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Dustin Wolf Named CHL Goaltender Of The Year

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What a run for Dustin Wolf. The Calgary Flames prospect has now added CHL Goaltender of the Year to his resume, following his previous selections as the top netminder from both the WHL and USA Hockey. Wolf also signed his entry-level contract with the Flames last month.

Wolf, 19, has done nothing but dominate at the junior hockey level, recording a .934 save percentage across three seasons and 127 appearances. His goals-against average during that time was a minuscule 1.85 and he posted an 88-31-6 record in the regular season.

One might expect a goaltender like that to be a top draft pick, especially given he won the CHL Scholastic Player of the Year award in his draft year. Wolf, however, fell all the way to the seventh round before the Flames used the 214th overall pick on him a year ago.

The reason is simple, Wolf stands just 6’0″ 165-lbs, much smaller than the goaltenders that have reached the peak of professional hockey in recent years. In comparison to mammoth netminders like Ben Bishop and Mikko Koskinen—both standing 6’7″—it’s easy to see why teams may hesitate on Wolf’s potential.

Still, the Flames are obviously willing to give him a shot to show what he can do at the professional level. That won’t happen until next year when he is eligible for the AHL, but with a contract in hand and a history of success he’ll be one of the more interesting goaltending prospects to follow.

Previous winners of the CHL award include current NHL goaltenders like Carter Hart (twice), Darcy Kuemper, Jake Allen and Carey Price.

Shane Wright Wins OHL, CHL Rookie Of The Year

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June 5: Wright has also won the CHL Rookie of the Year, becoming the first Kingston player to ever earn the award.

May 14: He won’t be eligible for the NHL draft until 2022, but that doesn’t mean hockey fans should overlook Shane Wright. The Kingston Frontenacs forward has just been named the OHL Rookie of the Year after an outstanding start to his CHL career. That start of course came a year earlier than most players, after Wright was given exceptional status to enter the OHL.

Not only did Wright score 39 goals and 66 points for the Frontenacs to lead the team in both categories, but he was also named an alternate captain just after Christmas. Having a letter sewn onto your jersey may not be notable for most top NHL prospects, but it happened to Wright when he was still just 15 years old, making him the youngest alternate in CHL history.

Following in the footsteps of other exceptional players like John Tavares, Aaron Ekblad and Connor McDavid, Wright is already dominating the competition in the CHL and looks like he will have a good shot at being selected first overall in 2022.

The list of winners for OHL Rookie of the Year is a who’s who of NHL talent. Andrei Svechnikov, Alex DeBrincat, Travis Konecny, McDavid, Ekblad, Taylor Hall, Patrick Kane and Tavares have all taken home the award over the last fifteen years.

Los Angeles Kings Sign Arthur Kaliyev, Jordan Spence

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The Los Angeles Kings have inked a pair of top prospects, signing Arthur Kaliyev and Jordan Spence to three-year entry-level contracts. Both players are expected to return to the CHL next season.

Kaliyev, 18, was selected 33rd overall by the Kings last year after falling out of the first round. The young forward is one of the most lethal goal-scorers in all of junior hockey, lighting the lamp 126 times over his 192 regular season games for the Hamilton Bulldogs. After scoring 102 points in his draft year, the 6’2″ winger came back with an even better point rate in the shortened 2019-20, recording 98 in just 57 games.

While there is still work to do on several parts of his game, Kaliyev represents a potential top-six option for the Kings that could be lethal on an NHL powerplay. Should he fail to make the Los Angeles roster in 2020-21, he will not be eligible to play in the AHL and would have to return to Hamilton.

Spence meanwhile wasn’t drafted quite as high, picked 95th overall by the Kings last year, but is still making quite an impact. The 19-year old was named QMJHL defenseman of the year after recording 52 points in 60 games for the Moncton Wildcats. Actually born in Australia, Spence is quickly rising up prospect rankings despite being a mid-round pick and could legitimately challenge for an NHL roster spot in the next few years.

Like Kaliyev, Spence will not be eligible for AHL play next season and will likely return to help the Wildcats once again. Both contracts are eligible to slide forward if the players are sent back to junior.

Snapshots: Stralman, Draft Rankings, Tourigny

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The NHL has announced its return to play format and hopes to get players back on the ice in groups soon, but that doesn’t mean that the season is guaranteed to resume this summer. Some players are still worried about how safe it would be to gather teams in hub cities, including Anton Stralman who spoke with Joe Smith of The Athletic (subscription required):

I think you should be concerned. There are so many ways to look at this thing. I know everybody wants hockey back, but safety has to come first. And it’s a little bit worrisome, I can’t deny that. Even though most players are young and healthy, I’m sure there are players like me that have underlying health issues. I don’t know how my body will react if I get this virus.

According to Smith, Stralman dealt with bronchiectasis in the past and only recently stopped taking medication for it. While he is the one speaking out about it, Stralman isn’t the only player who feels this way as James Mirtle of The Athletic points out on Twitter.

  • For those who are looking forward to the draft instead, Scott Wheeler of The Athletic (subscription required) has published his final top-100 ranking of 2020 draft prospects. That includes Alexis Lafreniere at the top where he has been on every list so far, but also has some surprises a little further down the first round. Wheeler gives a detailed scouting report on each of the first 50 prospects and breaks them down into draft tiers.
  • The CHL has named Andre Tourigny the Brian Kilrea Coach of the Year for 2019-20 after leading the Ottawa 67’s to a 50-11-1 record. Tourigny was also an assistant with the gold medal-winning Team Canada at the World Juniors and has now put up consecutive 50-win seasons with Ottawa. Amazingly, despite winning coach of the year in the QMJHL, OHL and now CHL, Tourigny has still not been able to capture a league title.

Alexis Lafreniere Considers Possibility Of Playing In Europe

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The NHL draft lottery is scheduled for Friday, June 26, which likely will determine where top draft prospect Alexis Lafreniere will end up in the future. However, will that future begin in the 2020-21 season? With the NHL focused on the 24-team playoff format at the moment, little is known about when next season might get underway, although a long delay is expected before Lafreniere can start his NHL career.

With the playoffs likely to start in late July or August, it’s entirely possible that the 2020-21 season may not start until November or even later. With that being the case, TSN’s Bob McKenzie reported recently on Insider Trading, that Lafreniere is likely to look into every possible option to get his season started on time. One possibility would be to sign a deal to play in Europe for a season (assuming that hockey starts in Europe on time).

“When is the National Hockey League going to begin the 2020-21 season? October? November? December? Even January? We don’t know,” said McKenzie. “On top of all that, where’s Alexis Lafreniere going to play this fall if the NHL season isn’t happening until January and the draft isn’t until October or November? Is the CHL going to be playing? Is the American Hockey League an option? We don’t know at this point. But one thing I can tell you – Emilie Castonguay for Alexis Lafreniere is looking at all the options on the table and that will include seeing if the European club teams are up and operating in September and October.”

Lafreniere, barring an unforeseen circumstance, is expected to be the first-overall pick in the 2020 NHL draft, but the draft is expected to be delayed until after the conclusion of the NHL playoffs, which could be in September or October. NHL.com’s Mike Morreale revealed that Lafreniere won the CHL’s Top Draft Prospect Award on Friday, his fourth award since his season with Rimouski Oceanic ended due to COVID-19. He also won the Jean Beliveau Trophy as the leading scorer in the QMJHL with 112 points, the Paul Dumont Trophy for the QHJHL’s top personality and the Michel Briere Trophy as the QMJHL’s top player.

The only notable comparison for such a move might be Auston Matthews, who played in the NLA. However, that was the year before he was drafted. Regardless, it still seems like a longshot that Lafreniere would pass up his first NHL season over a few months. The Detroit Red Wings have the best chances of winning the draft lottery at 18.5 percent.

OHL, WHL, QMJHL Announce Most Outstanding Players

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The three leagues that make up the CHL have each announced the winner of their respective Most Outstanding/Valuable Player award, with Alexis Lafreniere grabbing the headlines once again. The expected first-overall pick has taken home the award for the second straight season in the QMJHL, joining only Sidney Crosby and Mathieu Chouinard as the only repeat winners.

Obviously Lafreniere is hoping for a hockey career that comes a little closer to the former than the latter, given that Chouinard played exactly one NHL game and was out of professional hockey after just six years. After scoring 297 points in 173 career games for the Rimouski Oceanic, Lafreniere is a near-lock as the first-overall pick whenever the 2020 NHL draft takes place.

In the WHL, it is Adam Beckman that takes home the Four Broncos Memorial Trophy after scoring a whopping 107 points in 63 games for the Spokane Chiefs. Beckman was picked in the third round by the Minnesota Wild and still has another year of junior hockey before he’s eligible for the AHL. It’s hard to top a year where you lead the league in goals, points and win the top award, but he’ll certainly be trying.

Given that Lafreniere is locked into a top spot for the draft, the most interesting award today may be the one given to Marco Rossi of the Ottawa 67’s. The Austrian-born forward spent his minor hockey years in Switzerland but absolutely dominated the OHL this season, scoring 120 points in 56 games. Rossi is eligible for the 2020 draft and was ranked sixth among North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting.

Prospect Notes: Kaprizov, CHL Defensemen, Draft

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The Minnesota Wild and their fans are still waiting to see Kirill Kaprizov hit the ice with the team five years after they drafted him. The 23-year old forward is widely regarded as one of the best players outside the NHL, but for years there was little indication he wanted to come to North America. Now that there is—Kaprizov has made it clear that he is ready to sign with the Wild—the current league pause is getting in the way.

Despite being on the reserve list of the Wild, Kaprizov (and other players like him in similar situations around the league) isn’t being allowed to sign with the team for the 2019-20 season because of the current pause. Minnesota GM Bill Guerin is still holding out hope that the league will change their mind, telling Dan Myers of NHL.com that both sides are just taking it “day-by-day” and not jumping into an agreement for 2020-21 until it is necessary. As Michael Russo of The Athletic (subscription required) has explained several times, a delayed start to 2020-21 could pose a threat for the Wild should Kaprizov decide he doesn’t want to wait around for the season to begin, but it does seem like finally, both sides are on the same page.

  • Each of the three leagues that make up the CHL have announced their Defenseman of the Year awards. Ty Smith repeats for the WHL, taking home the award for the second consecutive season and joining Kris Russell, Dion Phaneuf and Nolan Baumgartner as the only back-to-back winners. The New Jersey Devils prospect recorded 59 points in 46 games for the Spokane Chiefs and looks ready to make the jump to the NHL in short order. Noel Hoefenmayer doesn’t have quite the same name recognition as Smith, given that he was a fourth-round pick in 2017 and failed to sign with the Arizona Coyotes, but he was just as impressive this year in the OHL. Hoefenmayer recorded 82 points in 58 games for the Ottawa 67’s, an incredible total even if he was playing his over-age season. Hoefenmayer recently signed an AHL contract with the Toronto Marlies, his hometown minor league team. Jordan Spence takes home the award for the QMJHL, more exciting news for the Los Angeles Kings whose prospect pool is bursting at the seams with talent. As Scott Wheeler of The Athletic points out on Twitter, Spence now has a QMJHL Rookie of the Year and Defenseman of the Year award in his cabinet, but still isn’t even one of the very best prospects in the Kings’ system.
  • Everyone is waiting to see when the draft will be for this season, but the push to have it take place in June before finishing the season has seemingly come to an end. In fact, Bob McKenzie of TSN asked some general manager around the league yesterday, who told him they have “no clue” on when it will be. McKenzie reports that the entire focus is on returning to play right now and that the decision on when to hold the draft “won’t be made anytime soon.”

Snapshots: Gudas, CHL Lawsuit, Miller

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The NHL has been clear about their desire to resume and complete the 2019-20 season at some point this summer, but that’s not shared by every player in the league. Radko Gudas was interviewed in the Czech Republic about his concerns for a restart, and Alexandra Petakova of Russian Machine Never Breaks translated it to English. Never one to hide his feelings, Gudas doesn’t think restarting the season is a good idea:

If one guy is infected, basically the whole league has it in a week, given how they are planning to have everyone play against everyone. One stupid stumble and you can cancel it all again.

Perhaps more interesting from the interview however are Gudas’ comments on his future with the Washington Capitals. The veteran defenseman explained that the team is facing a difficult salary cap situation and believes that he and “a lot of the guys with contracts about to expire” will end up leaving the Capitals this offseason. Washington has four players on the NHL roster who are scheduled for unrestricted free agency: Gudas, Ilya Kovalchuk, Brenden Dillon and, perhaps most importantly, Braden Holtby.

  • The CHL has settled a class-action lawsuit that was originally filed in 2014. The legal battle was to determine whether junior players were employees or student-athletes, and the settlement will result in OHL, WHL and QMJHL franchises paying approximately $30MM. These settlement discussions were actually held before the COVID-19 shutdown. As Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet writes, the approximately $250,000 that each franchise will need to pay is not insignificant for some. This follows recent news that the Portland Winterhawks parent company filed for bankruptcy and are looking for new ownership to take over the franchise.
  • Kevan Miller hasn’t played in an NHL game for more than a year, and revealed yesterday that he is eight weeks removed from another surgical procedure on his right knee. A fractured kneecap ended his 2018-19 season and kept him out for all of this year, but he is still working to be ready for the start of the 2020-21 campaign. If he is ready to play again, where he hits the ice isn’t clear. The veteran defenseman’s contract is expiring and though the Boston Bruins have admitted they will “entertain the opportunity” of bringing him back, a tightening salary cap won’t make it easy.

NHL Announces New Player Transfer Agreements

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The NHL has announced new player transfer agreements today, including one-year extensions with the existing ones. Those include the IIHF Member Federations/Leagues in Austria, Belarus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Latvia, Norway, Slovakia, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.

They have also extended the existing CHL Agreement with the Canadian Hockey League (OHL, WHL, QMJHL). This means that nothing will change in regards to players drafted out of the CHL being eligible for AHL play before the age of 20. Corey Pronman of The Athletic (subscription required) recently polled scouts on whether the believed the agreement should be amended; 60% felt it should be, however, any changes will have to wait at least another year.

The biggest news however is the new one-year agreement with the Swiss Ice Hockey Association and Swiss League, something that previously did not exist. This will provide extra opportunities for players in Switzerland to come over to North America, and will slightly tweak the rules for draft picks out of the league.

With these agreements announced, we will likely see a flood of contracts for European players officially filed over the next few days.

Michal Teply Signs With Chicago Blackhawks

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The Chicago Blackhawks have inked another interesting prospect, this time signing Michal Teply to a three-year entry-level contract. Teply broke the news himself on Instagram, thanking his family and friends for supporting him in his journey so far.

Still just 18 years old, Teply was selected in the fourth round of last year’s draft and spent this season playing for the Winnipeg Ice of the WHL. During his 53 games with Winnipeg he registered 63 points, while also taking part in the World Juniors for the Czech Republic.

Even though he was a mid-round pick, it’s hard to know exactly where the ceiling is offensively for Teply. Standing 6’3″ 192-lbs, he is big enough to lean on defenders and use a long reach to protect the puck, but is also an excellent playmaker that almost always looks to pass first. There is still a lot to polish in his game, but the Blackhawks obviously felt he had shown enough to reward him with an NHL contract already.

Interestingly, even though he played in the CHL this season Teply could potentially spend the 2020-21 season in the AHL if the Blackhawks wanted him to. Drafted out of the Czech leagues, he could also return to Europe should they feel he needs to compete against players older than him. There are plenty of options for his next step, making his development path one to keep an eye on going forward.

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