Wolanski is a towering presence on the ice and makes an impact in all three zones with his awareness and proactivity. His composure is a particular strength, and while he catches the eye with his imposing size, it’s his puck movement that I think will take him the farthest. He has excellent vision and execution as a passer, serving as a catalyst on the powerplay, and stretching the ice 5-on-5. He collected 10 points in 6 games to lead all defenceman at the tournament bringing an effortless feel as a distributor. He never seems rushed or out of answers and his ability to keep the play driving up ice means a lot of offensive zone time during his shifts. His poise as a puck carrier and cerebral playstyle does have some drawbacks defensively currently. He has the tools to take over games at both ends of the ice, but he can be a touch passive on the defensive side of the equation. There are too many moments puck watching in an upright posture. There is another level to unlock in Wolanski’s game with more attention paid to using his frame, strength, and length to disrupt. His potential as a pro-style two-way defenceman is sky-high if he can string together his dominant shifts into dominant games.

If you’re looking for a defender who has that long stride length, keeps his awareness, and can log heavy minutes for your group in all situations, I think Tyson is on your list. He’s physically imposing already, shows a strong lateral pass and stretch pass up ice, and has that heavy snap on his wrist shots and his quick passes. I’ve seen him command a breakout, not overhandle, and try to find those moments to feed pucks across the zone. Throw in a heavy slapshot and a really heavy wrist shot from the point and Tyson certainly comes ready to step into higher levels of competition. He can continue to work on his first three strides and his agility to be more explosive from a standstill in order to make sure he can keep with the top tier speed players but he reminds me of many WHLers who have come before him as far as the demeanor and his potential.