Malatesta is a speedy, aggressive attacker who brings an amazing energy to every shift with relentless puck pursuits and fiery counterattacks. His first few steps are incredibly explosive, which allows him to beat anyone in foot races and sparks outbreaks in an instant. Thanks to his quick, efficient strides, Malatesta turns himself into a constant rushing menace, possessing the straight-lane speed to bypass anyone given an open file. His superb quickness, agility, and vigor on the forecheck put tremendous pressure on defenders, creating a few turnovers. Malatesta showcases a very quick release on his wrist shot. He also flashed a willingness to create for his teammates, often generously sharing the disc with basic reads. He also uses his quick tempo to occasionally break plays on the backcheck. Malatesta’s pace and competitiveness are outstanding. His humble size didn’t slow him down a bit; physical play actually attracted him more than anything. He has an obvious penchant for the dump and chase style of play, often placing the puck behind the defender in rushes, and betting on his quickness and relentless combativity to establish the attack. Malatesta owns marvelous upper-body strength, which allows him to fight off checks and take control of corners effortlessly. He showcases great, dynamic offensive instincts to jump on countless odd-man rushes as both the puck carrier and a passing option crashing the net. He exhibits exceptional explosion in his two-step acceleration, and follows through with impressive foot speed. His straight-line drive allows him to completely bypass anyone with his speed. Malatesta possesses a very quick, threatening puck delivery on his wrist shot, which he often fires on the fly. He also enjoys using his intensity as a gravitational weapon to help his teammates get open and look for easy setup. He doesn’t have the vision or touch of a first-rate playmaker, but he’s looking to create for his allies just as much. Malatesta tends to trade creativity and elusiveness for intensity, making quick plays to force the hand of his opponents rather than look at his complete options. Going 110 percent every play refrains him from adding deception and elusiveness to his game, and this can make his game predictable. He exposes the puck to pokechecks too easily and leans on dump and chase too frequently to beat the first line of defense.

– FCHockey’s 2021 NHL Draft Guide