Nowoselski is a mobile, two-way defender who thrives in transition. Throughout this tournament, I found my self becoming more and more impressed with his ability to defend using his quickness of thought and feet over brawn. He has sound positioning and is clever about when he closes the gap, picking moments when the opponent dips his head or bobbles possession to pounce and force turnovers. He isn’t a big defender, but he leverages his frame well and leans on his agility to get into the fray, pluck the puck out, and escape before bigger players have the chance to lock him down. With the puck, he’s deceptive; changing speeds to keep defenders off balance and making smooth, well-timed passes, often mid-stickhandle, to maintain offensive flow. His backhand touch on passes also stands out, adding an extra layer of unpredictability to his game. His never-ending acceleration curve and consistent use of linear crossovers makes him an intimidating presence on the rush, but he can be surprisingly stationary when posted up at the offensive blueline. He’s effective at regaining and reintroducing pucks into the offensive zone, but if he can add a greater level of activity when zone play is established, I think he could unlock an even greater offensive gear.

He currently has 31 points in 17 games for Prairie Storm and showcased his ability to use his fluid skating stride to consistently start transition. I appreciated his ability to catch passes easily whether backhand or forehand and use that dynamic skating stride in moments to make sure he was a bit unpredictable with his skating lanes. It made him one of the better transition players through the neutral zone at the event. I saw a lot of the details that I like to see too such as good timing on shoulder to shoulder checks, quality stick work defensively in swipes and pokes, and recognizing moments to pinch back food in quick bursts to be an offensive option. His size was the detriment a bit in moments like being forced to take penalties one on one against bigger opponents on the outside, and sometimes having to keep to the exterior in order to make safer plays. I still loved his confidence, stride, and adaptability though. I thought he was one of the more impressive defenders relative to my expectations coming in.

Braden is a smooth, high-motor player with quick hands and fast feet who impressed me in several ways this tournament. His skating stood out with its fluidity, featuring long strides and quick stops and starts to change direction effectively. He used his skating well along the boards in both ends to evade pressure and make plays with the puck. From the point, his vision was impressive, threading tight-window passes to the slot or near the net while also possessing a very hard shot. What impressed me most about Braden was his ability to join rushes and pick smart opportunities to do so. In Game 4, he scored a first-minute goal by recognizing that one of his wingers was starting a rush 1-on-4 while the rest of the line was changing. Braden immediately put his head down, exploded up into the rush, and drove hard to the net, beating everyone to the puck and hammering it home. Plays like this were a regular feature of his game throughout the tournament.