FEATURE: Shlaine's a Hockey Sponge

Asked about Devils prospect Artem Shlaine, Ben Umhoefer was quick with a story.
Umhoefer is director of hockey at Shattuck-St. Mary's and coached Shlaine for two seasons ahead of his selection by the Devils.
According to Umhoefer, Shlaine is a bit of a sponge.
"There were times I thought he could have coached the team better than me," he said, only half in jest.
"He would always come in after (watching NHL games) the night before and say 'hey, I think we should try this, or try that."

Shlaine, a Russian-born center who has lived in the U.S. since high school, was taken 130th overall by the Devils last month. He's now at the University of Connecticut. The Huskies have played twice, losing once in regulation and in a shootout to UMass, while having a handful of cancellations due to the pandemic.
Shattuck-St. Mary's is the famed Minnesota prep school that counts Zach Parise and Sidney Crosby among its alumni. Shlaine, a playmaking forward, led Shattuck in scoring last season with 26 goals and 52 assists. He is one of six Shattuck players taken over the past two NHL Drafts who all played together for at least one season. The highest was Brendan Brisson, who went 29th overall to the Vegas Golden Knights in October.
Umhoefer was not at first aware of that impressive cluster until asked about it in the context of Shlaine's selection. The coach pointed out that last season's cancellation in March likely robbed his team of critical exposure leading into the national finals.
"We could have had a couple more (drafted) and the ones that were may have gone higher," Umhoefer observed.
Shlaine's consensus value was all over the map heading into the Draft. Central Scouting had him 93rd amongst North American skaters, which roughly translates to where he was taken once European players are sprinkled into the process.
His draft year began by playing for the United States in the Ivan Hlinka tournament in August of 2019. Though his performance in the Czech Republic was not particularly notable, with zero points in four games, Shlaine cited the experience as an important step.
"Playing with all the best (17-year-old) players in the world, (so many) guys who ended up in the first round was great for me," said Shlaine, "I (gained) so much experience from playing in that tournament."
Shlaine also played six games for the Muskegon Lumberjacks of the USHL. That stint included games against the USNTD squad and the Chicago Steel, one of the top clubs in that loop. Shlaine's performance in that time included scoring twice and his draft stock started to rise as the calendar turned to 2020.
Says Umhoefer:
"He could have played in the USHL (full-time) but he wanted to come back here. He has a younger brother here…and I think it was important for him to show (leadership) for us and I think that (extra year) helped him."
Like most prospects, Shlaine is a work in progress ahead of some day turning pro. He has great hockey sense and vision, with a willingness to work hard to get his teammates the puck. His skating needs work but his mechanics are good, which suggests an ability to get better.
As for a self-assessment, Shlaine gave this one shortly after being drafted:
"Playing making is one of my stronger sides, but I try and score goals when I can," he said, a smile breaking out on his face.
The Huskies had to wait an extra week when the University of Vermont paused its entire varsity sports schedule, forcing the two universities to reschedule what was supposed to be the season-opener between the two schools last month. Since then, other games against Boston University and Maine were also postponed.
UConn hosts Boston College this weekend for a pair of games.
Looking further ahead, the Huskies are slated to play both BU and Providence College in February, two teams that also boast Devils prospects. In Providence, Tyce Thompson is coming off a breakout sophomore season in 2019-20 and is expected to be one of the NCAA's top forwards this season. Patrick Moynihan scored 13 goals last year as a freshman for the Friars, while at BU defenseman Case McCarthy is slated to play a bigger role in this his sophomore season.