DAVID
BOOTH
Michigan State
Sr. | F | Washington, Mich.
After
scoring 17 goals and 19 assists as a freshman, Michigan
State's David Booth has scored a combined 15 goals and
19 assists in his last two seasons.
Key
Statistics: As a freshman, Booth scored an impressive
17 goals and 19 assists in 39 games. In each of the last two
years, he’s failed to crack the 10-goal and 20-point
plateaus and because of injuries and a commitment to the U.S.
World Junior team in 2004, hasn’t played more than 30
games in a season.
What
he does: MSU assistant coach Tom Newton says Booth's
statistics don't bear out the improvement he's made during
his three years in East Lansing. As a freshman, his offensive
repertoire consisted of driving to the net without the puck
and finding rebounds. Now, he's a threat to break down defensemen
in one-on-one situations, using his strengh and quickness
to take the puck to the net on his own.
The bigger picture: Because of his freshman
year numbers, Booth may have been unfairly labeled as a pure
goal scorer. But he's also a slick passer (the Spartans spotted
him below the goal line on the power play last season) and
as a member of the gold-medal winning U.S. World Junior team
two seasons ago, he excelled as a checking forward. His efforts
on the international stage—he also won gold with the
U.S.at the 2002 Under-18 World Championships and captured
USA Hockey's Bob Johnson Award for excellence in international
competition—earned him the reputation as a selfless
player who exudes character.
MSU
assistant coach Tom Newton on Booth: “David's
biggest contribution [to our team] is going to be as a power
forward, but he can do so many things. He's strong, quick,
has good hands and can shoot the puck. He can grind or run
and gun, and he gives our locker room a lot of life and spirit.
