| Mathieu Taillefer | Brooks Bandits | AJHL | R | D | 6’1″ | 168 | Penn State | 2024 | Richelieu, QC | 2006 | 2023-2024: C+ |
AJHL: Brooks Bandits vs Okotoks Oilers, September 9, 2023: Taillefer is a long legged right shot defender with a forward leaning skating posture and a long almost over exaggerated stride that finished with a low heel kick. He showed good straight line speed and liked to set his gaps early, to the point where in the offensive zone when he recognized defensive middle support that was above the puck he would aggressively move down to the tops of the circle to make sure he maintained a stick’s length away from his the forward. While defending an even man rush through the neutral zone Taillefer used a hidden poke check and although he crossed his feet he pinched off the rush as early as possible. Along the offensive blueline we liked the first touch he showed as he played with the top hand of his stick (left hand) free and clear from his body so he could quickly settle and handle poor passes or bouncing pucks while keeping his eyes up. He also showed a quick lateral stutter step with an evasive forehand backhand fake to create space for himself along the offensive blueline or when activating down the mid-wall. over the course of the game Taillefer attempted three points. He had two of them blocked with one of the blocks coming on a grade “A” opportunity as he walked down the slot but fired it into the defenseman’s shinpads. His point shot that got through was a quick stick snap shot that generated a rebound in the low slot that his forwards failed to find. On the night he finished even and was fifth among Brook’s defenders with 13:30 in total ice time including 0:07 on the power play and 1:17 while shorthanded. As a penalty killer he played in straight lines recognizing when to pressure or when to be passive and when the puck was along the wall or his opponent was bobbling the puck Taillefer applied pressure in one quick stride. While shorthanded he also used his quick poke check and long reach to get his stick blade on four attempted shots that went wide. Overall he had zero points, 1 shot, 1 hit, received 1 hard hit, had 3 giveaways and 1 takeaway. Taillefer currently has a “C+” 2024 NHL draft grade from Neutral Zone. Game Grade: B-
U17: Hockey Canada National Development Camp, July 11-15, 2022: Taillefer is a smooth skating defenseman that executes a strong, accurate first pass out of his zone, closes gaps effectively defensively, and can defend the rush with good footwork and a smart stick. Taillefer has a strong shot and is able to keep the puck in a loaded position on his forehand while skating in the offensive zone, as well as in a triple-threat position while skating throughout the neutral zone and offensive zone. Taillefer showcased his intelligence throughout the week, picking off several passes through the defensive zone, fronting players effectively in his own zone, and jumping into the cycle in the offensive zone without giving up anything defensively. Taillefer is a bigger body defenseman that moves fluidly like players much smaller than him, and has great poise with the puck and will make a great option to run a powerplay from the top of the umbrella or from the half-wall. Grade: B+
U16: QMJHL Cup, June 13, 2022: : Taillefer is a 6ft, highly athletic and mobile, two-way defenseman from St Hyacinthe Gaulois where he played top four minutes in his rookie season. He’s a project in a lot of ways but also one of the most exciting prospects in the camp with his size, his athleticism, his puck handling, his stride and his toughness. He does a little bit of everything and while he does push the envelope more than he has to at times; at this age we just like the confidence and the fearlessness to try to make the play. He gets back on retrievals quickly, he can wheel the puck out of his end with speed and yet keep his head up ice and feed his forwards through the neutral zone. Taillefer was the ultimate power play quarterback; he could go end to end from behind his net, he could stretch the ice with precision passing with zip and when he gained the zone he skated to open ice, settled the play down and could facilitate from the top of the umbrella. He can one-touch passes, he can snap it off to the backdoor through tight spaces, he can shoot to screens and to pads for rebounds and create a lot of scoring chances. With that being said, he overhandles at times, he tries to force passes that have a low percentage of connecting and overexposes the puck trying to beat defenders 1v1 instead of just skating around them with his speed and length. To his credit he did have a few impressive dangle moves through defenders feet, through his own feet, using his long wingspan to make inside-out moves and bait the defender into lunging for the puck and then walking right around him. However, he won’t get away with a lot of that at higher levels and needs to learn to move the puck quicker after he makes his initial move. Taillefer had one play where his defensive partner lost a puck in the neutral zone and he immediately backchecked and made a diving play to breakup a pass across the slot and followed the play up into the corner and finished a check showing his competitiveness and bite. When he hits, he hits with a purpose; when he carries the puck up ice he’s looking to score and when he makes a pass he doesn’t admire it, he jumps up into the play to be the fourth forward. He’s often out of position, he had too many turnovers, he didn’t execute defensive zone positioning and rather chased puck carriers out beyond the dots and got walked off the wall trying to steal the puck instead of playing the body; however, he has a lot of raw tools that very few in this draft possess so he proved here he’s worthy of a first round grade or early second and has top unit upside in the QMJHL; he just needs more experience and to be coached up a bit. Grade: A-
Quebec M18AAA CCM Challenge, January 23, 2022: Taillefer showed some excellent qualities for a defenseman. Nothing extraordinary, but very competent and reliable. His use of his stick and body positioning to defend was very effective. He attacked the stick blade of the offensive player and disrupted that player’s intentions. Taillefer’s mobility range was wide, allowing him to cover expanded areas of the ice. As a result his gap management was good. Taillefer always seemed to be in position to give his partner an outlet, and when receiving the puck he rarely hesitated before advancing it to an open forward. He made very good decisions at the offensive blueline when it came to defending opponent plays to exit. Taillefer closed down on some outlets to break up the play and other times effectively read the play and accepted the rush out of the zone. Low risk, but consistent decision maker. Grade B
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