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Jeremy Morin stands out in U.S. juniors win against Finland, could he ease loss of Byfuglien?

Dustin Byfuglien, Roberto Luongo

Chicago Blackhawks’ Dustin Byfuglien, right, crashes into Vancouver Canucks’ Roberto Luongo during the second period of Game 2 of the Western Conference semi-final hockey game at GM Place in Vancouver, British Columbia on Saturday, May 2, 2009. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Darryl Dyck)

AP

It’s true that a big chunk - maybe a majority - of the cap cleanup the Chicago Blackhawks have undergone this summer involved straight-up salary dumps. The Dustin Byfuglien trade to Atlanta is at least one exception, though, as the Blackhawks received a nice package that included two high 2010 draft picks, Marty Reasoner and an interesting prospect by the name Jeremy Morin. Morin might not make an impact on the team’s pro roster for some time, but NHL.com states that he stood out in the U.S. junior team’s 6-3 win over Finland in what was essentially an exhibition game today.

Watching Jeremy Morin play for the U.S. against Finland on Wednesday at USA Hockey’s National Junior Evaluation Camp, it’s easy to see why the Chicago Blackhawks wanted him and why the Atlanta Thrashers were so reluctant to let him go.

Morin, a 6-foot-1, 189-pound right wing, scored the game’s first goal and arguably was the U.S. team’s most active offensive player in a 6-3 defeat of Finland at the USA Rink at the Olympic Center here.

Even his former GM Rick Dudley had some very glowing statements to make about Morin. Dudley might even be guilty of a little hyperbole - surprising since he has no incentive in hyping Morin up at this point. He even compared Morin to one of the game’s greatest goal scorers.

Dudley said he likes how Morin, “gets bigger and stronger when there’s an opportunity to score. He’s one of those players ... Mike Bossy was like that. Mike wasn’t a big man but when you put a puck in front of the net with a chance to score, not many players could hold him off that puck -- and Jeremy’s a lot like that.”

I often chuckle when I read scouting reports or draft updates in which an 18-year-old player is touted as “The Next [insert impossibly talented professional player].” Don’t get me wrong, I understand the need for an analogy. Such a practice can give you an idea of the way a person plays; it’s similar to comparing a progressive rock band to Rush. It’s unlikely that they’ll belt out hits like “Tom Sawyer” but at least it give you an idea (even a vague one) regarding what they might sound like.

The Blackhawks truly received a nice bounty from the Thrashers this summer. Even beyond the cap savings, their farm system received a nice boost. Ultimately, though, if Byfuglien maintains his impressive level of productivity we saw in the playoffs, Chicago might need to see something from Morin.

So far, so good it seems.