Carson Carels Early Season Report Card

Carson Carels was drafted sixth overall this past June by the Calgary Flames, and it made headlines when he announced his commitment to the University of North Dakota to play with World Junior teammates Cole Reschny, Keaton Verhoeff, and Ethan Mackenzie. 

With North Dakota not looking as dominant as expected, it’s put a lot of light on their high-profile freshmen like Carels. 

So far through nine games, Carels has four assists and a -2 plus-minus. And for someone who was so highly touted, many expected bigger numbers, but how is he actually playing? 

I went back and watched a lot of the film on him this season, including a full breakdown of his most recent game against Western Michigan, to find out how he’s playing and what grade I would give his start so far. 

Starting off with the offense, Carels isn’t in an offensive or even puck-dominant role. He has had many d-partners, but the one that has seen the most success is with former New York Rangers first-round pick E.J. Emery. 

Emery, a stay-at-home shutdown defenseman, seemed like the perfect fit; let him stay at home while Carels drives the play. But this pairing has brought a different element to the Fighting Hawks; this has been their best shutdown pair and has freed up the game for the forwards who play alongside them. 

So the majority of his offense has come from being on the first power-play unit, where he quarterbacks them for the most part. He’s done a good job on that unit, not by doing a lot, but by getting his teammates the puck and playing risk-free hockey. 

The best part of his game so far has been his rush defense. He uses his length very well and has a very strong gap, where he tends to choose to play the body, something that was a staple of his game in the WHL. 

He makes very intelligent plays below the goal line when making the first pass. He doesn’t turn the puck over often, and does such a great job of forcing those turnovers himself. 

His defensive game has been amazing, even though there are times he’s caught puck watching, which leads to opposing chances. But considering how consistent he has been in the defensive and neutral zone, you can’t complain whatsoever. 

For him to get this up, he will need to be more confident and demanding with the puck, where he can display his elite skating and awareness.