2022 CHL Top Prospect Game Roster Announced
On March 23 in Kitchener, Ontario, the 40 best draft-eligible prospects from the CHL will take part in one of the most intriguing scouting events of the season. The 2022 CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game is a place where the best-on-best battle for attention in front of scouts from every team in the league, trying to show exactly what kind of player they can be when the competition increases.
It’s not often you get to see players from the OHL, WHL, and QMJHL all compete with and against each other. Shane Wright, who has long been expected to go first overall in this summer’s draft–though that opinion has been questioned of late–will be there, along with other players competing for top spots like Matthew Savoie and Conor Geekie.
The full roster of talent is below, while teams will be announced at a later date:
G Mason Beaupit
G Tyler Brennan
G Reid Dyck
G Ivan Zhigalov
D Michael Buchinger
D Jorian Donovan
D Isaiah George
D Kevin Korchinski
D Maveric Lamoureux
D Mats Lindgren
D Tristian Luneau
D Ty Nelson
D Denton Mateychuk
D Pavel Mintyukov
D Owen Pickering
D Noah Warren
F Maxim Barbashev
F Owen Beck
F Luca Del Bel Belluz
F Josh Filmon
F Jagger Firkus
F Nathan Gaucher
F Ruslan Gazizov
F Conor Geekie
F David Goyette
F Jordan Gustafson
F Hunter Haight
F Jake Karabela
F Paul Ludwinski
F Bryce McConnell-Barker
F Fraser Minten
F Matthew Poitras
F Vinzenz Rohrer
F Matyas Sapovaliv
F Matthew Savoie
F Reid Schaefer
F Matthew Seminoff
F Antonin Verreault
F Shane Wright
F Danny Zhilkin
Snapshots: World Cup, Top Prospects, Memorial Cup
When the NHL first appeared headed to the 2022 Olympic Games, it signaled what would have been the first best-on-best action since the 2016 World Cup. Even that event came with the caveat of Team North America, a young-guns squad that kept some top talent off their respective countries. Connor McDavid, for instance, has still never worn a Canada sweater at a top-tier international event and hasn’t even taken part in the World Championship since 2018.
Perhaps there is reason to believe that is going to change, as Pierre LeBrun explained on TSN’s Insider Trading that the NHL and NHLPA have made progress on a potential 2024 World Cup of Hockey. There is also surprising support for it to be held partway through the 2023-24 season, something that had previously been fought against by the owners. This tournament would be held in addition to NHL participation in the 2026 Olympics in Italy, meaning hockey fans could be finally getting a chance to see best-on-best action in the coming years.
- Speaking of best-on-best, the CHL prospects game was originally scheduled to take place a few days ago has been rescheduled to March 23 in Kitchener, according to Corey Pronman of The Athletic. The event pits the best draft-eligible players in the OHL, WHL, and QMJHL against each other and provides a great scouting opportunity for NHL executives. The Ontario government is currently scheduled to lift all capacity restrictions on indoor events on March 14, which would potentially allow a full building for the showcase.
- Another marquee scouting event on the calendar is the Memorial Cup tournament, which hasn’t been held since 2019 because of the pandemic. This year’s event is scheduled to be held in Saint John, with the Sea Dogs automatically entered as the host team. Darren Dreger of TSN adds that because of all the postponements that have happened in the CHL this season, the Memorial Cup is going to be pushed into June.
Minor Transactions: 12/12/21
With a lighter schedule at the NHL level today, expect some moves from other niches of the hockey world. For those more minor moves, we’ll keep an ongoing list of today’s transactions right here.
- There’s a junior trade on the block today, as WHL netminder Cole Tisdale was dealt from the Tri-City Americans to the Prince Albert Raiders Saturday night in exchange for a 2025 seventh-round pick, a team release from the Raiders confirms. The 19-year-old netminder is playing his first full WHL season but now finds himself on his third team. Originally a draft pick of the Kelowna Rockets, he was moved to Tri-City after six games with Kelowna this year. After just two games there, he now finds himself in Prince Albert looking for some stability.
- As the Pittsburgh Penguins organization becomes healthier, the baby Penguins in AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton are making corresponding moves. Today, they re-assigned forward Shaw Boomhower to the ECHL’s Wheeling Nailers, per a team tweet. The 23-year-old Boomhower took last season off from hockey entirely but has impressed with six points in 12 games in Wheeling. He didn’t get into a game with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton during his callup.
Dmitry Zavgorodniy Assigned To KHL
After assigning Yan Kuznetsov to the CHL a few days ago, the Calgary Flames have found some extra playing time for another one of their prospects. Dmitry Zavgorodniy has been assigned to HC Sochi in the KHL, which will hopefully give him a bit of a bigger opportunity.
Zavgorodniy, 21, was a seventh-round pick of the Flames in 2018 and signed his entry-level contract a year later. That deal, which slid forward one season, will expire after the 2022-23 campaign. He spent most of last season with the Stockton Heat, scoring four points in 29 games, but has been held scoreless in six appearances for the AHL squad this year.
The most recent of those appearances was weeks ago, as he fell out of the regular rotation even for the bottom six. He’ll now head overseas, but remain under contract with the Flames. A very strong junior player, Zavgorodniy had 29 goals and 67 points in 40 games for the Rimouski Oceanic in 2019-20.
Yan Kuznetsov Loaned To CHL
It’s not that often that you see a player go from the NCAA to the AHL to the CHL, but that’s exactly what’s about to happen for Yan Kuznetsov. The Calgary Flames prospect has been loaned to the Saint John Seadogs of the QMJHL after 12 games with the Stockton Heat this season.
Kuznetsov, 19, was the 50th overall pick in the 2020 draft after his freshman year at the University of Connecticut, and he returned in 2020-21 for his sophomore season. After the college campaign ended, he signed his entry-level deal with the Flames and suited up six times down the stretch for Stockton. The 6’4″ defenseman has failed to register a single point in 18 games for the Heat overall and will now get to test himself at the junior level, something that will only help develop his overall game.
Notably, he’ll be available for Russia at the World Juniors again, which would be his second time at the tournament, and also will likely play in the Memorial Cup given it is set to be hosted in Saint John this season. A trade could potentially change that obviously, but Kuznetsov will spend the rest of the year in the CHL competing against players his age.
Selected 22nd overall in the 2021 CHL Import Draft, this was always a possibility for the big defenseman. Saint John picked him after he already made his AHL debut, meaning they had an inkling he could end up back in junior at some point. He’s joining a team that is currently 12-8-3 on the year and in eighth place in the QMJHL standings, but still has big expectations. He’s also going to be joining fellow Calgary draft picks Jeremie Poirier and Ryan Francis, the latter of whom also made his AHL debut with the Heat last season before he returned to Saint John.
Minor Transactions: 11/14/21
There’s a six-game slate in the NHL tonight on this Hall of Fame weekend, but transaction action keeps rolling along at lower levels of the game as well. As COVID rears its ugly head again, affecting the rosters of multiple teams this season, teams in the AHL and ECHL have had to adjust their rosters as they lose players to their NHL affiliates. Keep track of today’s minor transactions right here.
- As the Ottawa Senators deal with the NHL’s worst COVID outbreak this season, the AHL’s Belleville Senators made a minor trade yesterday, acquiring forward Chris Wilkie from the Rockford IceHogs in exchange for future considerations. Wilkie, a product of Colorado College, was originally a sixth-round draft pick of the Florida Panthers back in 2015. This is his second professional season, and he notched a goal and assist in his Belleville debut yesterday.
- Defenseman Alec Rauhauser was returned to the ECHL’s Greenville Swamp Rabbits today after being loaned to the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda. Rauhauser, an undrafted free agent, spent last season in the Florida Panthers organization after four seasons at Bowling Green State University. He made his AHL debut in one game with the Syracuse Crunch but spent the majority of the season in Greenville. In 52 games over two seasons, Rauhauser has 13 ECHL points.
- The AHL’s Lehigh Valley Phantoms recalled forward Charlie Gerard from the ECHL’s Reading Royals today. Gerard is in his second professional season after a four-year run at Minnesota State University-Mankato and showed promise last season with 34 points in 49 games in the ECHL with the Utah Grizzlies. Now with the Phantoms on a professional contract, he’ll get his chance to show what he can do within the Flyers organization.
Zayde Wisdom On Track For Canada World Junior Selection Camp After Surgery
According to The Athletic’s Scott Wheeler, Philadelphia Flyers prospect Zayde Wisdom is progressing ahead of schedule after receiving shoulder surgery and could return in early December in time for Team Canada’s selection camp for the upcoming IIHF World Junior Championships.
The Flyers announced Wisdom was out indefinitely after undergoing successful shoulder surgery on August 13.
Selected in the fourth round in the 2020 NHL Draft by Philadelphia, Wisdom already looks like a potential gem for the Flyers organization. After scoring 29 goals and 59 points in 62 games with the OHL’s Kingston Frontenacs in his draft year, the OHL’s COVID-related shutdown in 2020-21 allowed him the chance to play with the Flyers’ AHL affiliate in Lehigh Valley. With the Phantoms, Wisdom impressed, scoring seven goals and 18 points in 28 games as an 18-year-old.
Wisdom is eligible to return to the AHL this season, as he played enough games last season to become exempt from the standard NHL/CHL player agreement. Under normal circumstances, Wisdom would be required to play back with his team in Kingston, if not the NHL.
With that kind of production, Wisdom is expected to at least get a look to make Canada’s World Juniors team this year, although it will be a challenge with an exceptionally deep roster. If he returns to Lehigh Valley and continues to impress, he could be a candidate for a late-season call-up in Philadelphia as well.
Minor Transactions: 11/07/21
Today may not be a busy day on the NHL schedule, but it’s certainly been a hectic day on the transactions slate at all levels of the game. There was a lot of action today on the NHL to AHL wire, but there have been some other moves today, too. Keep up with today’s minor transactions here.
- New York Rangers goalie prospect Talyn Boyko was dealt in the WHL today from the Tri-City Americans to the Kelowna Rockets. Boyko was drafted in the fourth round in 2021, largely because of his massive 6′ 8″ frame. However, it’s been a rough start for Boyko with a 1-6-1 record and .887 save percentage on the season. Hopefully a move to Kelowna turns his fortunes around this season.
- Carolina Hurricanes netminder Beck Warm was re-assigned to the AHL’s Chicago Wolves from the ECHL’s Norfolk Admirals, per the AHL transactions page. The move comes after Alex Lyon was brought up to Carolina today in the wake of Antti Raanta‘s injury Saturday, meaning Chicago needed another goaltender. Warm’s impressed in the ECHL with a 4-1-0 record and .921 save percentage to start the year.
Minor Transactions: 11/02/21
With a busy night upcoming on the NHL calendar, it’s a busy night across the rest of the hockey world as well. There’s a fair amount of movement across lower levels of North American hockey today. We’ll keep track of that right here.
- Former top goalie prospect Jon Gillies is once again getting a shot at the AHL level, as the ECHL’s Maine Mariners loaned him to the Providence Bruins today. Gillies hasn’t played an NHL game since 2017-18 with the Calgary Flames, since spending time in the St. Louis Blues and now the Bruins organization. In one start with the Mariners this year, Gillies posted a .920 save percentage in a losing effort.
- The AHL’s Rochester Americans reassigned defenseman Peter Tischke to the ECHL’s Cincinnati Cyclones, per the team’s Twitter account. The 25-year-old undrafted Tischke was a former captain at the University of Wisconsin but has struggled to keep his footing in the AHL during a short professional career so far. He notched two points in 16 games with the Colorado Eagles last year, staying at the AHL level all season. But after just one game in Rochester, he’s heading back to the ECHL where he posted 15 points in 51 games with the Utah Grizzlies in 2019-20.
This page will be updated throughout the day
Minor Transactions: 10/31/31
It’s a slow news Sunday at the NHL level, save for a slew of COVID-19-protocol-related absences, but that doesn’t mean there’s no movement at any level of the hockey world. Keep up with a list of today’s minor transactions right here:
- The AHL’s Belleville Senators have returned netminder Tyler Parks to the ECHL’s Atlanta Gladiators, per the Senators’ Twitter. Parks was called up to the Senators as the Ottawa Senators organization faced some goalie injuries, including Matt Murray at the NHL level and Mads Sogaard at the AHL level. As Sogaard is healthy and Murray is close to returning, Belleville has a full goalie roster once again and Parks is the odd man out. Parks didn’t make an appearance with Belleville during his callup.
- The ECHL’s Fort Wayne Komets have loaned defenseman Matt Murphy to Belleville, as listed on the ECHL’s transactions page. The 26-year-old Murphy was a Memorial Cup champion in 2013 with the Halifax Mooseheads, his second year in the CHL. After a solid college career with the University of New Brunswick, Murphy is now a reigning Kelly Cup champion with the Komets. In a brief AHL loan last year, Murphy had an assist in two games with the Chicago Wolves.
- Per ECHL Week, the Rapid City Rush claimed forward Brett Gravelle off waivers from the Iowa Heartlanders today. A 25-year-old native of Forest Lake, Minnesota, Gravelle is playing in his first season of ECHL hockey. He had a three-point game in his only appearance with Iowa, a promising sign after similarly successful stints at lower levels of professional hockey.