I don’t think there was a better puck transporter throughout the entirety of camp than Quaye MacDonald. His speed and puck carrying ability made him such an effective player in transition from start to finish, offering a diverse approach off the rush which made him unpredictable as an attacker. I really liked his inside-driven approach for such a diminutive forward, as he was often opting to try and attack the middle of the ice by leveraging his skill to pull pucks through defenders and use his low center of gravity to deal with contact as he made his way through. His athleticism really set him apart as well, showing the ability to gain possession of pucks through awkward retrievals in the neutral zone and contort his body to open up passing lanes from weird angles. Off-puck he was consistently able to gain a step on defenders as he drove the net, which allowed him to get plenty of chances from the low slot in transition and deflect pucks on net. While he wasn’t selected for the final Nova Scotia roster, MacDonald is one the prospects I’m most looking forward to keeping tabs on from the province.

On a team that struggled to create any sustained offense I thought MacDonald did the best job of transporting the puck through the neutral and gaining the offensive blueline to either get some chances off the rush or attempt to establish the cycle game. His hands in conjunction with his athleticism allow him to gain possession of pucks through awkward retrievals and deliver passes from weird angles in the neutral zone by opening up passing lanes that just aren’t there for most players. He masterminded the third goal of the game by attacking the zone with speed, driving wide around a defender for a hard cut to the net, using his speed to win a battle to the loose puck before using his elusiveness around the perimeter to create space for himself and execute a pass to the slot to a teammate who buried it. His skill helped him draw a penalty late in the game, when he made a quick cut to the middle of the ice off the rush that forced a defender to haul him down, although his team couldn’t capitalize on the ensuing man advantage.

MacDonald’s speed and puck carrying ability made him an effective transition player throughout this game. I liked the way he diversified things when entering the zone, either trying to drive wide around a defender or delaying and waiting for help to arrive. MacDonald was constantly trying to leverage his skill to gain access to the middle of the ice by pulling pucks through defenders and using a low center of gravity to deal with contact. Off-puck I thought he was doing a good job of driving the net with speed, sometimes getting a step on defenders to earn himself chances from in tight.