Tonight I attended a QMJHL game with Cape Breton in town to take on Gatineau. Here are my notes from the game and an overall score for his game this evening:
– Smooth skater -his skating looked effortless, which is a great sign. Also, his edges and positioning were great, very balanced.
– Reasonably well positioned – there were times where he got himself caught on the wrong side of the ice chasing the play. Not necessarily the wrong position to be in every time but it did lead to some odd man breaks for Gatineau. Overall good positioning though at even strength, PP, and PK.
– Not playing C – He is listed as a Center everywhere I’ve ever looked, but played the entire game at RW (except some time as LW on the PK as he is a left handed shot)
– 2nd line, 2nd PP unit, roughly 2nd PK unit – In this sense his usage was good, getting to play in all situations is a good sign for his development.
Some general observations during the game:
– In the first period he had an excellent powerplay shift getting knocked to his knees, but maintaining possession of the puck. He got up and made a slick pass to the front of the net that created a scoring chance.
– In the second period on a powerplay it looked as if he had scored a fantastic goal. He took the puck behind the net from the right. Then came around the left side skating backwards to about the middle of the left circle and wired a shot in the bottom right corner. It was later reviewed and credited to someone else on a deflection. But, it was a great sign and great solo effort on his part that still led to a primary assist.
– He tried to hit people far too often and didn’t have the size or strength generally to make it worthwhile. He did however, on one occasion, make an excellent open ice hit on the puck carrier in the neutral zone, which caused a turn over and a quick counter attack 3 on 2. Definitely a skill he can work on and control a little more.
– Admittedly, I haven’t seen any of his other games with Cape Breton to know if he plays RW often. In my opinion he looked out of place. It looked to affect his ability to take a breakout pass, make a breakout pass, and play defense effectively. I would like to see him on the left side and note if that helps his game.
Last, and probably most important, this was my view of one game. Don’t write the kid off or make him a saint just yet. But, I hope it offers a little insight into some of the elements of his game.
Overall Grade: B-
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