Griffin Carver is another Little Caesars defenseman who impressed me over the course of this showcase. The name of the game for him was playing quick, playing simple, and finding the open man; and this game plan was extremely effective for him as he executed it to perfection. He made decisions quickly and swung the puck around the point, keeping the play moving smoothly, never holding it for too long and allowing forecheckers to close him down. While he did a fine job as a facilitator of play up ice his impact was truly felt through his work on the defensive side of the puck. His play started in the offensive zone where he was able to stifle breakouts effectively through smart pinches to disrupt zone exits with physical play along the boards. When defending in transition he was very patient as he kept tight to the puck carrier, and he used his stick very well to knock the puck off their sticks as they looked to get by him. He was a very strong shutdown performer and limited opportunities through an impressive combination of patience, hand-eye, and strong positioning.

It seemed after every viewing of Carver, I came away with tons of positive notes on his play that highlighted his efficiency as a two-way defenseman whether it was his puck moving skills, his quick processing speed, or his strong defensive play. He was a great problem solver from the back end, reading-and-reacting to different scenarios with quick decisions that often ended up as the right play, ranging from routine D-to-D passes to stretch passes through the neutral zone to spring a teammate on a breakaway. His smooth skating stride also played a large part in his success at the combine as it gave him the confidence to challenge opposing puck carriers as early as the offensive blue line on breakout attempts, forcing chips off the boards or stepping up and keeping pucks in the offensive zone but was also able to use it while defending the rush as well, angling off opponents to keep them on the perimeter and using his stick to disrupt plays through the middle of the ice.

Carver was another defenseman on the U.S. team that I really liked in this game. Carver excelled at pinching along the blue line. On one play, he stepped up repeatedly, keeping the puck in the offensive zone with each attempt. He also did great at moving up in the play when an opportunity presented itself. Carver moved up causing the defenseman to step to him leaving a teammate open. Carver was also great at getting the puck on net, always taking his time to ensure each shot was well-placed and effective. Overall Carver’s defensive awareness and offensive prowess really helped his team in this game.

The simplicity in Carver’s game made him an efficient defender and puck mover as I thought he did a great job at not overhandling any pucks but instead made smart routine passes to efficiently keep the play flowing up the ice. He had a few moments where he was able to make some key keep-ins along the offensive blue line, jumping in front of breakout attempts or stopping plays from making their way up the ice by angling off puck carriers on the breakout and forcing them to get rid of pucks early leading to some easy puck retrievals afterwards. He made one of the nicest passes of this contest when he threw a perfectly placed stretch pass from behind his own goal line up to Pinko at the opposite blue line who walked in alone and converted on the breakaway attempt.