Listed at 5’8 and 123 lbs, Ginnish definitely hit a growth spurt from his last weighing until now, as he looks a lot bigger and plays with much more power than that listing would indicate. His overall skating ability really set him apart from a majority of the defensemen at this camp, utilizing it in a hyper-aggressive manner to frequently carry the puck up ice, gain the zone and generate scoring chances for himself. His ability to maintain his speed while changing directions allowed him to be deadly in transition, carving through defenders and gaining separation with ease. On the defensive side of things, he was using anticipation alongside his mobility to step up in the neutral zone, break up plays and initiate the counterattack. His lateral mobility allowed him to close in on attackers quickly, often forcing them to the outside and limiting their time and space. At this juncture of his development I think he can be a bit too individual with his skill, especially when attacking off the rush, opting to face defenders head on and try to beat them one on one instead of using his teammates. Despite this, Ginnish looks to be one of the more electrifying talents out of Nova Scotia this year and will look to play a big role for them at the QMJHL Cup in October.

Ginnish’s overall mobility was a huge contributing factory in Nova Scotia’s success in this game as he was able to cover a ton of ice, lead the transition game offensively and kill plays while defending. He was consistently able to beat the primary wave of pressure on his retrievals by using strong crossovers and edgework to pull away from checkers out of his turns before moving the puck up the ice to a teammate. In the defensive zone he was using his feet to stick with even the speediest of New Brunswick forwards, maintaining a good gap and using his stick to knock pucks loose, retrieve them and initiate the breakout. Ginnish was aggressive in his rush defending as well, using his lateral mobility to close in on attackers quickly, take away their time and space and initiate the counterattack for Nova Scotia.

Ginnish was using his high-end tools to be a driving force behind his team’s transition game throughout the majority of this contest. He was using his edgework to cut away from forecheckers on his retrievals before using his long stride to carry the puck for a controlled exit and gain separation from opposing defenders as he galloped through the neutral zone. He was using his skating ability effectively off-puck as well to close in on puck-carriers quickly in the neutral zone, opting to close in on them quickly to limit their time and space and force dump-ins. His execution and decision-making once he gains the offensive blueline is still a work in progress, but there’s a lot to like with this player.

It’s hard not to notice Ginnish when he’s out on the ice. His skating ability sets him apart from nearly every other defender at this camp as he’s seamlessly able to use his edgework to escape pressure on a dime and either execute an outlet up ice or skate the puck out of danger. As a puck carrier he was using an array of head fakes and quick changes of direction to zoom by opposing players in the neutral zone and gain the offensive blueline for his team. In the defensive zone he did a great job at anticipating the play and cutting off passes along the boards to nullify the oppositions cycle game.

There wasn’t an opportunity to carry the puck up ice that Ginnish failed to take in this game. His hyper-aggressive approach to the game tilted the ice in Green’s favour every time he stepped out on the ice by initiating the transition game with his strong puck carrying ability and using anticipation to break up plays on the defensive side of things. Ginnish was using his skating ability so effectively all around the ice, whether it was using his lateral mobility to gap up on attackers at the defensive zone blueline or use his long stride to gain separation with the puck in the neutral zone. His offensive prowess lead to his team’s third goal of the game when he attacked the zone with speed, quickly put on the brakes to gain separation from an opponent then fired a quick cross-ice pass to a streaking teammate who tapped the puck into an empty net.