Cole Harbour Wolfpack at Halifax McDonalds (NSMMHL) – Saturday, December 30, 2017

CHW #22 RC Watt, Gavin (2020) – This was a very nice game for this prospect. You would never really know he is a bit undersized as he really has no fear of roughing up anyone. He showed great hustle on his forechecks and even was the recipient of a big elbow to the face for his efforts, but unfortunately it did not draw a powerplay. He really would be a pest to play against but he’s careful to watch that line. I liked the skillset he showed this game – some good skating speed and quality with and without the puck. He had a breakaway and was able to get shot off under duress. He also showed some quick hands and net drive.

CHW #2 LD Casault, Philippe (2019) – A great night for Casault as he was just being the leader this game and a pillar of consistent play. He showed a nice passing game and was hard to play against one of a few player on his team physically pushing back. He boarded a player in the second period and was ejected from the game and I believe it changed the game. It was not a malicious hit.

CHW #7 LD Marrie, Andrew (2019) – Not a bad game overall but it could have been simplified and that would increased his consistency. I am impressed that his skating has improved.

CHW #9 LC Kidney, Liam (2019) – Liked his game overall but was not blown away but talent. He used skills over speed and power and was tested on the wall. Later in the game when it was a close affair he pushed a little harder on his opponents showing some leadership.

CHW #11 LD Power, Matthew (2020) – This player is undersized for sure, but if you forget that, he skated well, displayed very good puck skills and made pretty good decisions during his shifts. There is a 16yo player in Junior A this year that was very similar in stature and skill last year so it is not reasonable to write this player off due to size, but he was challenged physically at times.

CHW #12 LW Brown, Cameron (2019) – An OK night in the face-off circle but did show some nice offense and some really nice shots on net. He has a hard release.

CHW #13 LW Sheffar, Benjamin (2020) – Up and down night for this player. Still like his hustle in all ends of the night but it seems this year he is not getting the puck on his stick nearly enough. He was a possession threat last year with limited ice, but this game he was having to work a lot harder. Still love what he brings and I think it will come.

CHW #16 LD Grandy, Brian (2018) – Just a great game for this defender. He is pretty sublime most nights unless you watch him as he is just doing his job out there, working hard in his own end and battling, and then you get to see some offence like tonight. He had a great power walk off the half boards right into the slot and snapped a great shot using the existing screen, all in motion. He is capable of Junior right now.

CHW #18 RW Spence, Matthew (2019) – Great amount of energy for this player all night. He really wanted to be at the puck and gave it everything he had. Picked up on his puck protection issues again, he needs to really use his size and energy properly at the boards as he would keep the puck on his stick longer. His great hustle lead to a goal.

CHW #19 LC Hunter, Brady (2020) – Always curious to see where this player is in his development. Starting to want to describe this player as an extreme tactician as everything he does is deliberate and calculated. He showed some nice puck control sequences and even won some battles on the wall and was a little more gritty than I expected. He will need to continue this progress.

CHW #20 RD Vardy, Cole (2019) – Fairly average game for Vardy as he plays a bigger role on defence and is a leader back there. He was reliable in his own end and pressured well. Still waiting for him to break out a little more offensively but it may not really be in his nature.

CHW #21 LW Farmer, Josh (2019) – Farmer came out of the gate fast and hard and was in the other team’s face for the whole first period. His stride has improved some this year, now to see if he can add some offensive drive and puck presence.

CHW #31 RG Chambers, Joe (2020) – Probably the best outing of the year for Chambers in spite of 5 GA. On one goal against he was on his stomach and did not look like he was able to get up. After that he was really tight and stingy and gave almost zero rebounds the remainder of the game. Other goals against were great plays that any top goalie would have had a tough time with. He made several saves moving the opposite direction. He made key blocker saves and was looking the puck into himself. He helped kill several penalties including 5 on 3. This is the kind of game he needs to consistently bring. His team let him down late in the third for sure. He had to have faced 40+ shots regardless of the stat line.

HAL #1 LG Larade, Keaghan (2019) – A fairly quiet game for him and when shots were directed his way he was a bit shaky on some, including a dropped puck or two. I did not get the sense he was overly tested. It was hard to tell if the game stagnation was the cause of his lack of crispness.

HAL #3 LD Nicholson, Josh (2019) – Active presence in all three zones and placed the game on himself a lot. He started a few rush and had some nice first pass. He had many opportunities at the top for shots but a lot of them were missing high and wide. He was physical and intimidating.

HAL #6 LD Keeping, Liam (2019) – Good overall presence and he played the same stay at home game until he was on the power play and then he was looking to unleash the bomb from the top. He moved the puck pretty well.

HAL #9 RW Ormon, Matthew (2018) – Some nice offensive sequences with puck control at speed and placing himself in good scoring position.

HAL #10 LD Byard, Zachary (2020) – Was inspired by one of his rushes that showed his tools he displayed in Bantam. On the blue line he had trouble holding the play and controlling a nice pass.

HAL #11 LD Carruthers, Logan (2020) – His first period was his best and showed some good footspeed an offence when he rushed the puck. Was really dialed in most of his shifts but his attention did fade a bit as the game progressed. Played with a bit of an edge at times.

HAL #14 RC Drover, Alex (2020) – This was a typical Drover outing. No Landry in the lineup and it did not affect his game one bit. He used his speed and fast, pestering style to break up plays and push offence back on the other team. The second they relaxed, he scored. He showed a really nice release on his first goal. He added 2 more just by being in the right place after constant pressure on the defence.

HAL #16 LC Watt, Ian (2019) – Average game for him some good sequence with the puck were seen early in the game where he was controlling it at speed and using linemates. This fades as the game progressed and got tighter.

HAL #17 RW Chasse, Blake (2021) – Limited ice at first but in the second he went on a rush with Drover and fed him a real nice pass that was perfect but unfortunately did not convert. He made no mistake on his one-timer as the trailer of a 3 on 2. I felt his speed does not match the top end of player but his passing precision is great. He just needs to do everything faster.

HAL #19 LW Bouchard, Joe (2019) – Disappeared for great stretches this outing and had a few really prime opportunities to score which he did not convert. He pressured the other teams defence at times but wanted to really see a 60 minute effort.

HAL #20 LC Brown, Aaron (2019) – Seemed to be involved in the play all the time or at least around the puck and play. He was a good offence driver and played with some grit as well. He was pretty good in the face-off circle overall.