While almost every player on this NAX team was deserving of recognition, Joel Ngandu stood out for his physicality and energy. He only recorded 4 points in 6 games, but his impact extended far beyond the scoresheet. Ngandu threw heavy hits, won puck battles, and wore down defenders with strong board play and puck protection. He played at an extremely high tempo and was especially impactful in the final against Markham. Ngandu created rush chances down the wing, delivered several crushing hits, and made an underrated play on the team’s most important goal. Up 1-0 late in the third, Ngandu pressured a defender hard in the neutral zone, and consistent pressure and hits all game forced him to blindly throw the puck away to avoid a hit. This turnover went straight to Riley Brown, who scored on the ensuing breakaway to secure the win.

The top player for this Team Canada 4 squad, Joel Ngandu showed off some phenomenal talent along with projectable skills that will surely bode well for him going forward this season. To begin, he showed a great skating profile in the sense of edge control, explosives, agility, and overall power. He was one of the top transitional forwards on his team and combining his skating with his puck control he was able to carve his way through the neutral zone exceptionally well, attacking the line with speed, gaining it with control, and putting defenders on their heels as a result of his dynamic movements backed with great speed and momentum. He was capable of making flashy 1-on-1 moves around and wide-of the defenders he converged upon, but didn’t recklessly pursue the middle, and if needed showed the ability to go wide on a man, electing for the safer play to assure he, and his team, gain the zone and get set up. The skating prowess made him effective in instances of physical contact, there were a few plays where he didn’t have the angle to the net from the wing, and as the defender played him physical he was able to maintain balance, ultimately spin out wide of the attempted check and force the defender to now overcommit, opening ice to the middle for him to circle back into, and or center a pass. He opened so many different passing options for himself as a result of this agility and shiftiness and was a weapon when walking out from behind the goal line upon pulling pucks out of scrums. He showed off a well-developed wrister and shooting ability as well. He could quickly curl-and-drag pucks to the middle of his body, quickly changing the release angle and firing through a crowd, getting the puck on the net in short order as a result. There was plenty of good in Ngandu’s game throughout this years’ CCM 68, a standout in each game, bringing something a bit different to the table each time.

The most impactful player on the Team Canada 4 roster in this contest was Joel Ngandu, he was able to push the pace of play in transition and get his team quickly up in the attacking zone and apply pressure on the defense. He used that speed constantly in this game, blitzing down the sides after lulling the opposition into a false sense of security with some stick handling. He did well to get himself into positions where he had an edge on his man and he could turn the corner and bear down on goal. He earned a shorthanded breakaway opportunity after knocking the puck loose and he accelerated away into space and neatly finished off the play. I thought his distribution was effective as he did well to find the open man and not force plays that weren’t there. He moved well off the puck and attacked the slot where he was able to receive the puck and earn a couple of dangerous opportunities. He brought a bit of a spark to the game that his team sort of lacked, and he was able to go out there and cause some problems for the opposition.

Tallying 2 assists in the loss, Joel Ngandu was once again one of the best players for his team. He sent over a pass to Jackson Zinkie on the opening goal as he converged on a 2-on-1, using a nice degree of deception to fake a shot, freeze the goalie, and set up his teammate for a great scoring chance. His other assist was as a result of sending a quick pass off a turnover to Zinkie nearby to the net, in which the play with quickly finished off. His athletic frame and power was highlighted once more when carrying the puck up the ice. A strong forward stride to his game, he only needs 2-or-3 firm steps to get moving up ice, hitting his top speed, and pulling away from the pack. At these high speeds he still showed an ability to piece plays together, changing angles, and executing slick moves to create a bit more time and space for himself to work with. When pressure came, Ngandu was a great problem solver, using his strength, skating, hands, and vision to come up with a solution, and more often than not came out on top in 1-on-1 situations as he attacked offensively, or during transition in the neutral zone.

I was impressed with Ngandu’s straight-line speed which allowed him to execute a couple strong individual rushes down the wing where he managed to power his way to the net for a good look. He was also able to time his routes across the neutral zone and take off behind defenseman to receive a pass behind the last line of defense on a couple of occasions. I thought he was a solid playmaker in transition, often spotting open teammates and hitting them with accurate passes which included the second Canadian goal of the game when he placed the puck into the wheelhouse of a streaking teammate who then deflected it into the back of the net.

Joel Ngandu finds his way as a standout for Team Canada 4 again in this one, utilizing his impressive lower body strength in combination with good puck control and puck possession habits. He did a great job at navigating the perimeter of the offensive zone with a man on his back. Keeping his feet moving and the puck out of the reach of his opponents, throwing in a few pivots and quick spins, he was quite the evasive force at times, buying his teammates time and space as a result. As one of the primary offensive threats for his team he took the mantle at attempting to penetrate the slot with speed and slick toe-pulls towards the middle, operating with speed whilst reading the ice for passing lanes, and did an effective job at creating some space for himself off the rush that then transitioned into creating passing lanes to teammates around the goalmouth.

I was really impressed with Joel Ngandu’s physical resiliency and ability to use his strength to carve out some space, drive the middle lane and crease, and make plays tight to opponents. Early in the game he was able to hook a pass across the ice to the backdoor with a man on his back, showing great lower body strength, stability, and core strength in the process. He was one of the leading catalysts on his team at carrying the puck through difficult areas of the ice, absorbing bumps and shoves, and working his way through crowds with great poise and control. Throughout the game he continued to use his speed to go wide on opponents, drop that shoulder, extend the stick, and make strong lateral pulls of the puck in step to flip to his other hand and chip a shot directed at the net. He was a good dual-threat weapon, setting up teammates just as well as he did direct shots on the net, all mostly coming from between the faceoff dots or in the general area, consistently putting up effective chances.