Guay was the only defender who could consistently create offense from the backend, finishing second in team scoring with 3 points in 4 games. He timed his activations quite well both off the rush and off the cycle, consistently getting himself into space off-puck which helped generate puck touches for him in the offensive zone. He had a few impressive puck rushes up the ice as well, utilizing head fakes and quick changes of direction on his edges to freeze defenders, blow by them and execute zone entries with control. He flashed creativity and deception from the offensive blueline, combining strong lateral mobility with manipulation tactics to open up passing and shooting lanes from the point that he could thread pucks through.

Guay has slowly turned himself into one of my favorite defenders in this entire class and his performance at this event did little to hinder that. He’s a highly deceptive and manipulative player who knows how to use head feints to get opposing players to bite to create space for himself as he traverses up the ice with the puck. This is also true on DZ retrievals where Guay is consistently able to fake out forecheckers and wheel his way into space in order to initiate the breakout for his team. He’s at his most dangerous from the top of the offensive zone where he’s able to freeze defenders, work his way around them and attack downhill before either executing a cross-ice feed or putting a puck on net. He’s not necessarily a dynamic skater for a defender of his size, which could hinder his stock come draft day, but in terms of overall effectiveness and intelligence he’s up there with the best of the class.

I came away from this camp really excited about the type of game Guay brought to the table. He excelled in many aspects of the game I think are critical for defenders to succeed at the next level, most notably playing with pace on retrievals and scanning frequently to move the puck up quickly. His scanning habits allowed him to more often than not make the right play while going back for the puck, reading the forecheck scheme accordingly, using deceptive head and shoulder fakes to escape into space and move the puck to an open target to initiate the breakout. When the play broke down in front of him in his own zone he was able to then skate the puck out of his own zone for a controlled exit using his skating ability then use his plus-level puck skills to maneuver around opposing players in the neutral zone to attack into space. Guay was showing great confidence from the offensive blueline as well, using a series of spins and fakes to get around pressure up high, attack down low and either center a pass to the middle or get a shot off from in tight.

Guay was one of the only Team Bergeron defenders that could positively impact play at both ends of the ice throughout this game. He had a few solid puck rushes up the ice, using head fakes and quick pivots to shake primary forecheckers, and even drove to the middle of the ice in one instance in the first period that drew a penalty. I noted a couple of times where he was able to shut down odd man advantages with a shrewd stick play, either closing in quickly on a puck-carrier to execute a poke check or getting his stick into a lane and blocking a cross-ice pass. He struggled a bit going back for pucks on DZ retrievals, but that was the case for all Bergeron defenders under the Team Daigle forecheck.

Guay’s ability to lead the offense from the backend made him one of the more effective defenders in the entirety of this game. He had a couple of impressive puck rushes up the ice, utilizing subtle head fakes and quick pivots to freeze defenders and make his way around them before gaining the offensive blueline with control. He used his lateral mobility to walk the line in the offensive zone as well, using quick stop and starts to open up shooting lanes for himself so he could get pucks through. His offensive activations were calculated and effective, helping him score his teams 5th goal of the game when he jumped down from the line and snapped home a rebound from in tight.

It was a slow start for Guay in this one, bobbling pucks on retrievals and missing non-pressured outlet passes that lead to icings. However, the more the game went along you could see him getting more comfortable and confident and by the end of the game he was one of the Gaulois’ most dangerous offensive threats despite playing on the backend. His skating isn’t necessarily dynamic, but his ability to utilize head fakes to shake forecheckers on regroups and freeze defenders as he traverses the ice were major assets in his team’s transition game. He had one excellent rush late in the game when he was able to beat two defenders in the neutral zone with subtle fakes, work his way around a defender once he entered the zone and get off a chance from in tight. He had a couple of strong instances defending the rush as well, overcoming his size deficiency by utilizing his stick to knock pucks loose and thwart chances to the inside.

Guay’s plus-level skating ability allowed him to be a factor in this game, especially when things began to open up in the latter half. He was doing a good job scanning prior to his puck retrievals in the defensive zone, which allowed him to move the puck up the ice quickly on his breakouts. When he was without a passing option, he could use his skating ability to get the puck out of danger by generating a controlled exit and using his hands to work his way through checkers in the neutral zone to kickstart the rush. He was showing tremendous confidence from the offensive blueline as well, spinning away from pressure at the line, attacking downhill and funneling pucks to the net looking to create chances in dangerous areas.