also caught the cape breton game today. ive seen a decent amount of squires in passing while looking at a couple 2024 eligibles and have largely been happy with his game, including earlier in the season when the points were coming more sporadically. i anticipated a full game viewing being just as good.
- all the calling cards of his game are still very apparent. lots of smart reads and decision making with the puck, good engagement, 200ft effort, willing to get in the mix physically and play the dirty areas, a pretty effective playmaking game
- i think his top speed is a bit faster (still not amazing overall) and his handling has shown improvement. seems more willing to try a move off the entry for example (as opposed to, say, just powering up the boards)
- i can tell when hes out there most shifts. that isnt to say hes having some profound impact every time he touches the ice, but inevitably ill see him make some sort of positive play like a nice defensive stick. he doesnt really slip into the background
- puck movement seems extra crisp today. generally tape to tape, willing to slip it through traffic. good mix of short/small area movement and more abitious stretch pass attempts. linemates arent doing much with it but hes getting pucks off quickly. lots of good ideas esp off the rush. cape breton lacks a true catalyst up front and squires is trying to play the part of one
- stick checking has also stood out. seems like hes constantly getting a touch on the puck when he gets near an opposing puck carrier
- feels like squires has gotten the immediate next shift after every goal, for or against, except for the gwg (which he was out for). i dont know if this is coincidence or even a thing, but i thought i saw it happen enough to call out. nice endorsement from the coaching staff if true, shows they trust him to either flip momentum or maintain it
- couple near misses, both by his team and himself, kept him off the scoresheet today. game was better than his stat line would indicate
- if im finding something to complain about, i think he can unlock an even higher compete level. im always hesitant to suggest something like this because its far from an issue (there was really only one halifax attempt he got kinda lax on), but a player like this can only be benefitted by having his motor dialed that much higher, particularly off puck.
the reason i emphasized his character in my original writeup is that i like to believe kids who are grounded and really care will find a way to hit in some capacity. we dont get the benefit of coach/teammate interviews as hobbyists, so this this type of stuff (along with something like body language) is about as close as we can get to personality scouting. im seeing someone who is willing to chip in wherever he can to help his team out, and i like that we bet on that
should note the eagles are BAD bad offensively this year, like one of the lowest scoring teams in all of the canadian junior leagues. squires hovering around 1ppg again might not look like great progress, esp in the Q, but factoring in his teams drop off in scoring from last year, i think theres still reason to be pretty happy. not to mention, he does pass the eye test. all things considered, i think this pick is tracking well so far
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