BUFFALO -- Buffalo native Dennis Gilbert had the experience of a lifetime this week at the 2015 NHL Scouting Combine. 

Gilbert, a defenseman for the Chicago Steel of the United States Hockey League, was somewhat of an ambassador during the week.

He often found himself escorting fellow prospects to First Niagara Center for the interviewing phase with NHL teams earlier in the week, and to HarborCenter for the fitness testing on Friday and Saturday.

BUFFALO -- The 2015 NHL Scouting Combine might have been more important for Seattle Thunderbirds center Mathew Barzal than for other prospects.

Barzal was limited to 44 games during the regular season because of a knee injury that sidelined him for nearly three months.

"I obviously wanted to prove the knee isn't affecting me in strength areas, jumping, that kind of stuff," Barzal said Saturday. "Thought I did a pretty good job with that. I've been training hard for this. My knee felt great this week. Felt good the whole time."

BUFFALO – The 2015 NHL Scouting Combine featured many physical tests for the top prospects in the 2015 NHL Draft to take part in, but the newest one that tested their abilities was the Y-Balance test.

The Y-Balance is used to test each player’s strength, flexibility, and core control. The player stands at the center of a Y-shaped board on a single leg and use their other leg to slide outward on one of the axis. For many players it was a new challenge to go with the other tests.

"I think it's kind of a way to challenge yourself to go farther every time," University of Michigan defenseman Zachary Werenski said. "You get a couple tries on each one. It's just a good way to push yourself. It was different, I've never done it before but it was fun."

BUFFALO -- Defenseman Caleb Jones will follow in the footsteps of his older brother, Nashville Predators defenseman Seth Jones, next season by playing with the Portland Winterhawks of the Western Hockey League.

But Caleb, 18, said he's a lot more than Seth's younger brother.

"I just try to be my own player, work hard every day," he said. "I'm not Seth's brother, I'm Caleb, my own person and I'm trying to be my own person."

BUFFALO – When it comes to Boston University forward Jack Eichel, there may not be another player at the 2015 NHL Draft Combine that knows him better than his collegiate teammate, forward AJ Greer.

Eichel is expected to be selected second at the 2015 NHL Draft in Sunrise, Fla., but Greer thinks higher of him.

"It was definitely special [playing with him], all the hype around him," Greer said. "He’s top-two in the draft. Personally I think he should go No. 1. It was definitely special the attention we got. The way he acted like a pro everywhere, whether it was on the ice, at the gym, in the classroom, I think he gave the impression to do the same thing and put in as much work as he does and I think that’s why we were so successful."

BUFFALO -- Goaltender Daniel Vladar had the unenviable task of being the first top prospect at his position to complete the nine fitness tests on the final day of the 2015 NHL Scouting Combine at HarborCenter on Saturday.

In the end, the 6-foot-5, 185-pound native of Praha, Czech Republic, was all smiles with the realization that he survived the grueling Wingate Cycle Ergometer peak power output test to measure the explosiveness of a skater.

BUFFALO -- The 2015 NHL Scouting Combine has a new look and a new location, but the Wingate bike test remains the one challenge most draft prospects anticipate the most.

The last test of the day, it's a 30-second all-out sprint on a stationary bike that measures a player's explosiveness.

It's not just the difficulty of the test, which includes trainers inches away yelling motivation. It's performing it in front of NHL strength coaches, scouts and general managers, as well as members of the media.

"It draws a lot of attention," said defenseman Ethan Bear of the Seattle Thunderbirds of the Western Hockey League. "It was pretty hard, especially when they're screaming at you."

BUFFALO -- The final day of the 2015 NHL Scouting Combine officially kicked off here at HarborCenter on Saturday morning with a dozen top prospects testing on the nine events.

There were three prospects medically exempt from testing on Saturday, Oshawa Generals defenseman Mitchell Vande Sompel, Omaha Lancers center Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson and Rouyn-Noranda Huskies defenseman Jeremy Lauzon. Niagara IceDogs defenseman Vince Dunn was medically exempt from lower-body testing; Everett Silvertips defenseman Noah Juulsen did not test since he had to return home for high school graduation.

Goaltender Ilya Samsonov of Magnitogorsk in Russia was unable to attend the Combine; no reason was provided. Samsonov is No. 1 on NHL Central Scouting's final ranking of international goalies.

BUFFALO -- There is the potential for some breakout stars to emerge from a group of defense prospects for the 2015 NHL Draft that has been overshadowed by the top-end forwards who have dominated the attention during the buildup to the draft.

The top three in that group of defensemen are Noah Hanifin of Boston College, No. 3 on NHL Central Skating's final ranking of North American skaters for the draft; Ivan Provorov of the Brandon Wheat Kings of the Western Hockey League (No. 7); and Zachary Werenski of the University of Michigan (No. 9).

Though six spots in the rankings separate the three players, there's little difference in talent level.

"To separate these guys a few years down the road is going to be very difficult," NHL Director of Central Scouting Dan Marr said Friday.

BUFFALO -- The smaller forwards of today's game are taking advantage of the NHL rule changes in 2005 that helped facilitate more of an offensive style of play.

They also are changing the way scouts think when it comes to the NHL draft.

A quick glance at the scoring leaders in the Stanley Cup Playoffs shows Tampa Bay Lightning forward Tyler Johnson (5-foot-8, 183 pounds) with a League-best 21 points, one point more than Chicago Blackhawksforward Patrick Kane (5-11, 177).