OHL CUP POWERED BY UNDER ARMOUR MINOR MIDGET TOP-10 RANKINGS

Posted on by Dominic Tiano

OHL Cup Top 10

Toronto, Ont. – The Ontario Hockey League today announced the 10th edition of the weekly minor midget rankings for the 2020 OHL Cup Showcase Tournament powered by Under Armour and hosted by the Greater Toronto Hockey League.

The 2020 OHL Cup powered by Under Armour and hosted by the GTHL is scheduled for March 17-23 and will feature 20 teams from across Ontario and the United States showcasing many of the top players eligible for the 2020 OHL Priority Selection.  All games will be played at Scotiabank Pond in Toronto until the Championship Final moves to the Mattamy Athletic Centre on Monday, March 23.

The weekly rankings are determined by a panel of OHL Central Scouting staff and represent the top teams that are competing to play in the annual year-end championship tournament.

Minor Midget Rankings for the 2020 OHL Cup Powered by Under Armour – Week 10

RANK TEAM LEAGUE LAST WEEK WEEKS RANKED
1 Quinte Red Devils OMHA 1 10
2 Toronto Titans GTHL 2 10
3 Toronto Jr. Canadiens GTHL 3 10
4 Toronto Nationals GTHL 5 10
5 Elgin-Middlesex Chiefs ALLIANCE 4 10
6 Vaughan Kings GTHL 7 6
7 Southern Tier Admirals OMHA 6 10
8 Toronto Marlboros GTHL 9 10
9 Hamilton Huskies ALLIANCE 8 8
10 Waterloo Wolves ALLIANCE – 5
Honourable Mention:
Mississauga Senators GTHL 10 6
Mississauga Reps GTHL – 1
Whitby Wildcats OMHA – –

The OMHA’s Quinte Red Devils are the top-ranked team in the OHL Cup Powered by Under Armour Top-10 Rankings for a ninth consecutive week while three GTHL clubs in the Toronto Titans, Toronto Jr. Canadiens and Toronto Nationals occupy the following three slots. The Vaughan Kings are up one spot to number six on the this week’s list while the Toronto Marlboros climb to eighth and the ALLIANCE’s Waterloo Wolves are back in the Top-10 for the first time since Week 4. The Wolves join two other ALLIANCE teams in the fifth-ranked Elgin-Middlesex Chiefs and ninth-ranked Hamilton Huskies in embarking on semi-final play this coming weekend.

History:
Last season the Don Mills Flyers overcame a 4-1 deficit to defeat the Toronto Red Wings 6-5 as Shane Wright (Kingston Frontenacs) set up Brennan Othmann (Flint Firebirds) for the overtime winning goal. The Flyers added both OHL Cup and GTHL Championships to their incredible season that saw them lose just once. An exceptional status player who was selected by the Kingston Frontenacs with the first overall pick of the 2019 OHL Priority Selection, Wright was named Tournament MVP with 18 points over seven contests, one shy of Connor McDavid’s 2012 event record.

The 2019 OHL Priority Selection featured 15 players chosen in the first round who competed for the OHL Cup including Shane Wright (Don Mills Flyers – 1st overall Kingston Frontenacs), Brennan Othmann (Don Mills Flyers – 2nd overall Flint Firebirds), Brandt Clarke (Don Mills Flyers – 4th overall Barrie Colts), Wyatt Johnston (Toronto Marlboros – 6th overall Windsor Spitfires), Benjamin Gaudreau (Team NOHA – 7th overall Sarnia Sting), Ryan Winterton (Whitby Wildcats – 8th overall Hamilton Bulldogs), Liam Arnsby (Don Mills Flyers – 9th overall North Bay Battalion), Ethan Del Mastro (Toronto Marlboros – 12th overall Mississauga Steelheads), Francesco Pinelli (Toronto Red Wings – 13th overall Kitchener Rangers), Danny Zhilkin (Toronto Marlboros -14th overall Guelph Storm), Landon McCallum (Brantford 99’ers – 15th overall Sudbury Wolves), Brett Harrison (London Jr. Knights – 16th overall Oshawa Generals), Jacob Holmes (York-Simcoe Express – 18th overall Soo Greyhounds), Connor Punnett (North Central Predators – 19th overall Saginaw Spirit) and Jack Matier (Team NOHA – 21st overall Ottawa 67’s).

Notable OHL Cup graduates currently playing in the NHL include Dylan Strome (Toronto Marlboros/Chicago Blackhawks), Travis Konecny (Elgin-Middlesex Chiefs/Philadelphia Flyers), Mitch Marner (Vaughan Kings/Toronto Maple Leafs), Connor McDavid (Toronto Marlboros/Edmonton Oilers), Max Domi (Don Mills Flyers/Montreal Canadiens), Sean Monahan (Mississauga Rebels/Calgary Flames), Taylor Hall (Greater Kingston Frontenacs/Arizona Coyotes), Tyler Seguin (Toronto Nationals/Dallas Stars), John Tavares (Toronto Marlboros/Toronto Maple Leafs), P.K Subban (Markham Islanders/New Jersey Devils), and Steven Stamkos (Markham Waxers/Tampa Bay Lightning).

For more information, please visit ohlcup.ca.

OHL ANNOUNCES TOP PERFORMERS OF THE MONTH FOR JANUARY

Posted on by Dominic Tiano

Top Performers January

Toronto, Ont. – The Ontario Hockey League today announced the Top OHL Performers of the Month for regular season games played in January 2020, including Oshawa Generals forward Philip Tomasino, Ottawa 67’s defenceman Noel Hoefenmayer and London Knights goaltender Brett Brochu.

OHL Player of the Month – Philip Tomasino (Oshawa Generals):
Nashville Predators prospect Philip Tomasino of the Oshawa Generals is the OHL Player of the Month for January, posting a league-leading 34 points including 15 goals and 19 assists over just 13 games.  Tomasino recorded three points or more on seven different occasions and earned star of the game recognition in nine of his 13 outings, 10 of which came as a member of the Oshawa Generals following a trade from the Niagara IceDogs. He wrapped up his tenure in Niagara with 10 points over his final three contests including a five-point showing (1-4–5) in a 9-8 win over North Bay on Jan. 2nd. He followed that up two nights later with four points (2-2–4), setting up the OT winner as the IceDogs defeated the Kitchener Rangers 7-6 on Jan. 4th. Tomasino started his time as an Oshawa General with a bang on Jan. 9th in Windsor, registering five points (2-3–5) in a 6-3 triumph over the Spitfires. That performance was followed by back-to-back two-goal outings on Jan. 10th in Sarnia and Jan. 12th back on home ice against the Peterborough Petes, helping Tomasino earn OHL ‘On the Run’ Player of the Week honours. Other outstanding January performances included another four-point effort (2-2–4) on Jan. 20th in Owen Sound as he set up the winning goal in a 5-4 victory over the Attack. He wrapped up January with three consecutive multi-point outings headlined by a goal and three assists on Jan. 25th in a 7-4 win over the Kingston Frontenacs on Sportsnet.

An 18-year-old native of Mississauga, Ont., Tomasino leads the Generals in scoring this season with 83 points (34-49–83) over 48 games, good for the league’s fourth-highest total. Now in his third OHL season, the former fifth overall pick in the 2017 OHL Priority Selection has amassed 179 points (73-106–179) over 176 career regular season games. He was the highest-drafted OHL forward at last summer’s 2019 NHL Draft, going 24th overall to the Nashville Predators who signed him to a three-year entry level NHL contract on October 21st.

OHL Defenceman of the Month – Noel Hoefenmayer (Ottawa 67’s):
Ottawa 67’s overage defenceman Noel Hoefenmayer has been named OHL Defenceman of the Month for the third time this season. The fifth-year veteran led all rearguards with 18 points including three goals and 15 assists over 13 games to go with a plus/minus rating of plus-13. Hoefenmayer recorded points in 11 of his 13 January outings including three assists on Jan. 18th against the Hamilton Bulldogs, a two-goal showing on Jan. 25th against the Niagara IceDogs and a goal and one helper on Jan. 30th on the road against the same IceDogs. Hoefenmayer helped the 67’s rise to the top of the Kia CHL Top 10 Rankings with wins in 13 of 14 January contests. He wrapped up the month on an eight-game point streak.

A 21-year-old native of North York, Ont., Hoefenmayer leads OHL defenders with 67 points including 19 goals and 48 assists along with a plus/minus rating of plus-44 over 46 games. The 6-foot-1 rearguard has been a big contributor on Ottawa’s top-ranked 30.6% power play this season, registering 32 points on the man advantage. A fifth-year veteran, Hoefenmayer is currently inside the franchise top-8 for both career points by a defenceman (207) and career games played (286). His 19 goals from the back end are the most in a single season by a 67’s defenceman since Jon Zion in 2000-01. Hoefenmayer was a fourth round pick of the Arizona Coyotes in the 2017 NHL Draft before going unsigned and attended rookie camp with the Carolina Hurricanes in September. Hoefenmayer was a second round pick of the 67’s in the 2015 OHL Priority Selection.

OHL Goaltender & Rookie of the Month – Brett Brochu (London Knights):
London Knights netminder Brett Brochu is both the OHL Goaltender and OHL Rookie of the Month for January after posting an impressive 9-0-0-0 record along with a 1.89 goals-against average and .940 save percentage in nine games. Brochu made at least 30 saves on four different occasions highlighted by a 40-save effort on Jan. 3rd as the Knights defeated the Mississauga Steelheads 3-1. He surrendered just one goal in back-to-back games on Jan. 12th in Sault Ste. Marie and Jan. 17th at home to the Sudbury Wolves before turning in another fine performance with 35 saves in a 4-1 defeat of the Hamilton Bulldogs on Jan. 24th. Brochu closed out January on an 11-game winning streak.

A 17-year-old native of Tilbury, Ont., Brochu leads OHL rookie goaltenders with a 2.52 goals-against average, a .916 save percentage and a record of 21-5-0-0, becoming the first Knights rookie to win 20 games in a season since Ryan MacDonald back in 2003-04. The 5-foot-11, 156Ib. puckstopper was London’s sixth round pick in the 2018 OHL Priority Selection. He spent last season with the Dresden Kings Jr. C club, earning PJHL Stobbs Division Rookie of the Year honours.

2019-20 OHL Performers of the Month:

Player of the Month:
January – Philip Tomasino (Oshawa Generals)
December – Cole Schwindt (Mississauga Steelheads)
November – Jan Jenik (Hamilton Bulldogs)
October – Arthur Kaliyev (Hamilton Bulldogs)

Defenceman of the Month:
January – Noel Hoefenmayer (Ottawa 67’s)
December – Noel Hoefenmayer (Ottawa 67’s)
November – Connor Corcoran (Windsor Spitfires)
October – Noel Hoefenmayer (Ottawa 67’s)

Rookie of the Month:
January – Brett Brochu (London Knights)
December – Mason McTavish (Peterborough Petes)
November – Shane Wright (Kingston Frontenacs)
October – Mason McTavish (Peterborough Petes)

Goaltender of the Month:
January – Brett Brochu (London Knights)
December – Jacob Ingham (Kitchener Rangers)
November – Nico Daws (Guelph Storm)
October – Hunter Jones (Peterborough Petes)

OHL Writers’ Draft Eligible Player of the Month for January

Posted on by Dominic Tiano

In the years that I have been doing this, I don’t ever recall a month like January where so many players could have been chosen our Draft Eligible Player of the Month. Tyson Foerster, Luke Evangelista, Brett Brochu, James Hardie, Ty Tullio, Jack Quinn, Marco Rossi, Cole Perfetti and Quinton Byfield were all, for different reasons, deserving.

Cole Perfetti of the Saginaw Spirit. Photo by Luke Durda/OHL Images
Cole Perfetti of the Saginaw Spirit. Photo by Luke Durda/OHL Images

We settled on Mr Consistency, Cole Perfetti of the Saginaw Spirit for the second time this season.

Through 13 games in the month of January, Perfetti found the back of the net 8 times while assisting on 21 others and finishing a plus-16. He was held off the score sheet just once, a January 15th matchup against the Soo Greyhounds. In the 12 remaining contests, 9 were multi point games.

Perfetti was named the game’s first star 3 times and the game’s third star twice. But let’s not get into the Ontario Hockey League’s three-star selection process.

Serious consideration was given to London Knights netminder Brendan Brochu. The rookie keeper appeared in 9 games in January winning all of them while posting a sparkling 1.89 goals-against-average and a .940 save-percentage.

Foerster appeared in 11 games scoring 8 goals and assisting on 9 others. Evangelista scored 6 goals and 11 assists in 11 games, Hardie 12 goals and 8 assists in 11 games, Tullio 7 goals and 9 assists in 13 games, Quinn 17 goals and 7 assists in 12 games, Rossi 6 goals and 16 assists in 12 games and Byfield 7 goals and 6 assists in 7 games.

OHL Writers Draft Eligible Players of the Month

January – Cole Perfetti – Saginaw Spirit

December – Marco Rossi – Ottawa 67’s

November – Marco Rossi – Ottawa 67’s

October – Cole Perfetti – Saginaw Spirit

KNIGHTS’ CONNOR McMICHAEL NAMED OHL ‘ON THE RUN’ PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Posted on by Dominic Tiano

McMichael

Toronto, Ont. – The Ontario Hockey League today announced that Washington Capitals prospect Connor McMichael of the London Knights is the OHL ‘On the Run’ Player of the Week with seven points including three goals and four assists over two games along with a plus/minus rating of plus-4.

McMichael claims the honour for the third time this season, helping the Knights stretch their current winning streak to eight with multi-point efforts in a pair of victories. He opened up the weekend on Friday with his league-leading sixth hat-trick of the campaign, tacking on an assist for four points in a 7-4 win over the CHL’s ninth-ranked Windsor Spitfires. McMichael collected three assists in Saturday’s 5-2 road win over the Sarnia Sting as the Knights climbed into first place in the Midwest Division with a 32-13-1-1 record with 66 points.

A 19-year-old native of Ajax, Ont., McMichael sits third in OHL scoring with 83 points including 37 goals and 46 assists over 37 games, good for the league’s highest rate of 2.24 points-per-game. He continues to ride a 12-game point streak as the Knights have surged up the Western Conference standings. McMichael was a first round (25th overall) pick of the Washington Capitals last summer and was originally a first round (11th overall) pick of the Hamilton Bulldogs in the 2017 OHL Priority Selection. He recently won gold with Canada’s National Junior Team at the 2020 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship in Ostrava, Czech Republic.

Also considered for the award this week were Mississauga Steelheads teammates Cole Schwindt (1-6–7) and Keean Washkurak (2-5–7) who each recorded seven points in a pair of victories this past weekend.

OTR_2017_Logo

2019-20 OHL ‘On the Run’ Players of the Week – Regular Season:
Jan. 27 – Feb. 2: Connor McMichael (London Knights)
Jan. 20 – Jan. 26: Ty Dellandrea (Flint Firebirds)
Jan. 13 – Jan. 19: Mitchell Hoelscher (Ottawa 67’s)
Jan. 6 – Jan. 12: Philip Tomasino (Oshawa Generals)
Dec. 30 – Jan. 5: Jacob Ingham (Kitchener Rangers)
Dec. 16 – Dec. 29: Joseph Garreffa (Ottawa 67’s)
Dec. 9 – Dec. 15: Jacob Ingham (Kitchener Rangers)
Dec. 2 – Dec. 8: Ty Dellandrea (Flint Firebirds)
Nov. 25 – Dec. 1: Marco Rossi (Ottawa 67’s)
Nov. 18 – Nov. 24: Riley McCourt (Flint Firebirds)
Nov. 11 – Nov. 17: Jan Jenik (Hamilton Bulldogs)
Nov. 4 – Nov. 10: Cam Hillis (Guelph Storm)
Oct. 28 – Nov. 3: Connor McMichael (London Knights)
Oct. 21 – Oct. 27: Nico Daws (Guelph Storm)
Oct. 14 – Oct. 20: Hunter Jones (Peterborough Petes)
Oct. 7 – Oct. 13: Mack Guzda (Owen Sound Attack)
Sept. 24 – Oct. 6: Philip Tomasino (Niagara IceDogs)
Sept. 23 – Sept. 29: Connor McMichael (London Knights)
Sept. 19 – Sept. 22: Semyon Der-Arguchintsev (Peterborough Petes)