Gunnarwolfe Fontaine (4.25 Star Amateur Rating, NHL Grade — C) Forward
World Junior A Challenge Update: (F, L, 5’9″, 165, Chicago Steel, 09/16/2000, Northeastern)- Fontaine was an exciting player to watch in this year’s tournament. His 5 goals and 5 assists put him in second place overall, behind only his line mate Brisson. Fontaine was used in all situations, including as a great option on the Power play and as a hard worker on the Penalty Kill. His quick skating and smart reads made for a great combination on the kill, and his puck-handling ability and play-making impressed all on the Power play. Perhaps his best game came against the Czech Republic in the preliminary round, where he tied the game at 4 with just over 2 minutes remaining in the 3rd with a snipe upstairs, and then scored on a great individual effort 1 minute into the OT period. His chemistry with Brisson and Farrell was tremendous, showing an ability to play with elite players. Grade: A
Gunnarwolfe Fontaine (2019 USHL Fall Classic Evaluation) LW 4.25 Star, C NHL – No doubt the greatest name in hockey & he’s been removing the doubts on his size for the past 3 seasons. The kid plays hard. He is creative. And he is fearless. We watched a lot of hockey in Pittsburgh & Gunnarwolfe was one of the few players who brought fans (and scouts) to the edge of their seats. He plays with pace.. and by pace I’m not giving him enough credit. He can absolutely fly, but he does not play out of control. His brain allows him to be effective with the puck & without. Offensively he has the vision to create plays & the poise with the puck to out wait sprawling defenseman. We saw him score on a dirty greasy rebound where he out battled a much larger opponent & on another goal, he used his speed to back the opposing Dmen off the blue-line, cut to the middle and fire a bullet top shelf through a screen. That goal showed that he is not just a pure speed guy. Gunnarwolfe’s mind allows read the play and make adjustments while he’s at top speed. He was an asset on the power play and worked either the mid-wall or goal line with confidence. He was also one of our highest rated penalty killers in the Showcase. Obviously, his quickness & speed are a tremendous asset, but his willingness to stop and start while maintaining shooting lane lineups was impressive. It will be interesting to see how this NHL season progresses & the impact of The Blues winning The Cup will have on NHL General Managers. Because there was definitely a trend towards smaller more dynamic players fitting into NHL line-ups on a more consistent basis. But in my opinion brains matter more than anything else and when you can combine brains with speed I think Gunnarwolfe might find a home in the late rounds.
Photo Credit: Chicago Steel Hockey Club / USHL