The crux of Welsh’s game is his skating ability, which allows him to be both an effective on-puck and off-puck threat in transition and the offensive zone. He’s able to maintain or pick up speed coming out of his turns or his pivots, offering him a separation gear and allowing him to generate space for himself. I was impressed with his ability to use his speed as a puck-carrier not only in an overwhelming way but deceptively as well by changing gears and using quick burst of acceleration to freeze defenders and get around them wide. I also liked his panic threshold as a puck-carrier along the exterior, as he often drew pressure towards him before slipping a pass to a streaking teammate who could then attack downhill. Off-puck I thought he did a great job of consistently moving his feet in the offensive zone, reading and reacting to the play around him and getting himself into dangerous areas as a passing option.

Despite not lighting up the scoresheet throughout the tournament, I thought Welsh was one of the primary play drivers for Nova Scotia and I actually named him to be hypothetical all-star team. His ability to control the puck as he operated at top speed made him a highly effective transitional attacker, executing controlled entries at a high rate and attacking the middle of to expand his options. There’s a fluidity to his toolkit that allows him to change directions quickly as he maintains his speed and control of the puck, which made it very difficult to contain him in one on one situations and earned him plenty of looks from the interior. The playmaking off the rush was an asset as well with his ability to thread pucks through sticks and traffic which lead to many dangerous cross-ice opportunities. The plus-level skating ability aided him around the perimeter where he was able to gain separation or just flat out beat defenders in tight areas with quick bursts of speed either from a standstill or coming out of his turns.

Welsh was another player who I thought got better and better ass the camp went along, ultimately turning into one of the primary playdrivers for Team Red by the end and earning himself a spot on the final roster. He’s a forward who really relies on his teammates to create space for himself, utilizing his quick hands to manipulate passing lanes and initiate give and go’s with teammates. His quick decision making allowed him to play with pace with the puck as well by identifying his options early, sometimes even prior to his puck touch, to execute a pass before defenders could react. He seemed to have a strong understanding of timing and route-taking while operating off-puck as he always seemed to get to the front of the net as soon as a loose puck presented itself in order to get a shot off from in tight.

Once again Welsh was the main driver for Nova Scotia in the transition game, using his skating and puck skills combination to successfully carry the puck through the neutral zone, execute controlled entries and flash strong playmaking off the rush. He was consistently hitting trailing options off the rush, which allowed his teammates to operate in space up high and attack downhill with speed. His best sequence came late in the game when he picked off a pass in the offensive zone, tapped the puck through the defender’s legs and broke in on a two on one before getting a shot off from the hashmarks.

Welsh was one of the more impressive Nova Scotian forwards in this game, flashing some impressive skating and puck skills that made him a consistent threat in transition and along the perimeter in the offensive zone. Off the rush he could either maneuver his way through the neutral zone with quick cuts and deft stickhandling which lead to many clean entries, or he would execute subtle chips by defenders so he could work his way around them and retrieve pucks in the offensive zone. His skating allowed him to separate from defenders out of his turns along the perimeter before making a hard drive to the crease area looking to create in tight.

Welsh’s ability to create offense on his own was a breath of fresh air for a Nova Scotia squad who had a hard time getting in sync until the latter half of this game. He was one of the few who could consistently create space for himself in the offensive zone, using hard cuts along the perimeter to peel away from defenders and work his way into open areas. His hands allowed him to get by defenders in the neutral zone with swift pulls and drags around sticks; there was one sequence where a defender stepped up on him at the blueline but Welsh was able to pull it around him in motion and create a two on one as a consequence. When operating with the puck off the rush I thought he did a good job of attacking laterally towards the middle of the ice to expand his options and either get a shot off from the interior or kick it outside to a teammate.

Welsh’s intelligent, tactical and efficient play in this game helped him drive the bus for his line and earn positive results all over the ice. He was all around the puck in this one, especially in the second period where I thought he was at his best, by utilizing his teammates to generate space for himself and getting himself to the middle of the ice. The decision making was very good as well, as he was able to identify his passing options quickly and execute. What impressed me the most about Welsh in this one was his ability to properly time his routes to the front of the net, as he always seemed to get there as soon as a loose puck presented itself before pouncing on it for a dangerous scoring chance. He scored his goal in exactly this fashion when he executed a nice pass in transition so his teammate could attack with speed, drove the net and banged home the ensuing rebound past the goaltender.

Welsh is another player who I thought was able to utilize his skill level in a more effective manner in this game. He was using his quick stickhandling ability to attack the middle of the ice off the halfwall much more frequently in this one, often executing more often than not and generating chances from high danger areas. He had a really strong sequence in the first period off the rush when he was able to split between two defenders to gain the zone before making a cross-ice pass that lead to a dangerous chance.