USHL Stock Watch: James Scantlebury highlights unstoppable rookies
The USHL season is well and truly underway, and the next generation of young stars is making an early mark. The biggest offseason recruitment around the league, the Chicago Steel’s James Scantlebury, has been a resounding success already, authoring some of the most deft and dynamic sequences executed by any player league-wide.
He’s far from the only rookie to have a hot start to the campaign, however. Dynamic undersized defenceman Jake Prunty has clicked at a two point per game pace in a handful of games for the Sioux Falls Stampede, while Madison’s Michael Tang is influencing games with his high-end IQ and two-way intensity.
While we could equally focus on the Muskegon Lumberjacks’ roaring start, boosted by the return of captain Tynan Lawrence or the clicking Dubuque Fighting Saints tight on their heels in the East, October was the month of the youngsters.
Let’s dive in.
Stock Rising 📈
James Scantlebury, C/RW, Chicago Steel (2027 NHL Draft)
Scantlebury could have chosen any path following a dominant 100-point campaign with Bishop Kearney Selects’ U16 team. Previously committed to the Steel, he could just as well have stayed in Canada developing under a fantastic organization with the Québec Remparts, who selected him ninth overall in the 2025 QMJHL draft.
But he didn’t.
Instead, he opted to stick to his guns and join Scott Gomez and an up-and-coming Chicago team. The decision is paying off for both sides. Scantlebury has been electric in every puck touch, intense in every battle, and calculated in – almost – every decision in his first 13 USHL contests.
He’s getting increasingly regular starts at centre inside the top-six, showcasing high-end vision, tenacity, and breakneck speed. He’s among the most elegant and quick skaters in the league already, and its most fearless forechecker at just 16 years of age.
He left his mark on the October headlines in the USHL, as evidenced by a particularly dominant display against the Madison Capitols on October 18th:
The most dynamic and dominant performance I’ve scouted from any player in this young 2025-26 USHL season, James Scantlebury created advantages all over the ice[...] Just non-stop intensity, paired with lightning-quick processing, free-flow creativity, and mature off-puck details. Head on a swivel, he seemingly didn’t miss a defensive read all night. This kid’s a special talent.
Expect to see continued highlights and raving reviews as Scantlebury nears his draft year in 2026-27.
Brent Solomon, RW/LW, Sioux Falls Stampede (Detroit Red Wings)
When the Detroit Red Wings took a swing on goalscoring in the fourth round this past summer on Brent Solomon, he only had eight USHL appearances under his belt, spending most of last season with Champlin Park High. The six-foot sniper has continued his fine scoring form this season, sitting joint-first in points with 18 and joint-second in goals with nine.
USHL netminders have found stopping his shots nightmarish, and defenders too often offered him ample space to unleash his lethal release. Solomon is at his best when catching pucks with a couple of feet of space in the mid-to-high slot. When he has the time to look up and pick his spot, he’s been the league’s deadliest shooter.
Solomon’s quickness and motor held him back at times, but with high-end offensive processing and an increasing dual-threat with the puck, he’s well on his way to challenging for the scoring title.
Jake Prunty, RD, Sioux Falls Stampede (2027 NHL Draft)
We have seen our fair share of dynamic undersized offensive defencemen in recent years. From Quinn Hughes to the Hutson brothers to Xavier Villeneuve in the upcoming 2026 Draft, the special ones stand out for some notable factors. Jake Prunty showed some of those crucial, special assets in a handful of games in October – oscillating between the USHL and New Jersey AAA – collecting a whopping 10 assists.
This was only just a preview, for the time being, as it is expected Prunty will only return to the league at season’s end, but how exciting it was.
The five-foot-ten, 154-pound blueliner was electric in his offensive activations. Dancing up the right flank, his quick-twitch wrists and deceptive hips kept defenders guessing and as soon as they got pulled into his orbit, the pass was off, destined for a teammate’s stick in the slot. In the breakout, too, Prunty’s escapability, vision, and passing precision made way for some highlight-reel connections, such as one long bomb against Sioux City on October 17th, creating a two-on-one and getting his second of three assists that night.
His defensive game has been less sparkling, featuring passive rush defending and slow reactions to loose pucks at the net-front, but he improved as his USHL stint wore on and he got acclimated to the pace of play. With some work on the details in his own end alongside lower-body training and continued offensive reps, Prunty could cement himself as a can’t-miss prospect in the 2027 NHL Draft and a future star in the USHL.
Michael Tang, RW, Madison Capitols (2027 NHL Draft)
While a five-assist October tally, coming in seven games, may seem modest for rookie Michael Tang, his impact was felt on nearly every shift. He’s an engaged and meticulously intelligent winger, qualities that drove play for his line at even strength. On the power play, his confidence and dynamic playmaking took over to quarterback some of Madison’s most dominant offensive possessions.
He’s currently on international duty with Team USA at the U17 World Challenge, but will slot right back into the Capitols’ top-six when he returns.
His reading of the play, timing in his involvements, and decisive skill with the puck already grade as excellent among players around the league. With some more weight behind his frame to support his intensity to win more regular puck battles and gain the inside in his routes to the net-front, Tang could develop into a line-driving power forward who supports his linemates in all three zones en route to a potentially high-end selection in the 2027 NHL Draft.
Stock Steady ↔️
Blake Zielinski, RW/C, Des Moines Buccaneers (2026 NHL Draft)
Leading his team in scoring and garnering nine points in ten October games, Blake Zielinski’s streaky offensive production saw soaring highs and quiet lows through the autumn month. He’s among the most individually talented players in the circuit, dazzling crowds with silky handling and a booming shot. His best sequences saw him dance around defenders, smoothly dragging pucks around outstretched sticks, cutting inside, then outside, and unleashing his lethal snapshot.
As I wrote in an October 18th game report:
He attempted defensive details at times, but his execution was imprecise. The shot is a special quality, however, capable of threatening goaltenders from range and tight angles, always aiming to pick corners. With increased on-puck scans for teammates and playmaking opportunities, defenders would cheat less frequently to cover his shooting lanes – which led to a handful of blocked shots in this one – so hopefully we see steps taken in that regard this season.
Zielinski’s motor, which shone at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup for Team USA, has come and gone between shifts through the early season action. With increased consistency in his own end, offensive diversification with more playmaking scans, and a bit more dare as a puck carrier, little stands in Berlin, NJ native’s way in becoming one of the most skilled snipers in the USHL. He remains a top-50 contender in the upcoming NHL Draft.
Stock Falling 📉
U.S. NTDP U17 & U18
To call the month of October a bleak one for the NTDP would be an understatement. Barring a single gutsy win by the U17’s against Muskegon on October 10th, the program lost every single one of its contests against both USHL and college opposition. The U18 team lost all eight of its competitive games.
The Development Program is not designed to be a championship competitor in this league, but what can they do to turn things around and no longer be viewed as an “easy win” by the other USHL teams?
Structure and scoring threat have lacked with both age groups. The younger team has fared better, as a whole, led by spurts of goalscoring such as Brayden Willis’ hat-trick display to seal the month’s sole victory. The top line connected on some cohesive no-look sequences, showing some offensive chemistry, but still struggling against their older and stronger opponents.
The U18s have some notable talents – though a far cry from the heights of their 2019 and 2022 classes. Players like power forward Casey Mutryn, two-way defenceman Luke Schairer, and buzzsaw winger Mikey Berchild have more to give from individual talent alone in their impacts on the scoresheet and in all three zones. A regression to the mean alongside more USHL than college opponents in the coming months should lead to improved results, but without a better-established defensive structure and more creative offensive plans, this team will continue to struggle.
The pieces to win games in this league are there; now let’s see if they come together some more in November.
