Scouting Report
EVALUATED 09/05/2022
Brayden Olafson
Head of Eastern Canada Scouting
Player Type: Puck moving defenseman in every way you can imagine.
QMJHL Draft Projection: 1st to 2nd Round
Projected QMJHL Arrival: Spring 2023
Projectable Skills: Technical and intellectual ability to utilize his skill, footwork and all other means necessary to create viable puck moving lanes.
Development Opportunities: He tends to be aggressive in terms of his positioning and risk tolerance at the blueline. Striking a balance to maximize his offenisve potential and minimize risk of allowing odd-man rushes should be his next development objective.
The RNS defenseman who is widely regarded as one of the top skaters in this class handled a bit of a mid-season growth spurt very well, coming out stronger, yet just as fluid, powerful and agile on the back end. The nimble defender is continually one of the most elusive players in any given area of the ice. Coming out of his own zone, Kearsey is able to buy himself ample time to make a quality breakout pass. By reading his forecheckers well and employing an almost comical level of patience and agility, he draws opponents out of his passing lanes so that he can deploy the puck with high reliability. In the offensive zone, Kearsey doesn't quarterback the powerplay in a typical style, but rather likes to play a hybrid position between the point and the lower half wall. His mobility enables him to maximize the value of his teams’ possession on the man advantage by being able to emulate a cycle at the high-end of the zone and allowing additional resources to concentrate at the net-front or weak side of the ice. Many of the elements that I'd identified as areas for improvement in his game throughout the year have been mitigated in subsequent assessments. This level and rate of growth is very reassuring . As much as his skating is a prominently positive element of his game, Kearsey’s composure, precision and confidence in nearly every decision he makes is at the pinnacle of this crop.
Skating
8Puck Skills
8Hockey IQ
8Playmaking
8Scoring
7Physicality
7Defense
7Overall
7.57Scouting Report
EVALUATED 07/02/2022 Brayden Olafson
Head of Eastern Canada Scouting
Kearsey is a very nimble defender who has relatively modest size and strength. He has very quick hands and can recognize sneaky passing opportunities and execute with above average precision. In his skill he makes the occasional slip up, but he is willing to push the boundaries in a way that indicates he has lots of room to grow. He shows very little hesitation when making a decision to activate which is a bit of a high risk, high reward tendency. In doing so he shows incredible footspeed and general nimble power to break out of the zone, reminding me a bit of the way Jeremie Poirier explodes from his own zone. He is entirely capable of burning through the NZ to make an offensive impact when the opportunity presents itself, but he also exposes his defensive zone when doing so. His general defensive acumen is such that you can expect a handful of potentially costly mistakes over the span of a game, of which the opponent will determine if he has to pay for them or not. He tends to rely on being technically superior in the defensive zone, and while he does not appear cocky, his abundance of patience under pressure can result in excessive pressure and loss of options. Monitoring the manner in which he manages risk throughout the year will be the primary factor in his final placement.
Overall
7.57Game Reports
EVALUATED Brayden Olafson
Head of Eastern Canada Scouting
A technique of Kearsey’s that seems to add a lot of value for his team is an exaggerated form of the famous Keith Yandle SONK! When coming out from behind his own net, Kearsey occasionally employs the use of his abrupt start-stop capabilities to remove his forechecker from the play, thereafter, circling back to his opposite winger for a cleaner and more sustainable breakout pass. I’ve been finding in the two games of his that I’ve watched in this tournament that he’s occasionally feeling the need to cover multiple positions at once. It’s likely a factor of the unfamiliar rosters, but he’s doing quite well. Unfortunate circumstance resulted in Team White’s third goal while he was on the ice, but I give him a lot of credit for making the effort in two discrete positions to prevent the goal. His goal at the end of the 2nd period was one that he likely wouldn’t get past a QMJHL goalie, yet, I can’t help but appreciate the confidence and precision he showed after identifying the potential of his opportunity. In all likelihood, considering what I’ve seen from him he wouldn’t have made the shot if he didnt know he could score on it.
Game Reports
EVALUATED Brayden Olafson
Head of Eastern Canada Scouting
Despite the chaos, I thought Marcus Kearsey had one of the most impressive individual performances that I have seen from him all season. Most notably, Kearsey highlighted his exceptional ability to identify and execute passes at lighting speed with substantial power. This helped him to enable highly efficient breakouts, which he often followed up with immediate rush support. His speed and abrupt agility enable him to create space for himself in the defensive zone which gives him an additional moment to set up when it's absolutely needed. In doing this allows himself to recompose and make a quality decision. He’s beginning to play so much more like a man by the day, and his growth throughout the season has been consistent. At this rate, I think he’s a dark horse to see QMJHL ice this October.
Game Reports
EVALUATED Brayden Olafson
Head of Eastern Canada Scouting
One of the first things that was noted in this contest, which was jam-packed with QMJHL Draft eligible talent was that Kearsey appears to have grown 2" to 3" since November. The defenseman who is regarded as such an incredible skater seems to be handling the growth spurt quite well, while reaping the added benefits of his increasing size. The first half of this game seemed to be almost entirely played on special teams, and while my expectation was to see Kearsey play substantially on the powerplay, that wasn't exactly the case. When given his opportunity I was impressed with his ability to play with his head up, and make unexpected, deceptive passes cross-seam through traffic. Kearsey doesn't quarterback the powerplay in a typical style, but rather likes to play a hybrid position between the point and the lower half wall. His mobility enables him to have success in this role. I was left wanting to see a bit more in terms of his explosiveness when changing directions, however, this was only noted on one or two occasions and could've come at the ends of those shifts. In the defensive zone, Kearsey was on for at least one goal against, in which I felt he could've done a bit more to inhibit Moncton's attack. When challenging attackers in the corners, I found that his engagement which is otherwise a great element of his game, led him to be slightly overcommitted. While he attempted to adapt when his opponents evaded him with skill and quickness, his commitment to their initial position kept him from guarding them as effectively as he otherwise might have. There were a couple of instances where pucks seemed to slip off of Kearsey's backhand, and while granted, those passes were not necessarily on target as they should have been a more effective reception could've offered RNS additional offensive opportunity. His passes, especially in short-range are excellent in terms precision. While he's great at identifying and accurately executing long-range passes, a little bit of additional power will help them to be more effective in leading the rush and reducing risk of interception at a higher level. While this wasn't the most complete performance we've seen from Kearsey, he still presented a great overall game with plenty of projectable attributes. He's an offensive weapon when given the opportunity and has a ton of growth potential, both physically and in terms of building upon his foundational skills.
Game Reports
EVALUATED Brayden Olafson
Head of Eastern Canada Scouting
Strengths: Marcus Kearsey is a mobile right-shot defender who can add value in all three zones using his agility and presence of mind with the puck on his stick. Getting around the ice with such nimble mobility enables him to see the ice very well, which further serves to enable his puck movement ability. Opportunities: There was an instance in the QMJHL prospects game where Kearsey attempted to hold-pinch along the right wall that went bad for him. While there was some traffic in the immediate area that may have tied him up, I noticed that once the puck squeaked past him his pivot speed was woefully insufficient to give him an opportunity to regain position on the attack. The result was a scoring opportunity against and a potential key opportunity exposed in Kearsey’s game.
Player Card
- All Data is derived via 5v5 per 60 minutes rate displayed in percentile format.
- Data Courtesy of In Slat.
SIGNED:
Charlottetown Islanders
22/08/2022
LEAGUE PREDICTION
-
CHL
Confirmed
100%
TEAM PREDICTION
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Charlottetown Islanders
Confirmed
100%
TIMELINE
- 2022
01/09/2022
Charlottetown Islanders sign Marcus Kearsey
- 2022
05/07/2022
Drafted by the Charlottetown Islanders in the QMJHL Draft
- 2022
01/06/2022
Drafted by the Omaha Lancers in the USHL Futures Draft
