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2019 CHL Import Draft Results

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The CHL held its annual import draft today, where teams from across the Canadian junior leagues get to select the rights of players around the world. Often these are recently drafted prospects, or those seen to have good chances at next year’s draft. Being selected has no guarantee that the player will actually ever suit up for the team, as Filip Chytil proved in 2017. Chytil was selected seventh-overall by the North Bay Battalion, but ended up spending the year with the New York Rangers and Hartford Wolf Pack after impressing in his first training camp.

There are clear benefits from picking at the top of the draft though, as the Sudbury Wolves found out last season. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen was the third-overall selection, and ended up winning the Red Tilson trophy as the OHL’s Most Outstanding Player. This year saw Finnish-born Kasper Puutio go first to the Swift Current Broncos after being promoted to the U20 Finnish junior league last season even at the age of 16. Puutio is a right-handed defenseman eligible for the 2020 NHL Entry Draft. Teams are only allowed a certain number of import players, which leads to some passing on their selections even in the early part of the draft. Check out last year’s draft to see some familiar names.

The results will be updated below as picks are made:

Round 1

1. Swift Current – Kasper Puutio (D, Finland)

2. Kingston – Martin Chromiak (RW, Slovakia)

3. Acadie-Bathurst – Noah Delemont (D, Switzerland)

4. Winnipeg – Michal Teply (LW, Czech Republic)

5. Flint – Yevgeni Oksentyuk (RW, Belarus)

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Snapshots: Claesson, Talbot, Abbandonato

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The deadline to extend qualifying offers to impending restricted free agents arrives on Tuesday, and another intriguing name can be added to the list of those likely not receiving an offer and hitting the open market. The New York Post’s Larry Brooks reports that Rangers defenseman Fredrik Claesson will not receive a qualifying offer from the team. Brooks cites roster space as the reason that New York has opted not to retain the 26-year-old, who played in 37 games in his first – and now only – season with the Rangers. The team only would have merely had to offer Claesson a two-way contract worth $735K to hold on to his RFA rights, but apparently are content to let him leave. With four veteran blue liners already signed, recent acquisition Jacob Trouba as well as Anthony DeAngelo as restricted free agents, and top prospects Adam Fox and Libor Hajek pushing for ice time, the Rangers do have plenty of depth without Claesson. Nevertheless, the former Ottawa Senators starter should draw plenty of attention as a new addition to the UFA market. Claesson joins a growing list of talented players not expected to receive qualifying offers, including Vancouver’s Derrick Pouliot, Los Angeles’ Nikita Scherbak, and Edmonton’s Ty Rattie and Tobias Rieder. 

  • At 35 years old, veteran Max Talbot is calling it a career. TSN’s Pierre LeBrun revealed that Talbot has decided to retire and end his playing days, but will stay involved with the game as a development adviser for CAA, a top hockey agency. Talbot may have spent his twilight years overseas, playing the past three seasons in the KHL, but few will forget his accomplishments in the NHL. Talbot spent eleven season in the league, making a name for himself as a top two-way player. Talbot received votes for the Selke Award as the league’s best defensive forward in four different seasons and was one of the most dangerous shorthanded specialists in the league during the prime of his career. Talbot spent the first six seasons of his career with the Pittsburgh Penguins, helping the team to a 2009 Stanley Cup title, and made stops in Philadelphia, Colorado, and Boston before heading for Russia in 2016.
  • As one pro career ends, another begins. QMJHL leading scorer Peter Abbandonato has signed with the AHL’s Syracuse Crunch, per TVA’s Mikhail Lalancette. It’s a two-year minor league deal for Abbandonato, who needs time to develop despite his impressive junior numbers. Abbandonato was a late-blooming forward, an undrafted and slightly undersized center who broke out this season in his final year of junior eligibility. The 21-year-old had a phenomenal season, though; he recorded 111 points in 68 games, including 82 assists, which also led the league and by a wide margin. Abbandonato then added 27 points in just 15 playoff games to help the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies to a QMJHL title. Like fellow undrafted top junior scorer Justin Brazeau of the OHL, Abbandonato had no other option but to sign a minor league deal and show that his skill set is pro-ready. If he can do that, Abbandonato should earn an entry-level contract, perhaps even before his AHL contract expires.

 

Prospect Notes: Krebs, Roy, Rodrigue, Vehvilainen

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Draft prospect Peyton Krebs tore his Achilles during offseason training, reports Corey Pronman of The Athletic (Twitter link).  Scott Cruickshank, also of The Athletic, tweets that he underwent successful surgery on Friday.  The injury is likely to keep Krebs out of training camp and could carry over into the season.  The forward is widely projected as a top-ten pick in the upcoming draft after averaging more than a point per game in his sophomore season with Kootenay (now Winnipeg) of the WHL.

Other prospect news around the hockey world:

  • The QMJHL had their annual draft today with forward Joshua Roy being selected first overall by Saint John. The 15-year-old averaged over two points per game with Levis of the QMAAA.  He is eligible for the 2021 NHL Entry Draft.
  • As is often the case at the QMJHL draft, several trades were made. One of those involved Oilers prospect Olivier Rodrigue, who is on the move to Moncton, per a team announcement on Twitter.  In return, Drummondville receives a pair of second-rounders (one is conditional) plus a first-round pick in 2020.  Rodrigue is already under contract to Edmonton and will likely be entering the final season of his junior career before turning pro in 2020-21.
  • Blue Jackets goalie prospect Veini Vehvilainen has won the Urpo Ylonen award for the top goalie in Finland for the second straight season, the sm-Liiga announced (Twitter link). The 22-year-old posted a 1.58 GAA with a .933 SV% in 38 games with Karpat and recently signed his entry-level deal with Columbus.  With Sergei Bobrovsky’s future with them uncertain, Vehvilainen could find himself in the mix for an NHL spot fairly quickly.

Jared McIsaac To Undergo Shoulder Surgery

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The Detroit Red Wings won’t have top prospect Jared McIsaac fighting for a spot on the blue line this training camp. McIsaac will undergo shoulder surgery today in Detroit and will be out for five to six months. McIsaac apparently played injured for much of the season, still helping the Halifax Mooseheads all the way to the QMJHL final and Memorial Cup as host city.

McIsaac, 19, was the 36th-overall pick in last year’s draft and returned to Halifax this season to continue his junior career. The left-handed defensemen ended up with 62 points in 53 regular season games, while also suiting up for Canada at the World Junior tournament. Despite dealing with this shoulder injury through the second half of the season, McIsaac still recorded 16 points in 22 playoff contests and was named to the QMJHL Second All-Star Team.

Interestingly, this injury may actually give Detroit some extra options with their young defenseman. Originally, it was likely that McIsaac would have had to go back to the CHL for another full season given he is not eligible to play in the AHL at this point. That would have been despite him showing quite clearly that he can dominate that league, and is likely ready for the next step. Now, the team can potentially allow him to rehab and then send him to the World Juniors again (if selected and ready) before giving him a short conditioning stint in the minor leagues. In short, there is now no rush to send him back to Halifax right away—something that the Mooseheads certainly won’t be excited about.

Islanders Notes: Clutterbuck, Ho-Sang, Sorokin, Prospects

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In a detailed piece for The Athletic, Arthur Staple talks to New York Islanders GM Lou Lamoriello and fills the gaps in some of the latest rumors surrounding the team. While much of the discussion is on players who could push for roles with the Isles next season, the main topic is regarding a player whose role is already a lock – if he’s healthy that is. Staple writes that veteran forward Cal Clutterbuck has already undergone off-season surgery, after revealing following the team’s playoff exit that he had been playing through several back injuries, including slipped discs, rotated vertebrae, and a stress fracture. Facing either a regiment of rest and rehab in hopes the pain would subside or instead invasive surgery for a more permanent solution, Clutterbuck chose the later and went under the knife late last month. Lamoriello states that doctors hoped the surgery would still leave Clutterbuck enough time to recuperate before training camp, but there is some doubt. One way or another, it will be close and the physical forward likely won’t be at full strength for the start of the preseason. With Andrew Ladd already expected to miss the start of next season, New York hopes to have Clutterbuck ready for the season opener and Lamoriello expects that to be the case, but it will be a process worth monitoring this summer and into the fall.

  • Lamoriello confirmed to Staple that polarizing forward Joshua Ho-Sang will be back with the Islanders next season. A restricted free agent, Ho-Sang requires a qualifying offer to remain Isles’ property and Lamoriello and company will give him just that. Beyond a QO, the GM would not guarantee anything else for Ho-Sang though. Lamoriello said that the 2014 first-round pick, who played in just ten games with New York this season, will “be in camp and like all the young players, he’ll determine his future.” If Ho-Sang refuses to sign his qualifying offer or does so and then becomes unhappy with his role again next season, he will be a prime trade candidate for the Islanders.
  • One young player who won’t be in camp and likely won’t don an Islanders jersey at all next season is Russian goaltender Ilya Sorokin. Sorokin, 23, has been dominating the KHL for four years now as arguably the best goalie in the league. There is little doubt that he will find success when he does make the jump to the NHL. However, he still has a year remaining on his contract with CSKA Moscow and Lamoriello reports that this makes it next to impossible for him to come over before the end of next season. Yet, the two sides stay in constant contact about the possibilities. “There’s certainly dialogue all the time, but he does have a contract so there are extenuating circumstances. He’s someone we’d love to have come over as soon as possible.” With Sorokin not an option for next season, the Islanders still have a tough decision to make in net, with Vezina Trophy candidate Robin Lehner hitting free agency and in search of a long-term deal.
  • Lamoriello and the Islanders are understandably excited by the development of 2018 first-round pick Noah Dobson, who just won his second consecutive Memorial Cup and Memorial Cup All-Star nod. The well-rounded defenseman seems ready for the pros and Lamoriello specifically said that he “can’t get any higher in junior hockey than he’s gotten.” Dobson will be given the chance to break camp with the Islanders, but unfortunately for him he may have a disadvantage again fellow top defensive prospect Bode Wilde. As a teenage Canadian junior player, Dobson is ineligible to play in the AHL next season and would need to be returned to the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies of the QMJHL if he does not stick with the Islanders. Wilde, a second-round pick last year, also plays Canadian junior but was drafted out of the U.S. junior system and thus faces a different set of AHL eligibility rules. If Wilde, who is also coming off a strong season, shows well in camp, he could be the preferred prospect to stick based on that two-way flexibility. With the Islanders’ depth on defense, it’s hard to see either player having a major role in New York next season regardless, but the team could opt to deal from a position of strength this off-season to open up space for either Dobson or Wilde to have a shot at regular ice time next season.

Zachary Emond Signs With San Jose Sharks

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The San Jose Sharks have signed Zachary Emond to a three-year, entry-level contract. The young goaltender recently captured the 2019 Memorial Cup with the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies of the QMJHL, and will now sign his first professional contract just a few days later. Sharks’ GM Doug Wilson had this to say about his new prospect:

Zach’s overall development and growth improved immensely this season, recording seven shutouts and an unprecedented 24-0-1 record. He had the opportunity this season to learn under the Huskies veteran goaltender Samuel Harvey and head coach Mario Pouliot during the team’s Memorial Cup run. We’re excited to watch him take over the helm in the crease next year and build on his impressive performance from the previous campaign.

You didn’t read that wrong, Emond was a near perfect 24-0-1 in the regular season for the Huskies and those seven shutouts led the entire QMJHL. The same can be said about his goals against average of 1.73 and save percentage of .932, making it quite the historic season for the young goaltender. That performance must have Wilson and his scouting staff smiling from ear to ear after they used a sixth-round pick to select Emond last June despite his 9-10-1 record in 2017-18, caused by an .897 save percentage and 3.26 goals against average. That kind of improvement is obviously unexpected, but pushes the 18-year old right to the forefront of goaltending prospects in the Sharks’ system.

Because he’s so young, Emond is expected to return to the QMJHL next season as a 19-year old, allowing his entry-level deal to slide forward a year. He wouldn’t be allowed to play in the AHL anyway because of his age, meaning the Huskies very well could have the top goaltender in the league once again.

CHL Announces Top Player Awards for 2018-19

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Just one year after being named the CHL Rookie of the Year, QMJHL’s Alexis Lafreniere of Rimouski Oceanic, took another huge leap in his development as the 17-year-old was named the Sportsnet’s Player of the Year after the CHL released its top award winners Saturday.

Lafrieniere, who is considered to be the leading candidate to be the first-overall pick in the 2020 NHL draft, scored 42 goals as a 16-year-old to garner Rookie of the Year honors in 2017-18 and while his goal totals dropped to 37 this season, his playmaking skills took off. Lafreniere tallied 68 assists and 105 total points and then took his game to another level in the playoffs when he scored nine goals and 23 points in 13 games. Tampa Bay prospect Alex Barre-Boulet was the 2017-18 winner, at the age of 21. Lafreniere beat two other key players, including the WHL’s Portland Winterhawks’ Joachim Blichfeld and goaltender Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen of the OHL’s Sudbury Wolves.

Defenseman Ty Smith was named the Superstore Defenceman of the Year. The 19-year-old, who will likely take the ice with the New Jersey Devils next season, posted seven goals and 69 points in 57 games this season for the Spokane Chiefs of the WHL. Ian Scott of the WHL’s Prince Albert Raiders won the Vaughn Goaltender of the Year Award. He put up 38 wins, posting a 1.78 GAA and a .932 save percentage. The 20-year-old goaltender is a product of the Toronto Maple Leafs. Rookie Quinton Byfield of the Sudbury Wolves walked away with the Wawanesa Rookie of the Year Award after scoring 29 goals and 61 points in 64 games.

Here is a list of all the CHL award winners:

Player of the Year: Alexis Lafreniere
Defenseman of the Year: Ty Smith
Goaltender of the Year: Ian Scott
Rookie of the Year: Quinton Byfield
Coach of the Year: Mario Pouliot
Scholastic Player of the Year: Dustin Wolf
Humanitarian of the Year: Charle-Edouard D’Astous
Sportsman of the Year: Justin Almeida
Top Scorer: Jason Robertson
Top Prospect of Year: Bowen Byram

 

 

Senators Notes: Groulx, Roy, Mann, Potential Targets

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According to TSN’s Bob McKenzie, new Senators head coach D.J. Smith is expected to hire his own staff in Ottawa. Although GM Pierre Dorion made the final decision on hiring Smith, the team is in the process of finding a President of Hockey Operations and, until that is completed, it appears Dorion will stick with player personnel decisions while Smith is given control of the remaining coaching hires. The one exception though is goaltending coach Pierre Groulx. McKenzie adds that Groulx has already been confirmed as returning to the team next season in the same capacity. Groulx has spent the past three seasons as the Senators’ goalie coach and has a close relationship with veteran starter Craig Anderson. He also had success with Anders Nilsson last season, whose play improved noticeably following a mid-season trade from the Vancouver Canucks. Even if the decision were up to him, it is unlikely that Smith would have opted to move on from Groulx, who was one of the few things that worked well in Ottawa last year.

  • Patrick Roy won’t be the next head coach of the Senators obviously, despite so much evidence pointing in that direction. But he won’t be the team’s President of Hockey Operations, either. TSN reports that Roy will return to his post as head coach and general manager of the QMJHL’s Quebec Remparts. Roy purchased the Remparts in 1997 and served as GM and later head coach from 2004 to 2014 before being hired as head coach of the Colorado Avalanche. Roy resumed his role with the Remparts this past season and has decided to stay on with the team rather than continue to pursue other NHL opportunities.
  • One interesting decision for Smith will be what to do with current AHL head coach Troy Mann. Mann was also in consideration for the Senators’ head coaching gig alongside Smith, but did not make the cut. Another relatively young coach like Smith, Mann has spent more than a decade now in the minor leagues with a number of different teams and varying degrees of success. However, he garnered some extra attention last year due to his strong work with the young members of the AHL’s Belleville Senators in his first season as the head coach. Mann remains under contract with the Senators it is up to Smith to decide how best to use a valued asset. With many of those top young players expected to play regular roles in Ottawa next season, he could make Mann an assistant on his staff to help with that transition. However, if he feels that Mann is better suited for the minor league level – or wants to avoid a challenge of authority from a fellow candidate – he may instead opt to leave Mann where he is in Belleville.
  • One of the more exciting aspects of adding a new head coach, especially at this time of year, is the possibility of their former players being interested in playing for them once again. The Senators’ whopping $37.7MM in projected cap space means they are more or less a blank slate this off-season when it comes to exploring the free agent and trade markets. So who has ties to Smith, a long-time coach for the OHL’s Windsor Spitfires and Oshawa Generals? Well, one of Smith’s stars in his early days as an assistant in Windsor just so happens to be a known fixture on the trade block as well. The Anaheim Ducks’ Adam Henrique played three seasons under Smith and could very likely be on the move this summer as the Ducks seeks to shed salary. Smith could definitely push to acquire Henrique, who would immediately step into a top scoring role with Ottawa. Another name on the rumor mill who played for Smith briefly in Windsor is Zack Kassian of the Edmonton Oilers. Signed for one more year, Kassian would be an affordable, low-risk acquisition to bring some depth, experience, and toughness to the Ottawa lineup. A player who is not being forced out for salary reasons, but has nevertheless outstayed his welcome is the New York Islanders’ Michael Dal Colle. Dal Colle was one of Smith’s best players and leaders with the Generals and was selected No. 5 overall in 2014 due to his production in Oshawa. Yet, five years later, Dal Colle has seven points in 32 NHL games and is no longer considered part of the Islanders’ future core. They may be willing to sell low to the Senators, where the 22-year-old may have better luck under his old coach. On the free agent market, the defensive-minded Tom Kuhnhackl is a former Smith student who fit well under his old coach, but the intrigue here really lies with Smith’s Toronto connections. The man who ran the defense and penalty kill for the Maple Leafs could take a run at two high profile free agent defensemen – Jake Gardiner and Ron Hainsey – as well as two-way forward Par Lindholm, who Smith entrusted with ample shorthanded time in his first NHL season. Smith and the Senators may also flirt with the idea of an offer sheet for Toronto RFA Kasperi Kapanen, who Smith valued as a PK option but also brings a dynamic offensive game. The Leafs may have trouble matching an offer sheet for Kapanen against their tight cap crunch. Two other Toronto players with close ties to Smith are Nikita Zaitsev and Connor Brown, also potential trade casualties of the impending Toronto cap dilemma.

Winnipeg Jets Sign Leon Gawanke To Entry-Level Contract

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UPDATE: The Jets have confirmed the contract with Gawanke. It is a three-year entry-level deal worth $810K against the cap at the NHL level.

 

Following a breakout season with the QMJHL’s Cape Breton Screaming Eagles, defenseman Leon Gawanke has earned his first NHL contract. TVA’s Renaud Lavoie reports that the German blue liner has signed his entry-level contract with the Winnipeg Jets. While the term will be set to three years for the junior-age player, financial terms have not yet been disclosed.

Gawanke, 19, was a fifth-round pick of the Jets in 2017 after his first season in Cape Breton. The puck-moving defenseman had played exclusively in Germany beforehand, but did not look out of place as a QMJHL rookie, recording 32 points in 54 games. However, the 2017-18 season was somewhat problematic, as Gawanke’s offense stalled at 32 points despite playing a larger role and skating in eight more games. His defense also suffered as he was exposed against more difficult assignments. He appeared to be trending in the wrong direction and needed a strong campaign this year to reverse course. He provided just that, registering 57 points in 62 games and another seven points in the playoffs to tie for third on the team in scoring, both regular season and postseason. His defense also bounced back considerably – a difference of +34 between this season and last.

The Jets had until the June 1st deadline to sign Gawanke to his ELC, otherwise the young defenseman would have been eligible to re-enter the NHL Draft. Winnipeg has avoided that possibility and can look forward to the further development of the promising rearguard. However, a contract for Gawanke should not be confused for any immediate role with the Jets. Gawanke will almost certainly return to the Screaming Eagles next season and is likely a few years away at least from any NHL consideration.

2019 Memorial Cup Preview

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The biggest event in junior hockey begins tonight, as the year-end Memorial Cup Tournament opens in Halifax, Nova Scotia. For a refresher, the champions of the three Canadian Hockey League member leagues – the Ontario Hockey League, Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, and Western Hockey League – and a rotating host team square off in a round-robin tournament each year to determine Canadian junior hockey’s premier team. Each of the four contenders play one another once, after which the standings allow for a semi-final and final round. The action begins tonight and continues through the week, with the playoff rounds scheduled for May 24th and 26th. As for the competitors, the Halifax Mooseheads (QMJHL) play host to the Guelph Storm (OHL), Rouyn-Noranda Huskies (QMJHL), and Prince Albert Raiders (WHL). Below is a summary of each team’s season and top players for those interested in following the action over the next ten days:

Halifax Mooseheads (49-15-4)

This year’s host team was nearly a league champion themselves. The Moosheads fell to the Huskies in six games in the QMJHL Final, but will have a second chance against the team at least once in the Memorial tournament. Halifax is led by 20-year-old undrafted center Samuel Asselin, whose 86 points led the team and were a top-ten finish in the league, but all eyes will instead be on his young, draft-eligible line mate. Raphael Lavoie, who has had an up-and-down season, picked a good time to be on the up. With the NHL Draft a month away, Lavoie caught fire in the QMJHL playoffs. The 6’4″ right wing recorded 32 points in 23 postseason games, almost half of his 73 regular season points, which was far-and-away the most on the Mooseheads and second-best in the league. Most draft rankings and mock drafts have Lavoie falling somewhere in the middle ten picks of the upcoming first round and the Memorial Cup is his final chance to prove he should go earlier instead of later. The big winger plays a physically dominant game that often looks effortless, but he can also flip a switch and show off stellar skill. Also up front for Halifax are are a pair of recent Anaheim Ducks second-round selections, Benoit-Olivier Groulx and Antoine Morand, and New York Islanders’ sixth-round sleeper pick Arnaud Durandeau. Leading the defense is the daunting pair of top Detroit Red Wings blue line prospect Jared McIsaac and promising 2020-eligible rearguard Justin Barron, a likely first-round pick next year. The Mooseheads are as strong in the top-six and on the top pair as any team in this tournament, but it is in their depth that they could fall short. However, there is always the chance that goaltender Alexis Gravel, the Chicago Blackhawks’ 2018 sixth-rounder, could steal a game if the skaters fall short. Gravel finished in the top five in both save percentage and goals against average among QMJHL starters this season.

Guelph Storm (40-18-10)

No one expected Guelph to be here. The Storm, who entered the playoffs with the eighth-best record in the OHL, were down 3-0 in their second-round series against the division rival London Knights and managed to mount a four-win comeback to advance. They then fell behind by two games against both the Saginaw Spirit in the third round and Ottawa 67’s in the OHL Final to win it all. This team is nothing if not resilient and will be a tough out in this tournament. While Arizona Coyotes’ forward prospect Nate Schnarr enjoyed an excellent season, leading Guelph with 102 points and finishing in the OHL’s top-ten in points and assists, there is little argument that he is still the best forward for the Storm. Acquired in January, Montreal Canadiens top prospect Nick Suzuki has been superhuman since arriving in Guelph. The talented forward recorded 49 points in 29 games to close out the regular season and then another 42 points in 24 playoff games en route to a championship. Suzuki might be the most dangerous player in the Memorial Cup tournament, which is a major boost for the Storm. He’s not alone though; Suzuki and Schnarr lead a forward corps that includes NHL-bound power forwards Isaac Ratcliffe of the Philadelphia Flyers, MacKenzie Entwistle of the Chicago Blackhawks, and Liam Hawel of the Dallas Stars. The defense is also stout behind mainstays Dmitri Samorukov of the Edmonton Oilers and draft-eligible Owen Lalonde and trade additions Markus Phillips and Sean Durzi the Los Angeles Kings. Guelph would be the favorites to win the Memorial Cup if it wasn’t for their goaltending issues. If Anthony Popovich can find his game and that weakness goes away, the Storm are in good shape. The OHL is traditionally the strongest of the three CHL leagues, which is evidenced by the depth of talent that Guelph, the eighth-best OHL squad in the regular season, has versus the best teams of the QMJHL and WHL.

Rouyn-Noranda Huskies (59-8-1)

Rouyn-Noranda’s regular season mirrored that of the Tampa Bay Lightning. The team was dominant from beginning to end and won the QMJHL regular season title by a whopping 12 points and finished with a goal differential of +182. Fortunately for them, the similarities ended in the postseason. The Huskies continued to roll all the way to the league championship. Leading the way, regular season and postseason, has been league scoring title-winner Peter Abbandonato. Abbandonato, 21, recorded 111 points this season and tacked on another 27 in the postseason. An undrafted prospect, Abbandonato has not let the lack of NHL commitment slow him down as he has been near-impossible to stop all season. He also has a deep supporting cast, including talented first-time draft-eligible prospect Alex Beaucage, and over-agers Raphael Harvey-Pinard and Felix Bibeau, as well as Boston Bruins draft pick Jakub Lauko and Montreal Canadiens signee Joel Teasdale. Trade acquisition Noah Dobson, the twelfth overall pick last year by the New York Islanders, has also had a massive impact for the team both defensively and offensively. Dobson is arguably the best player in the tournament and could be the x-factor for the Huskies. The story of Rouyn-Noranda’s season to this point though has been the stellar goalie tandem of Samuel Harvey and San Jose Sharks pick Zachary Emond, both of whom posted a save percentage of better than .925 and a goals against average below 2.10 in the regular season. Harvey, who started 20 of 21 playoff games, put up even better numbers when it mattered most. If the 21-year-old net minder keeps up that level of play, the Huskies will be hard to beat.

Prince Albert Raiders (54-10-4)

The Raiders were just as, if not more dominant in the WHL as the Huskies were in the QMJHL, winning the regular season title by 11 points and recording a goal differential of +151, more than 50% better than the next-best team. Yet, Prince Albert accomplished such a campaign without much game-breaking talent, perhaps why they came within an overtime goal away from losing in the WHL Final to the Vancouver Giants. The Raiders have good players, but on paper they pale in comparison to the other three competing teams. That doesn’t erase what they have already accomplished this season, but it could put them at a disadvantage in inter-league play. Leading the Raiders is a player whose name hockey fans will know before the NHL Draft, if they don’t already. 20-year-old forward Brett Leason is a once-in-a-generation late bloomer who was passed over in two drafts already before breaking out this season. His play has caught seemingly everyone’s eye, as he earned a spot on Team Canada’s World Junior team earlier this year and is considered by some to be a first-round pick possibility in June. Leason’s numbers back up the hype; not only is he 6’4″ and over 200 lbs., but the power forward scored 36 goals and totaled 89 points in just 55 games this year. He then added 25 more points in 22 postseason games. Leason is a force in the offensive end – shooting, passing, possessing, and forechecking – and will be one of the tougher players to match up with in the tournament. Right beside Leason all season long has been San Jose Sharks selection Noah Gregor, who finished just one point behind Leason but still within the WHL’s top ten scorers. Cole Fonstad, property of the Montreal Canadiens, Ottawa Senators free agent addition Parker Kelly, and another intriguing draft prospect, Alexei Protas, also play key roles up front for Prince Albert. Outside of WHL plus/minus leader Brayden Pachal, the Raiders are pretty thin on the blue line, but star goalie Ian Scott hasn’t let it affect him. The Toronto Maple Leafs’ keeper of the future has been phenomenal this season, posting a sub-2.00 goals against average and .932 save percentage in the regular season and replicating those numbers in the postseason. Gravel and Harvey may be able to steal a game in the Memorial Cup, but a hot Scott could steal the whole tournament.

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