QMJHL: Carles Way

The number two-ranked Acadie-Bathurst Titan (CHL rankings) are off to a dominating start to the regular season (18-5-1-2), in part to the tremendous play of rearguard Mathieu Carle, who is second only to Keith Yandle in league rookie scoring (23-9-21-30). We have notes on Carle, teammates Petr Pohl, Gabriel Bouthillette, Alex Lamontagne, and check in on the progress of Jason Spezza's kid brother Matthew.

Mathieu Carle (2006), D, Acadie-Bathurst

Paired on the Titan blueline with rookie Beau Prokopetz .. although the younger of the two, he has already emerged as the leader of Bathurst's defensive corps .. a deadly offensive threat with a booming shot on the PP .. a tremendous outlet passer with a propensity to pinch aggressively .. at times complacent, not moving his feet with the man advantage .. utilized on the PK .. has moments of wildness and carelessness with the puck; does not always maintain focus .. physical opposing forecheckers can throw him off his game; must develop thicker skin.

Petr Pohl (CBJ) RW, Acadie-Bathurst

The best player on the team and with Olivier Labelle and Mathieu Roy forms arguably the most dangerous line in the league .. excellent speed and quickness .. a gifted stickhandler, he waltzes around opposing rearguards on his way to the net .. has developed into a quite competitive player and no longer runs around like a chicken without its head as when he was younger .. plays on the off-wing with the man advantage where he is the go-to guy .. has subtle smarts, such as when he shot up high on Matt Spezza, exploiting a weakness .. execution is still lacking but his head is in the right place.

Gabriel Bouthillette (Ana), G, Acadie-Bathurst

Butterfly goalie makes himself big between the pipes, not giving shooters much to aim at .. positionally polished, taking away angles very well .. one weakness appears to be that he tends to go down too early and at times fights the puck .. weak backhand from Wes Welcher skipper just over the crossbar .. for a big guy, however, he moves very well side-to-side .. got his pad across very quickly to stymie Marty Doyle on a PP one-timer .. focus at times is questionable; several wrist shot beat him through traffic from the blueline .. while he was undoubtedly screened, it happened too often for comfort.

Alex Lamontagne (2006), D, Acadie-Bathurst

Strictly defense; a stay-at-home rearguard .. saw virtually no time on special teams; only a minor role on the PK, although more experience will change that eventually .. paired with Mathieu Labrie .. tremendous size and is physical, willing to drop the gloves .. more of an agitator than fighter .. speed straight ahead is good, but his turns and backwards skating are concerns .. is piling up penalty minutes.

Matthew Spezza (UFA), G, St. John's

Jason's little brother joined the Fog Devils after starter Brandon Verge went down with a severe bout of mono .. off to a strong start, showing solid down-low coverage .. unimpressive puckhandling skills, as he coughed up the puck several times but did show good athleticism when getting back into his net .. very superstitious; does not allow teammates to tap his pads after a goal .. likes to be the last player off the ice following a warm-up skate.