| Mason McTavish | Pembroke Lumber Kings U18 | HEO Midget AAA | L | F | 6’2″ | 207 | Peterborough Petes | 2019 | Carp, ON | 2020-2021: A |
Neutral Zone NHL’s Ian Moran’s comments, June 2021: In my mind Mason has played like an NHLer for a long long time. He’s responsible in both ends and does not cheat. He’s strong as a bull and leadership just oozes off him. It’s a little thing, but he handles rocket passes to his backhand so easily that he makes it look like he’s playing pick up with his buddies. He finishes his checks with a purpose and always beats his man back to the important areas of the ice. Mason has a powerful stride, can stop on a dime and shows excellent acceleration when coming out of tight turns. He plays the game with his eyes up looking for the next opportunity to impact the game and his shot is flat out deadly. I think he’s going to be a three or four contract kind of center and will be the type of player who plays in the top six for a decade.
OHL: Peterborough Petes vs Mississauga Steelheads, March 2020: McTavish played a mature responsible game and certainly did not look like a rookie. He was excellent during the offensive cycle, showing poise while defenders were on his back and having the awareness to locate close support. He played the bumper on the power play and took key draws in both ends. We liked how he stopped on pucks, finished checks and back checked with his stick down & head on a swivel.
OHL: Peterborough Petes vs Oshawa Generals, February 2020: McTavish played a smart defensive game finishing his checks when appropriate, maintaining shooting lanes with body positioning and having a good active stick to deter passes. We liked his low center support in the defensive zone and five on five transition. His stick was always prepared to receive a pass and he handled hard passes to his backhand cleanly. He did not earn an assist on Chisholm’s second period goal, but it was Mason’s maturity in the right corner that kept the play alive and allowed the play to develop by not blindly throwing the puck into the slot. Rather he accepted contact, made the short net side pass which allowed his linemates to make a tick-tac-toe play to find the weakside defenseman.
HEO Midget AAA Labor Day Showcase, September 2018: McTavish is a special prospect at this age given his size, strength and skill. He can outskate opponents to the puck, he has the stickhandling ability to beat defenders 1v1 and the power and accuracy in his shooting to score from the outside. His powerful stride and physical play allowed him to get to the net and create scoring chances for himself but he was also a force down low in the corners and along the wall. As a young player in his first full season of Midget U18 hockey he has to learn to play more consistent hockey and develop his complete game but the upside is excellent and he’ll get a lot of OHL Draft attention this season as a versatile, big-bodied, skilled forward with both power and finesse.
Photo Credit: Dan Hickling/Hickling Images