Penguins forward prospect Judd Caulfield had the option to leave the University of North Dakota and turn pro this season.
"Unfinished business" had Caulfield opting to head back to school for one more season, though.
Caulfield, a 21-year-old right wing, was the Penguins' fifth-round pick in 2019. Listed at 6-foot-4 and 212 pounds, he's one of the Penguins' prospects with significant size in the pipeline. Unlike some bigger prospects who have their size as a result of a recent growth spurt, Caulfield's always had his size as a strength, and it's allowed him to really develop his skills as a strong power forward over the years.
"I was always big for my age," Caulfield told me during the Penguins' development camp. "That definitely helped growing up, I was able to develop my power forward game all throughout my life. Then when I went to the U.S. team, my (age) 17 year, that's when I really started to work on my defensive game as well. I continued to develop offense, but just kind of working on that shutdown role and penalty kill and things like that. ... I try to use my body to my advantage. Just play hard down below the goal line and wear down opposing teams."
Caulfield added that he tries to emulate Canadiens forward Josh Anderson, because "he's physical, plays the game hard."
If there's any one area of Caulfield's game that he's looking to add to the most this season, it's his offensive game. That's especially true for when he's in front of the net, like he usually is on North Dakota's top power play.
"I just want to work on having soft hands in front of the net because there's a lot of goals scored right in front of the net, whether it's tips, rebounds, a bunch of things like that," he said. "That's definitely a spot where I want to continue working on because it's the part of the game where I think I can thrive if I can get those skills."
Caulfield saw modest production in his first two seasons of college hockey -- four goals and 12 points in 29 games as a freshman, then four goals and 11 points in 26 games as a sophomore. He set career highs as a junior last season, putting up 11 goals and 20 points in 39 games.
Those goals came in a variety of ways, too. He did have success in the net-front role on the power play, and was able to get goals from rebounds:
Caulfield has a strong stride, and he used that to his advantage too, like when he was able to create some separation for a breakaway goal:
... or blowing past a defender and going end-to-end on the penalty kill for an insane shorthanded goal:
There was also this shorthanded goal off of a 2-on-0, made possible in part by the pressure Caulfield added in his own end just before:
Caulfield put the hours in at the gym in the summer after last season, to tangible benefits.
The team at North Dakota has an annual "Iron Man" competition, an event that includes 11 tests that challenge a player's strength, endurance and agility: Broad jump, single leg lateral jump, pull-ups, Watt Bike three-minute test, isometric belt squat, counter movement jump, plyometric push up, dead lift bar speed, 4-on-4 on-ice skating test, on-ice acceleration (6.1 meters and 35 meters) and a cornering 'S' test.
Caulfield finished with the best overall score and took home the title.
Caulfield could have opted to forgo his senior season and go pro early, as some prospects do every year. While a team obviously has input in the decision, the final decision is really left up to the player. Caulfield told me at camp that both he and the Penguins thought that he could still take strides in his development in college, namely in his offensive game.
One of the big motivations, though, was a national title.
The University of North Dakota is Caulfied's hometown team. He's a Grand Forks native. He grew up a fan of this team, and he wants to help bring a men's championship title back to North Dakota for the first time since 2016.
North Dakota was a No. 2 seed in their regional tournament to open up the postseason last year and was eliminated with a 2-1 overtime loss to Notre Dame.
"Being a fan of (North Dakota) hockey growing up, we're all about the championships," Caulfield told me. "They want to win championships. So going back for my senior year, that's definitely the top of our list is to win that national championship and finish up some of that unfinished business. Because we have had very successful teams past three years, but we haven't quite got the job done yet."
Caulfield will likely sign an entry-level deal with the Penguins following the conclusion of his team's season. Adding a national championship to his resume first would surely provide a bit of a boost for the start of his professional career.
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Here's how the Penguins' other prospects in junior, college, and Europe are doing this season:
FORWARDS
Tristan Broz
Position: Center/wing
Size: 6-0/178
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2021, second round
Age: 20
Team: Denver (NCAA)
Season totals: 10 games, 1 goal, 1 assist
Broz transferred to Denver for his sophomore season after spending his freshman year with the University of Minnesota.
Broz has split the first 10 games of the season as a center and a wing, all on Denver's second line save for one game on the third line. While he's capable of both and had experience at both positions before college, he was primarily a wing last season.
Judd Caulfield
Position: Right wing
Size: 6-4/212
Shoots: Right
Drafted: 2019, fifth round
Age: 21
Team: North Dakota (NCAA)
Season totals: 9 games, 1 goal
Caulfield scored his first goal of the season this week:
Caulfield has been utilized up-and-down the lineup for North Dakota so far this season, all on the right side.
Luke Devlin
Position: Center
Size: 6-2/185
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2022, sixth round
Age: 18
Team: West Kelowna Warriors (BCHL)
Season totals: 12 games, 1 goal, 7 assists
Devlin was suspended for three games early in the season after a hit to the head of an opponent. Since returning, he's been skating as the Warriors' No. 1 center.
Zam Plante
Position: Center
Size: 5-9/161
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2022, fifth round
Age: 18
Team: Chicago Steel (USHL)
Season totals: No games
Plante is still recovering from the shoulder surgery he underwent before the draft. It's possible that he makes his season debut as early as this weekend.
Kirill Tankov
Position: Center
Size: 6-1/185
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2021, seventh round
Age: 20
Team: SKA-Neva (VHL)
Season totals: 1 game
Tankov suffered a season-ending neck injury in the opening game of the season and required surgery to repair a fractured vertebrae. He is expected to be able to play next season:
Chase Yoder
Position: Center
Size: 5-10/176
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2020, sixth round
Age: 20
Team: Providence (NCAA)
Season totals: 9 games, 2 goals, 4 assists
Yoder forced a turnover for a shorthanded goal this week:
He's had nice plays earlier in the season for assists, like here when he protected the puck behind the net to set up a teammate:
... or here, after he drove to the net and a teammate put in a rebound:
Yoder has been the Friars' third-line center this season, and he's had a great start in the faceoff circle with a 61.1% success rate. In a single weekend with a pair of games against New Hampshire he went a combined 24-for-28 in draws.
DEFENSEMEN
Santeri Airola
Size: 5-11, 163
Shoots: Right
Drafted: 2019, seventh round
Age: 22
Team: Ilves (Liiga), KOOVEE (Mestis)
Season totals: 5 games (Liiga), 10 games, 3 assists (Mestis)
Airola's had a tough start to the season. He was limited to just two games all last season due to injury, and then he dealt with minor injuries at the beginning of this season. He struggled in his return in the top Finnish league and was sent to Mestis, the second league.
Isaac Belliveau
Size: 6-2/185
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2021, fifth round
Age: 19
Team: Gatineau Olympiques (QMJHL)
Season totals: 15 games, 3 goals, 14 assists
Belliveau has been skating on the Olympiques' top pairing all season. One of his goals this season was this backhand shot from way out in the middle of the left circle. Not something you see everyday:
Nolan Collins
Size: 6-3/194
Shoots: Right
Drafted: 2022, sixth round
Age: 18
Team: Sudbury Wolves (OHL)
Season totals: 9 games, 1 goal, 3 assists
Collins' start to the season was delayed as he recovered from a preseason shoulder injury. He scored his first goal this week:
Daniel Laatsch
Size: 6-5/183
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2021, seventh round
Age: 20
Team: Wisconsin (NCAA)
Season totals: 10 games, 1 assist
Laatsch has been playing on the left side of Wisconsin's top pairing.
Ryan McCleary
Size: 6-2/180
Shoots: Right
Drafted: 2021, seventh round
Age: 19
Team: Portland Winterhawks (WHL)
Season totals: 12 games, 2 goals, 4 assists
McCleary has been on his off side (the left side) on Portland's blue line for most of this season, and has been playing on the top pairing as of late. He scored two goals in three games this week:
Owen Pickering
Size: 6-4/180
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2022, first round
Age: 18
Team: Swift Current Broncos (WHL)
Season totals: 11 games, 2 goals, 9 assists
Pickering was named the captain of his junior team to start the season. He's been playing on the right side (his off side) of the Broncos' top defense pairing.
GOALTENDERS
Joel Blomqvist
Size: 6-2/183
Catches: Left
Drafted: 2020, second round
Age: 20
Team: Karpat (Liiga)
Season totals: 10 games, 2.18 GAA, .906 SV%
Blomqvist was sidelined for nearly a month with a concussion and returned to the lineup last week. The concussion happened when former Oiler Iiro Pakarinen came flying into Blomqvist in the last second of a period in one game.
Since returning, Blomqvist has resumed his role as Karpat's No. 1 goaltender.
Sergei Murashov
Size: 6-0/167
Catches: Right
Drafted: 2022, fourth round
Age: 18
Team: Loko Yaroslavl (MHL)
Season totals: 19 games, 1.41 GAA, .955 SV%
Murashov is playing in the Russian junior league. He leads the league in shutouts with six in 19 games, two more than any other goaltender.
