelo, Brendan Brisson, Sean Farrell, Owen Power, Luke Reid, Mathieu De St. Phalle, Gunnarwolfe Fontaine, Matthew Coronato and Matthew Samoskevich provided Hardy with a lot of explosive talent. Colangelo was third in points for the Steel as he managed to tally 58 points in 44 games played.
Next season, the North Shore native (Stoneham, Massachusetts) will be returning back to the Commonwealth to play for Northeastern University. For Northeastern fans, they can expect a strong power forward, who will carry the cycle well. His play-style is quite similar to Aidan McDonough (Vancouver Canucks prospect).
Given that Colangelo will be attending Northeastern, there is a strong possibility that the Montréal Canadiens will have him on their radar. Over the years, the Canadiens have scooped up quite a bit of Northeastern talent including Cayden Primeau (’17 Draft), Jordan Harris (’18 Draft) and Jayden Struble (’19 Draft).
Player Profile
D.O.B – December 26, 2001
Nationality – United States of America
Draft Eligibility – 2020
Height –6’2
Weight –205 lbs
Position – Right Wing
Handedness – Right
Colangelo’s Style Of Play
When you watch Colangelo, you will notice his affinity for running the cycle. He loves doing the dirty work and has no problem doing so. While he is not the flashiest player on the ice, he loves to skate with the puck throughout the offensive zone to either find the right moment to strike or deliver a pass to an open teammate. If you are looking for a workhorse, Colangelo is your man.
In the clip below from Tony Ferrari of DobberProspects, you will see just how dangerous Colangelo can be in the offensive zone. Colangelo circles the zone and exhibits crisp crosses and edge work to glide his way to the crease.
Outside of his superb effort running the cycle, Colangelo has a good shot especially when being handed one-timer passes. He seems to drain one-timers at ease. Colangelo has also demonstrated that he can score from across the offensive zone. In the shot chart below from InStat Hockey, you can see how successful Colangelo was from across the offensive zone this season at getting the puck in the back of the net.
While he has been an effective goal scorer for the Chicago Steel, there are elements in his shooting that need to be pointed out. One, a decent amount of his goals came in low-danger situations like odd man rushes. But, that does not mean that Colangelo is not capable to evading a tight gap and pushing his way to the crease to score. While he did not score in the below clip from Joey Padmanabhan of EP Rinkside, here is a good example of his capability to battle in a tight gap and make a smart shot.
The other thing to note about his shot is that occasionally Colangelo has to implement a wider wind-up to get his shot on net from range. With Colangelo’s positioning, there are moments in which he is outside of the perimeter and looks to get the puck on net, but his release is not light and he needs a much longer wind-up to get the puck moving.
In the defensive zone, he hovers around the boards and the blue-line. He attempts to poke-check at open ice when the opposition is looking to carry the puck from the blue-line up to the slot. But, Colangelo’s poke-checking will miss the mark and will not be aligned with the puck. That is an area of his game that could use improvement.
When you look at this skating, you will notice that Colangelo is not the fastest skater on the ice. Yet, his edges and crossovers are both strong. His edges and crosses are displayed often and perhaps he can work on using his crossovers to help propel his speed.
Lastly, his passing and stick-handling are in fine form. When Colangelo has the puck on his stick, he does a great job of securing the puck and not coughing it up. In addition, his tape-to-tape feeds are crisp and accurate. Plus, he is capable of delivering cross ice passes from one half-wall to the other.
Comparison
Anders Lee, Left Wing, New York Islanders
Colangelo’s ability to carry the cycle and offensive framework remind me of Anders Lee of the Islanders. Both wingers are strong power forwards who enjoy running the play in the offensive zone and looking for opportunities to strike.
stats from InStat Hockey and EliteProspects
Prospect report written by Josh Tessler. If you would like to follow Josh on Twitter, his handle is @JoshTessler_.
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