2024 USHL Draft Review: Madison Capitols

Ryan Sikes

Jun 6, 2024, 19:04

Ryan Sikes

Jun 6, 2024, 19:04

The Madison Capitols loaded up the blueline early in the 2024 USHL Phase I Draft and took another former NTDP forward in Phase II that they hope can breakout with a third year in the league.

(Kristian Epperson) Photo courtesy of Rena Laverty / USA Hockey's NTDP - 2024 USHL Draft Review: Madison Capitols

The Madison Capitols got a head start on next season when they signed defenseman Jet Kwajah to a tender agreement for the 2024-25 season. Kwajah, listed at 6-foot and 157 pounds, became just the second tender agreement signing in franchise history (Will Felicio).

The 2008-born blueliner was rated one of the best Canadian prospects ahead of the 2024 USHL Draft. As such, the Capitols were aware of the risk that Kwajah would go the OHL route instead. To be sure it was a good fit for both parties, Kwajah and his family were invited down to Madison to observe a couple of practices and be involved in some of the meetings.

"Just through the course of a few hours, it was refreshing to hear how motivated he was, his goals, and the dedication that he's put into the game so far, so just to get to know him as a person, I think that was really important to us," Capitols head coach and general manager Andy Brandt told The Hockey News.

"And then, the on-ice stuff, everyone has seen it. He's a big, rangy, smooth skating defenseman that has the ability to make plays under pressure. Given time and space, he can be real creative and offensive with the puck. For us, the on-ice stuff everyone sees is great, and we certainly love everything about his game. But I think after going through the process of just hearing about him and his path and his dedication and his goals, it was the right fit for both him and us."

As a result of signing Kwajah, the Capitols forfeited their first-round pick in the 2024 USHL Phase I Draft.

Madison went into the Phase I Draft with the approach of selecting a couple of young defensemen that could develop under associate head coach Tom Gilbert, who played over 600 games along the blueline in the National Hockey League.

With that in mind, Madison selected defenseman Christopher Baird-Gajdos with the 24th overall pick in the second round. The 16-year-old, listed at 6-foot-1 and 170 pounds, spent this past season with the Little Caesars 15U team. There, Baird-Gajdos finished with 12 goals and 27 assists, making his 39 points the second-most among defensemen on the team.

"With Chris, we loved his game," Brandt said of the pick. "You look at his size and his skating ability and what he can do; his hockey IQ is there. He has a poise and a calmness to his game where he makes things look easy under pressure. He doesn't get rattled or phased. So we're excited about the opportunity. I know he's an (2008-born prospect), but the opportunity for him to come in in main camp and see what he can do against a full slate of USHL players is exciting for us."

After loading up on the back end, the Capitols took a highly skilled forward in Maxim Dubé with the 31st overall pick in the third round. Dubé, who hails from Fort Coulonge, Quebec, and is listed at 5-foot-11 and 163 pounds, spent this past season with the Long Island Gulls 15U. There, he led the team with 90 points on 34 goals and 56 assists.

Given his skill set and point production, the Madison Capitols felt fortunate to have Dubé land in their lap with the pick.

"It was a no-brainer for us," Brandt said. "He was clearly, in our opinion, the best player left on the board at that time. His game, his quickness, and his elusiveness allow him to make players around him better and give him the ability to produce when he's on the ice. He's a dynamic player that can show flashes of real creativity offensively. We're excited to see how he comes in and does at main camp."

Here is a look at the Madison Capitols' entire 2024 USHL Phase I Draft class:

Round 1, Pick 9: Jet Kwajah, D (Tender)

Round 2, Pick 24: Christopher Baird-Gajdos, D

Round 3, Pick 31: Maxim Dubé, F

Round 5, Pick 68: Landon Amrhein, F

Round 5, Pick 69: Cameron Wilson, F

Round 6, Pick 84: Dominic Pajkic, D

Round 6, Pick 87: Liam Donnelly, F

Round 8, Pick 114: Tate Spaulding, F

Round 10, Pick 142: Mason Majewski, F

Round 10, Pick 144: Andrew Giguere, C

In the Phase II portion, the Capitols hope that lightning strikes twice with their selection of a U.S. National Team Development Program player taking a third year in the USHL after experiencing tremendous success with Austin Burnevik this past season.

With the ninth overall pick in the first round, Madison took forward Kristian Epperson, who began the year with the U18 team but primarily played with the U17 group in the second half of the season. The 18-year-old, ranked No. 201 overall among North American skaters by Central Scouting for the 2024 NHL Draft, finished this past season with a combined 23 points on nine goals and 14 assists.

With a strong season in Madison, Epperson could significantly boost his draft stock as a re-entry candidate next year if he goes undrafted this year.

"We know Kristian (Epperson) has offensive ability," Brandt said of the pick. "I don't think Kristian gets enough credit for his 200-foot game, and I don't necessarily think he gets enough credit for his motor and his compete. He's a highly, highly competitive kid. His work ethic day in, day out is relentless.

"So just from a standpoint of character wise, compete wise, and potential of what he can do and be given the opportunity of a top-six role, some power-play time, and even his ability to (penalty kill) and his hockey IQ, the expectation is for him to come in and be productive for us right from the start. What productive means will probably figure itself out throughout the year, just like it did for Austin (Burnevik)."

Following the selection of Epperson, Madison stayed within the forwards group and selected the highly skilled Ian Scherzer. The 18-year-old, who was born in Austria, played this past season for the Rögle BK J20 team in Sweden. There, the forward, listed at 6-foot and 181 pounds, tallied 11 points on two goals and nine assists in 35 games.

Committed to Miami University (Ohio), Madison leaned on former Tri-City Storm head coach Anthony Noreen, who is entering his first year as the RedHawks head coach in 2024-25 for drafting support.

"After the conversation with Anthony (Noreen) and the coaching staff there, we just thought it'd be a really good fit," Brandt said on drafting Scherzer. "His skating is next level. He's extremely smooth. He's extremely explosive in how he skates. He can get up and down the ice really, really well. We did a ton of video on him, and obviously the hockey IQ piece is important, and you can notice little things within his game on video that really stood out to us from a standpoint of understanding the game and playing the game the right way. For us here in Madison, we do want point-producing forwards, but we also want guys that understand the game. I think you hear across the board that the IQ piece is really important, and then you have a guy that has experience playing at different levels. I think that will be valuable in our locker room."

The Capitols also feel that they can get more offense out of Scherzer.

"That's the thing, and that's what was intriguing for us," Brandt said. "I think sometimes that offensive output is a direct result of opportunity, and that opportunity could come in many different ways. It's our job as coaches to try to put players in positions to succeed and allowing them to even struggle through.

"We can use Austin (Burnevik) as an example. He didn't come flying out of the gate the way he wanted to, but I think as he got acclimated and adjusted to what was a new role for (him) here in Madison, because he didn't play that role in the National Development Program. After the first quarter of the season, the first 10 games, you really saw him get comfortable in his new role, and he started to take off.

"That adjustment period—who knows what it looks like with Ian (Scherzer), but we do feel that his offensive ability is there. We just have to tap into it a little bit more, allow him a little more freedoms or whatever that may be, and play him with certain guys. Again, that's our job as a coaching staff to kind of help him figure that out and allow him the opportunity and time to do it."

Here is a look at the Madison Capitols' entire 2024 USHL Phase II Draft class:

Round 1, Pick 9: Kristian Epperson, F

Round 2, Pick 26: Ian Scherzer, F

Round 3, Pick 39: Leo Bergstrom, F

Round 3, Pick 42: Drew Waterfield, F

Round 4, Pick 52: Austin Moline, D

Round 4, Pick 54: Tyden Bergeson, F

Round 5, Pick 69: Sam Smith, F

Round 6, Pick 85: Alex Lunski, F

Round 8, Pick 116: Mason Roy, D

Round 9, Pick 131: Aron Jessli, F

Round 10, Pick 146: Cash Cruitt, G