If it hasn’t already been mentioned in previous feature content, the sentiment of the 2007 class being a rather sparse year for high-end defensemen in Eastern Canada is one that’s been circulating of late. While valuations are certain to vary drastically after a certain point the first few rounds of the 2023 QMJHL draft, teams may be challenged to approach their positional-need strategy a bit differently when it comes to blueliners this year. Noah Collette is a player who could find himself turning more and more heads throughout the year. While it’s well established that successful defensemen in the QMJHL are often 5’10” or taller, Noah Collette’s current stature may not be as much of a flag due to the diluted environment for skilled defensemen. Collette is one of the most mobile blueliners from Atlantic Canada and boasts impressive acceleration in transition as well as when moving to identify lanes in the offensive zone. Similar, stylistically to Cape Breton Eagles defenseman Lincoln Waugh in that he’s always moving his feet, yet keen to use his refined passing ability to improve the quality of the puck. He does an excellent job of maintaining creativity in high-pressure situations, but anticipates the play well to give himself the opportunity to execute passes with optimal timing. Adding size and strength would be a nice way to boost his draft stock even further, as protecting the home-plate effectively is one of the most crucial elements for reliable deployment of any defenseman.

Collette was my 1st star for Team New Brunswick. In a game where New Brunswick struggled to transition out of their end, Collette’s evasiveness was the key to many controlled exits. Noah was calm when handling the puck deep in his end, dodging defenders, and reliably finding a path up ice. He was one of the few defenders on New Brunswick who was active in pinching down the wall and pouncing on loose pucks to keep the play in Quebec’s end. On one sequence, he aggressively picked up a loose puck, pushed it to low in the zone and hit a teammate in the slot for a chance. Similar to how I felt about a defenceman on Team Alberta, I only had a few notes on Collette, but the few I did spoke to tendencies and abilities that I highly value.

There was no shortage of work for Noah Collette throughout the early course of this game. He was tested at just about every turn on things like his ability to confront pressure at the opposing blueline which tested and perhaps unlocked his confidence in evading pressure in different ways, while maintaining the zone. While his standard evasive maneuver is to backtrack or spin on his opponents, the lanky Manitoba wingers applied pressure in such a way that those sorts of tactics weren’t always effective. Seeing his ability to adapt was a great sign. Sometime before the mid-way point of the game Collette left the game for an unknown reason. 

The skilled Moncton Flyers defenseman seemed to find himself cast in a slightly different, more heavily relied upon role for Team New Brunswick in this game, than what he might normally be used to with the Flyers. More often than not, left to his devices to generate offense from the back end, in this game, Colette was relied upon by NB to enforce a proactive defensive presence as well as an offensive one. His intelligence, while often applied to buy space and time in his own zone, was applied well in this game to make timely pinches and force the puck back into Saskatchewan’s zone. In contrast, however, while Collette presented similar tactics to earn space and time in his own zone as what I’m used to seeing, their degree of effectiveness appeared to be less. While Collette is often able to use the combination of a skilled double-clutch pass, and backwards crosscuts to shift forecheckers out of position, Saskatchewan’s relentless forecheck in many cases forced Collette to entirely double back without any options. I’ll be very interested to see how he adapts to this sort of pressure throughout the tournament.

Collette appears to be dropping his head a bit when he decides to carry the puck, otherwise his playmaking and shot selection as well as execution are well timed, hard and precise. He seems to offer more in terms of playmaking than you'll ever get from other defensemen in this class who are similar in stature. Under pressure it seemed like he rushed himself a bit. I found myself recalling how with guys like Marcus Kearsey or Lincoln Waugh would take their time to find an option, Collete seemed to be trying to turn around into traffic right away. It meant he didn't get to see the ice as well to make a decision. He needs to know that it's ok not to rush and always make things happen fast. His edgework in his own zone and in transition is terrific and enables him to be evasive while simultaneously scoping the breakout. He's doing a very good job squaring and tracking his opponents to the middle of the ice and keeping them out of the home-plate area off the rush. He also exhibited shrewd awareness in front of his own net to neutralize bigger players with good, disciplined timing. He wasn't perfect in terms of his defensive resistance after being worn down a bit and did let a few Vito's make contact in the slot, but all things considered he had a number of impressive defensive shifts.

Collette seems to be playing rather quiet and passive in his own zone, which was a bit concerning. His lack of reach in the defensive zone is problematic because he simply doesn't have the size for forgiveness. That extra few inches of reach that he could otherwise use to "punt" a puck along the wall into space means that he needs to be that much faster or more engaged, which in this game he doesn't seem to be. It's been a long day with this being the fourth game, and long week for them so I feel as though I have to give him some forgiveness, but will want to watch closely for this in the future. Collette positioned himself proactively to defend the rush which seemed like an isolated step towards effective defending in this game.

Collete used his edgework really well to delay and buy ice in movement in the beginning of transition. This helped really well to open a passing lane and get the puck to Wheeler for a secondary assist on the first goal of the game. His footwork is impeccable in helping him to delay and open ice. He's always using this strategy to glide laterally or delay. His passing is also made with excellent power and precision consistently.

Collette's agility stands out among all skaters on the ice. He's able to be evasive and create opportunities but in this game there's not a lot of a size factor on the other side of the ice which means he doesn't have to battle for ice the same way he will at a higher level. Using his modest reach, Collette is able to make quite a lot happen. He's very nimble and evasive and maximizes what reach he has by keeping his feet moving at all times with the puck. You rarely feel as though the possession is at risk with him.

Of all defensemen in the Atlantic region, Colette is among the most offensively talented. The Moncton Flyers rookie is a confident and precise puck mover who can be very eager to join the rush and create opportunities for his team in movement. He uses lateral attack lanes to deceive opposing defenders and can get rather creative in how he moves the puck on the man-advantage.