I’ve been watching Carrier for well over a year now and I think his play at this event was the best I’ve seen out of him throughout that time. His archetype as a physically mature defensive defenseman is extremely projectable, as he combines a well-rounded toolkit with an aggressive mindset to make plenty of stops both off the rush and in-zone. He does this by either anticipating play and stepping up in the neutral zone to break up plays or force dump-ins or utilizing his reach to close in quickly on attackers along the perimeter, maintaining a strong gap and giving them little to no space to operate. Something different I saw here was a newfound confidence to carry the puck up ice, sometimes beating a forechecker in the neutral zone with a swift deke to gain the offensive zone before dishing it to the outside and driving the net. He still has a few bobbling issues, especially on cross-ice receptions which can sometimes kill his team’s momentum in transition, but he has continued to make strides in that regard and I only expect it to improve as he continues to progress.

Carrier is a physically mature and defensively stout defender who makes strong plays in his own end that contribute to exit plays. He uses his frame to box out forecheckers on his retrievals before making short deferral passes to his defensive partner to initiate the breakout. I thought he was using his size effectively to kill cycle plays along the perimeter as well by leaning on opposing forwards and removing them from the puck. When the play broke down in front of him, he showed an awareness and a willingness to skate the puck out on his own for a controlled exit before dishing off to a forward in transition.

I thought Carrier was Québec White’s most consistent and reliable defender throughout the course of the tournament. At 6’0 and 163 lbs he already possesses a physically mature frame that bodes well with his style of play. Whether it was at even strength or on the penalty kill, he did a great job of getting his stick into passing lanes and thwarting any high-danger pass attempts from the opposition. His puck-moving ability was very noticeable as well, making hard and accurate outlet passes to teammates in stride. He demonstrated a good understanding of pressure on retrievals or on regroups by putting pucks to areas where only his teammates could get it and not forcing plays to congested areas under duress. He was using his frame effectively to box out forecheckers with the puck on his stick, making some slick one handed passes up ice in the process. From the point he’s always looking to change the angles of his release in order to get shots through on the goaltender. His puck-handling ability is still a work in progress as there were a few bobbles upon some receptions, but he has time to work out the kinks for his draft-eligible season next year.

Kicking off our list is an Eastern Canadian out of the QM15AAA league. Yoan Carrier was noticeable via his physical play from the blueline, and stimy defensive play. His positioning was on point, along with his ability to quick turn and track the puck as it made its way around the offensive zone. Accurate in his stick checks, he intercepted and deflected several passes in his defensive end, denying potential high danger scoring chances before they even happened. When rebounds came about near the crease, he did a great job boxing out opponents with some solid strength and swatting the rebound out of harms way. His physical play continued as he defended the defensive blueline, landing some hard bodychecks and denying the zone entry. Carrier wasn’t the quickest skater out there, but he was mobile for his size, and always seemed to position himself properly to defend.

Although he’s not as offensively inclined as some of the other defenders at this camp, it was Carrier’s stout play in his own end that made him a standout player in this game. I liked the way he was using his frame to lean on opposing forwards along the perimeter, taking away their time and space and dislodging the puck in the process. He was also using his frame to box out forecheckers on his retrievals to win the battle for the puck and make crisp outlet passes to his wingers. Carrier also showed he could use his skating to his advantage in the defensive zone by skating the puck out for a controlled exit whenever his passing options were exhausted in front of him.

Carrier is making an early case for being Québec White’s most consistent and effective defender early on. He was showing some confident puck-handling ability early on, using his hands to split between two forecheckers and move the puck up to a teammate. Yet again he was using his size and reach to strip attackers of the puck or force them towards low-danger areas. He scored Québec’s second goal of the game off a hard and accurate point shot. I actually liked how he often changed the angle of his shots to get it through a sea of defenders and on net for a scoring chance. He’s still prone to a few overhandles of the puck, although it wasn’t as much of a problem in this game.

Carrrier was one of the bright spots for Québec white with his mature defensive game and poised decision-making. He was using his long reach effectively in the defensive zone to block passing lanes and stick check opposing attackers. He showed flashes of good puck-moving ability by making efficient and quick reads on breakouts. He demonstrated a good understanding and anticipation of pressure on defensive zone retrievals, while also using his above-average frame to thwart off forecheckers. His puck-handling ability leaves a bit to be desired, as there were a few bobbles that resulted in turnovers.