By Christopher Ralph May 19th, 2014

by Eldon MacDonald (edited by @ChrisRalphTHW)

Mason McDonald

THW’s NHL Draft War Room Rankings – Apr-14: #71

THW’s NHL Draft Rankings – The Next Ones Edition (aka Chris’s List): #103 (March 2014)

Hashtag: #MrMcCalm

Nickname: Made

Team: #1, Charlottetown, QMJHL

#1, Charlottetown, QMJHL Position: Goal

Goal Shoots: Right

Right Height: 6’4

6’4 Weight: 186 lb.

186 lb. Born: Halifax, NS, 23-Apr-96

Halifax, NS, 23-Apr-96 Twitter: @mmcdonald96

Stats

Other Rankings

42 – NHL Combined – Final, Apr-14

HM – Bob MacKenzie, Jan-14 (HM = 51 to 60)

52 – Craig Button, Mar-14

Goalie #2 – ISS – May-14

[Your quintessential draft resource:

Worth Retweeting

Mason McDonald amongst 5 CHL prospects whose draft stocks could rise says @SNPatrickKing : http://t.co/cj4FT3gUc6 #Isles @mmcdonald96 — Charlottetown Islanders (@IslandersHKY) January 16, 2014

https://twitter.com/mmcdonald96/statuses/449367200248639488

"McDonald is a corner stone of our franchise moving forward" – Dwyer — Nolan (@reidnipei) April 13, 2014

Very impressive performance by @mmcdonald96 & the entire @HC_Men today for the bronze! Congrats on the medal gentlemen! #WellDone — Gordie Dwyer (@GDwyer32) April 27, 2014

Profile

Profile 1: ValleedelorAmosRegion.ca – Jason Malloy

– Jason Malloy Profile 2: TheQMJHL.ca

Profile 3: ProPuckProspects.com– Mike Repertorio

Contains All the Prospects Profiled in This Series]

Interviews

Interview 1: SportsandMoore.com (Video)

(Video) Interview 2: THW– Anatoliy Metter

Quotable

Quote 1: MetroNews.ca – QMJHL Central Scouting Director, Pierre Leduc on the 2012 QMJHL draft, “He’s the best goaltender in the draft. He’s an imposing physical presence in the net. He’s always square to the puck, he leaves little space to shoot at, he constantly challenges, he has very good technique, and he moves well.”

– QMJHL Central Scouting Director, Pierre Leduc on the 2012 QMJHL draft, “He’s the best goaltender in the draft. He’s an imposing physical presence in the net. He’s always square to the puck, he leaves little space to shoot at, he constantly challenges, he has very good technique, and he moves well.” Quote 2: TheQNews.net – Bryan Willett – “Mason McDonald put on a dominant performance in net for Canada, stopping 38 shots as Canada claimed bronze with a 3-1 victory over Sweden at the 2014 IIHF World Under-18 Championship on Sunday.”

– Bryan Willett – “Mason McDonald put on a dominant performance in net for Canada, stopping 38 shots as Canada claimed bronze with a 3-1 victory over Sweden at the 2014 IIHF World Under-18 Championship on Sunday.” Quote 3:

‘He never quits’: Mason McDonald lone Maritimer selected to Team Canada U-18 roster http://t.co/qtJv5qgMMH #QMJHL #Halifax — Andrew Rankin (@AndrewRankinCB) July 30, 2013

Quote 4: Ross MacLean, ISS from CHL Top Prospects Game

Best player that period was easily Nova Scotia's Mason McDonald. He was peppered and stood tall. Oozing confidence right now. @ISShockey — Ross MacLean (@rossmaclean) January 16, 2014

Quote 5: ISS

http://t.co/dTmaEKMf2A

G #2 Mason McDonald @mmcdonald96

Backbone for Bronze Medal CAN U18s. Great composure, raw frame & technical skills. — ISS Hockey (@ISShockey) May 17, 2014

From the War Room

Eldon MacDonald, THW: A few words on Mason McDonald:

Mr. McCalm – My favourite part of Mason McDonald’s game is the zen-like calmness and confidence he exudes, a la Carey Price. He is that big man back there that has your back and allows the team to worry about the other parts of their game.

My favourite part of Mason McDonald’s game is the he exudes, a la Carey Price. He is that big man back there that has your back and allows the team to worry about the other parts of their game. Size, skills and compete – In short, Mason has that big man size at 6’4 and the athleticism that NHL teams are demanding from their first string goaltenders and their prospects with a chance of becoming a first string goaltender. He also has that compete level that goaltenders who usually win the big games have.

In short, Mason has that big man size at 6’4 and the athleticism that NHL teams are demanding from their first string goaltenders and their prospects with a chance of becoming a first string goaltender. He also has that compete level that goaltenders who usually win the big games have. Resume – Being named top goaltender in the world (for his age group) at the recent U18 WJC Tournament in Finland looks more than good on Mason’s resume; it is that “killer” reference that everyone wants but few attain.

Being (for his age group) at the recent U18 WJC Tournament in Finland looks more than good on Mason’s resume; it is that “killer” reference that everyone wants but few attain. Improvements to make – In his interview with Anatoliy Metter from THW , Mason suggested that rebound control was the area he most needed to work on. While that may be true, Mason’s performance at the U18 WJC suggests that it is not a major weakness.

In his interview with Anatoliy Metter from , Mason suggested that rebound control was the area he most needed to work on. While that may be true, Mason’s performance at the U18 WJC suggests that it is not a major weakness. Draft placement – Goalies admittedly drive me crazy when it comes to rankings – it all depends on when a team wants to pay the price of a draft pick for a goalie. You can have a franchise goalie and he doesn’t get drafted until the second round. However, given the relative weakness in this year’s draft, there is likely to be one goalie selected in the first round, maybe two. Mason is one of the frontrunners for that coveted first goalie selection (whenever it is selected) along with Thatcher Demko and Alex Nedeljkovice – the winner to be decided June 27th or 28th in Philadelphia.

Video

Video 1: Sportsnet.ca – CHL Top Prospects Game Review

– CHL Top Prospects Game Review Video 2: John Moore: