From the Point: Battalion defenceman Ty Nelson

North Bay Battalion defenceman Ty Nelson joined Junior Hockey Magazine to discuss the recent 2022 Kubota CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game, the opportunity to play alongside 2022 NHL Draft favourite Shane Wright, and to which NHL players he likens his playing style.

Junior Hockey Magazine: What was it like to play on the national stage at the 2022 Kubota CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game?

Ty Nelson: It was phenomenal. It was such a great experience. You are going up against 40 of the best players around Canada. You are putting yourself up against the top competition. Playing in that game was such a huge honour. I am super grateful to be acknowledged and to be selected to play in that game.

JHM: What goes through your mind as you step on to the ice?

TN: For me, it was about having fun and enjoying it. That is what the game is all about. Even though it is a huge broadcast for yourself and it is on live TV, it is about going out there and playing my game because that is the reason why I am there. It is about going out there and having fun and being me.

JHM: What was it like to be involved in the combine?

TN: That was amazing. It is like a mini NHL Combine. It helps prepare you for what the NHL Combine is going to be like. It was phenomenal. We had such a great group of guys going in and they made it a lot more fun. Just doing the drills, it is so much fun knowing your speed, your agility, and even off the ice it was such a surreal experience seeing what it is going to be like. We were all supporting each other so it made it 10 times more fun.

JHM: What was it like to share the ice with a player like Shane Wright?

TN: Playing against him, I know you take a look for where he is and what he is doing because he is such a great player. Now that I have gotten to play with him, it is kind of an advantage because now I see what he likes to do and can pick up on some habits.

JHM: What was it like to go through the rollercoaster of last year?

TN: It was a little difficult in the beginning but everyone in the whole world was going through it. I looked at it as a time where I could keep getting better as a prolonged summer training season. You just make the best out of it. I went to the gym every day and got on the ice when I could to take advantage of it and further my game to become a better player.

JHM: Which NHL player do you compare your playing style to?

TN: I really like Cale Makar, Morgan Rielly, and Ryan Ellis. They are all amazing skaters, have amazing hockey IQ, and they are unbelievable players in the offensive zone in the way they quarter-back the powerplay. I like to say I simulate my game after them. For Ellis, he is more my type of build in being shorter and stockier. But I also think I bring more of a physical aspect to the game.