NHL Network analyst Jamie McLennan spent parts of 11 seasons playing goalie in the NHL with five teams from 1993 to 2007. And at 6-foot and 207 pounds, he said he considered himself "a big guy."
But while watching the goaltenders USA Hockey invited to Lake Placid, N.Y., last week for a summer evaluation camp geared toward picking the players that will play for the United States at the 2015 IIHF World Junior Championship, he didn't feel so big.
"Being a 6-foot goaltender I thought I was a big guy," McLennan said. "Today I'd be a shrimp. Everyone is 6-2 and up and that's what teams draft."
All four goaltenders at the camp each stood 6-foot-3 or taller, but it was Thatcher Demko, the biggest of the four at 6-4 and 192 pounds, who stood out the most to McLennan.