McIntyre had the highlight of the tournament as he pulled off a sweet lacrosse style goal in an early game and throughout the tournament he flashed his high-end skill. He is about as automatic as they come when given time and space and his instincts around the net will serve him well at every level. His limited size is an area of concern, but he has such a great sense of where to be and when to be there. I’m not sure there was a stronger player at this tournament working off puck and getting to high danger areas and I think as the calibre of teammate improves at higher levels his clever forays into space will be even better utilized. As an offensive creator there aren’t a lot of holes to pick apart in his game, he carries a ton of speed during a shift, and has the vision and anticipation to make quick passes all over the ice so he’s never an easy target to lock down physically. The puck is usually on and off his stick so quickly that defenders don’t have time to punish him along the wall. I think there is work for him to do in finding a little more jam to gain the interior himself as a puck carrier, so defences don’t cheat for the pass but I’m certainly nitpicking in this regard. With his skillset it’s hard to imagine him not finding success at the junior level but he will do well to round out his game to make the transition as seamless as possible.

Projection: Top-line Forward
Projectable Skills: Stickhandling, Hockey IQ
Development Opportunities: Strength and power

The leader of the AEHL U15 league did so with outstanding hockey IQ and puck control in motion. Due to his size, he’s the kind of player who is constantly outthinking his opponents; daring to try new things in the middle of the ice and change pace and speed if people are closing in on him. This means you’ll find breakways when he slips behind coverage, give and go plays with linemates to draw in pressure and deliver well-timed passes in return, or showing that scoring in tight with accurate wrist shots or dekes to the backhand to elevate beyond and outstretched gloves is truly no big deal. He is slippery, confident, undeterred, aggressive, and shows a sense of creativity with consistency. At 5’6 and 135 lbs there is certainly an expectation that he might continue to not be as big or strong as some of the top-end of this draft. There were moments where St. Albert got to crossover and play some of the top CSSHL teams and Ossie wss more than up to the challenge. You could argue he was the best player in some of those games. In the WHL, he projects to be an offensive catalyst which gets the fans on their feet with some of the highlight reel plays he can pull off. Don’t expect punishing bodychecks but instead quality two-way play and smart positioning.

Ossie McIntyre continues to rise up the rankings too, which shouldn’t necessarily be a surprise to many folks. His stickhandling and usage of teammates in motion is about as good as anyone in this draft. There have been games against NAX and others where he arguably created the most scoring chances of anyone. While I am not sure if he will ever be anything resembling a punishing physical presence at the WHL level, he will surely create high danger scoring chances for his teammates with his slippery style.

Ossie ended up gathering 9 goals and 7 assists for 16 points in 6 games over the weekend. The undersized forward really put on a dazzling show with his quick curls in the neutral zone, his intensity to step into a wrist shot, his high-end stickhandling in tight spots, and his ability to finish chances in tight on the backhand. He’s one of the most crafty players I’ve seen in a while as he uses little toe drags, drop passes, behind the back passes, and seems to receive passes as sure as anyone in this draft. For Ossie it is about puck control, teammate vision for options, and capitalizing on chances. It involves give and go plays, evading pressure, and continuing possession where others are trying hero plays. He doesn’t always dictate the pacing but his effectiveness to evade pressure and continue possession means that he gets an infinite amount more chances than the common player to create offense. With someone of Ossie’s size, I’m sure it’ll make scouts really want to be sure of where he can get to physically and how fast. That being said, you don’t wanna miss out on a potential top-6 playmaking weapon either.