Tremblay was able to thrive in more of a shoot-first complimentary role on a line alongside Jacob McKinnon and Olivier Lafrenière for a majority of camp. I thought he did a great job as the F1 on that line, utilizing his size and acceleration to get in quickly on defenders and deliver hard body checks which either forced them to make a blind pass up the boards or remove them of possession altogether. He acted as a solid net front presence as well, using his frame to establish inside positioning on defenders in the crease area which allowed him to pounce on rebounds in tight. His puck touches usually came at the end of a chain of possession, opting to throw pucks on net from all over the offensive zone looking to catch the goaltender off guard or create rebound opportunities, but he did execute a few impressive give-and-go sequences with his linemate that earned himself a few scoring chances from the middle of the ice off the rush

Tremblay’s versatile approach made him one of the more unpredictable and effective forwards on Québec Blue, while also being productive with 5 points in 4 games. He was very efficient at slipping pucks through seams off the rush, either connecting on cross-ice feeds on odd man advantages or drawing pressure towards the flanks before slipping a puck through to the middle of the ice. He was tenacious below the goal line in the offensive zone as well, hounding opposing defenders and utilizing stick lifts to win back possession before funneling a low to high pass to the slot area. His ability to score goals in a multitude of ways also caught my attention, as he was able to tally by working his way to the front of the net to bang home a rebound, carving through a defender off the rush and firing a shot off from mid-range in motion and deflecting a puck home from the point while holding his ground in front of the net.

Another really good puck possession forward for this Wolfpack team, Malik Tremblay demonstrated some really impressive evasive maneuvers using a series of body fakes to smooth pivots to quick turns away from pressure while being able to keep control of the puck and continue to cycle it around the offensive zone. It was almost a work of art watching him time and string together each move against his opponents while also flashing his playmaking ability and effectively getting pucks through tight windows to feed teammates in the middle of the ice. His maneuverability and speed gave him an advantage over most defenders as he was very unpredictable with the puck on his stick whether it was carrying it through the neutral zone or circling around the offensive zone and even without the puck, he would slightly delay on zone entries and odd-man rushes to give himself the needed time and space to capitalize on his chances which he was able to do quite effectively during this event.

Tremblay was great as a facilitator in this game, using his tenacious and intelligent off-puck game to create advantages for himself and his linemates. He kept his feet moving in the offensive zone, allowing him to win races to loose pucks along the wall and help extend cycle plays for his line by making smart decisions on his touches. He was able to generate a couple of looks for himself off the rush by skating himself into seams in the neutral zone, catching a pass in stride and attacking wide around a defender to get a shot off from an awkward angle down low. I noted plenty of strong on-puck sequences in transition for Tremblay as well, taking intelligent routes in the neutral zone to gain the offensive line before either hitting a delay up high or circling the net to set up shop.

I thought Tremblay had some good moments in his first M18 AAA game, almost putting his team up early with a great chance from the side of the net and then nearly setting up a goal with a quick touch off the faceoff that found Verpaelst all alone in front. I was most impressed with his confidence as a puck carrier as he displayed his ability to maneuver around opponents and into open space or even fend off defenders with his frame to give himself a few extra seconds to make a play with the puck whether that was in transition or from the perimeter of the offensive zone.