Danny Kristo

Looks like Trevor Timmins and his staff found another gem.

Courtesy of Cory Kornelsen, editor of McKeen's Hockey, this assessment of Danny Kristo. The Canadiens first pick (second round, 56th overall) in the June draft, Kristo – a 5'9", 180-pound native of Edina, Minn. who turned 18 a few days before the draft – is playing RW for the Omaha Lancers of the USHL and will be going to the University of North Dakota next season..

With Patrick Marleau-like speed, Kristo has the real potential of tearing up the USHL .. has phenomenal speed, generated even though he is slightly upright in his skating .. has good acceleration with the puck and can beat the best USHL defensemen wide with his speed with seeming ease and drive the net, but typically does so after having built up some momentum through the neutral zone .. a smooth stickhandler who handles the puck with confidence, because he knows it'll stay on his stick .. adept at drawing the puck back into his body with toe drags .. demonstrates excellent agility with tight, quick circles and pivots with the puck in order to ditch opponents .. is almost like a running back in some of the shiftiness and shuffles he can display and does not always rely on his pure speed .. soft hands for fielding passes and quickly transitioning to shots .. has a hard wristshot and can fire it in stride .. passing game was inconsistent, and did not demonstrate he has a natural finishing ability, either .. more adept at skating the puck than distributing, and teammates would be wise to trail for the rebound opportunities he'll create all season .. in 2007-08, he scored 21 goals and 17 assists in 55 games for USNTDP U-18 .. committed to University of North Dakota .. 2008 USHL Fall Classic stats: 3-1-3-4, 2 pim.

"Just a coincidence," says Trevor Timmins.

That's his story, and the Canadiens director of player development and amateur scouting is sticking to it to explain why the team has used its first draft choice to take Minnesota high school players three years in a row:

David Fischer from Minneapolis in 2006.

Ryan McDonagh from St. Paul last year.

Danny Kristo from Eden Prairie today.

Hey, nothing against Minnesota.

We love Bob Dylan.

We love Prince.

We loved Bill Nyrop.

But three in a row?

This is wierding me out, man.