Rookie Profile: Alexander Shaw [2/2]

[NavyCanuck 2]

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Name: Alexander Shaw

Hometown: Coquitlam, B.C

Age: 19

Position: C

Height: 6'2"

Weight: 190 Lbs

 

Overview

 

Born in Vancouver, raised in Coquitlam, Alexander Shaw has devoted his life to hockey ever since he stepped onto the ice for the first time. After 2 highly successful BCHL seasons with his hometown team the Coquitlam express, (84 Goals, 48 Assists, 132 Pts in 116 Games) Shaw's hard work has been rewarded with signing as a free agent with the Mississauga Hounds. Dominate against boys, Shaw is keen to get the chance to prove himself against men.

 

Strengths 

Skating: A natural born skater, Shaw is able to accelerate quickly and reach his top speed in seemingly effortless strides, blowing past defenders and often leaving them looking dumbfounded at the blur that just passed before their eyes. During his 2 seasons in the BCHL his speed was a major factor in the majority of his goals, taking clean break out passes from his defenders and attacking through the middle of the ice. Not just a fast skater, he is able to pivot on a dime and shake checks with ease.

 

Shooting: Shaw's biggest strength. The main contributing factor in his dual 40+ goal seasons. Given the right time and space, Shaw will ripple the twine 63.5% of the time as reflected in his abnormal shooting percentage of 63.5% throughout his BCHL career. He will often not shoot unless he is certain it will likely go in, patiently waiting in the offensive zone for opportunities or using his speed to get in on a breakaway. The puck seemingly always explodes off his stick, no matter what type of shot he is taking, often catching the goalie by surprise. 

 

Faceoffs: Clutch in the dot, Shaw boasted an absurd 82% face off win percentage in the BCHL. Often tasked with taking key draws in the offensive and defensive zone, he was most dangerous in the defensive zone. After winning the face off back to his defender he would often take off down the wing, counter attacking quickly and creating great scoring chances. All this being said, Shaw will have to up his game to be successful in the VHLM

 

 

Weaknesses

Puck Handling: Because of his speed and shot, Shaw tends to work less on other areas of his game, noticeably his puck handling. He has good control of the puck when skating with speed, and is good on 1 on 1 situations, but when in the offensive zone trying to set up a play he is apt to lose the puck under pressure from a defender reaching in with his stick. Shaw needs to find a way to protect the puck better when not skating with speed. The competition on the VHLM will be tougher and his speed will likely be rivaled by many players, which will take away that advantage which he had much success with in the BCHL.

 

Dicipline: A fiery and tenacious player, Shaw is apt to showing frustration on the ice when his game is off. Although he only racked up 64 penalty minutes in 2 seasons in the BCHL, most of those were avoidable. Usually the focal point of a scrum, he is often the first one to shove his gloves into an opposing players face.He has the tendency to be lazy with his stick when chasing the play, resulting in tripping penalties. When being meticulously followed around on the ice he takes a few liberties with careless slashes. In the VHLM it is likely that Shaw will be harassed every game on the ice, and he will have to find a way to control his emotions and focus that fire and passion into the positive areas of his game.

 

Defense: Shaw is an offensive minded player who is very good at putting the puck in the net. Where his game lacks the most is his defensive vision and focus. He made up for this by having multiple point games in the BCHL, but often he would have too as some GA were the fault of poor defensive coverage. Not to say that Shaw is lazy and doesn't back check, he just hasn't quite fully figured out the defensive area of his game yet. He is often over aggressive at reading potential breakouts and may jump the blue line early, resulting in a clear lane for an opposing player to pick a spot and shoot. This is an area of his game that he will most definitely have to work on, as the players in the VHLM will be bigger, faster, and smarter. With the proper coaching and direction he has the potential to be an excellent two way center man in the VHLM.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[HughJas_ 76]

Review: Good in depth profile, looks to be a player with alot of offensive upside. Hoping to see the center being able to play a 200ft game in the near future!