2023 NHL Draft

56 OHL PLAYERS INCLUDED ON NHL CENTRAL SCOUTING’S FINAL DRAFT RANKINGS

Posted on April 18, 2023 by Dominic Tiano

Toronto, Ont. – The Ontario Hockey League is proud to announce that 56 OHL players have been included on NHL Central Scouting’s Final Rankings for the 2023 NHL Draft to be held June 28-29 at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee.

The list includes 30 OHL forwards, 19 defencemen and seven goaltenders.

A total of eight OHL skaters are ranked inside the first round led by Owen Sound Attack 46-goal scorer Colby Barlow along with Oshawa Generals centreman Calum Ritchie and Sudbury Wolves winger Quentin Musty at 12, 13 and 14 in North America respectively. London Knights defenceman Oliver Bonk comes in at 20, followed by wingers Nick Lardis of the Hamilton Bulldogs (27), Carson Rehkopf of the Kitchener Rangers (29) and defencemen Andrew Gibson of the Soo Greyhounds (31) and Tristan Bertucci of the Flint Firebirds (32).

The Firebirds feature the OHL’s highest-ranked goaltender in Nathan Day (12), who comes off a strong showing in the second half of the regular season that carried over into the playoffs.

Nineteen of the OHL’s 20 member teams are represented on the list, led by the Flint Firebirds, London Knights and Sudbury Wolves with five players ranked. The Erie Otters, Hamilton Bulldogs, Kingston Frontenacs, Ottawa 67’s and Saginaw Spirit each feature four players on the list.

OHL Players Included on NHL Central Scouting Final Draft Rankings

SKATERS:

RANK	PLAYER	TEAM	POS
12	Colby Barlow	Owen Sound Attack	LW
13	Calum Ritchie	Oshawa Generals	C
14	Quentin Musty	Sudbury Wolves	LW
20	Oliver Bonk	London Knights	D
27	Nick Lardis	Hamilton Bulldogs	LW
29	Carson Rehkopf	Kitchener Rangers	LW
31	Andrew Gibson	Soo Greyhounds	D
32	Tristan Bertucci	Flint Firebirds	D
33	Beau Akey	Barrie Colts	D
34	Quinton Burns	Kingston Frontenacs	D
37	Coulson Pitre	Flint Firebirds	RW
38	Carey Terrance	Erie Otters	C
41	Hunter Brzustewicz	Kitchener Rangers	D
46	Cam Allen	Guelph Storm	D
50	Ethan Miedema	Kingston Frontenacs	LW
51	Easton Cowan	London Knights	RW
54	Luca Pinelli	Ottawa 67’s	C
57	Brad Gardiner	Ottawa 67’s	C
69	Cole Brown	Hamilton Bulldogs	LW
70	Matthew Mania	Sudbury Wolves	D
72	Matthew Mayich	Ottawa 67’s	D
77	Alex Pharand	Sudbury Wolves	C
79	Denver Barkey	London Knights	C
83	Ethan Hay	Flint Firebirds	C
88	Cooper Foster	Ottawa 67’s	C
94	Konnor Smith	Peterborough Petes	D
100	Luke McNamara	Saginaw Spirit	C
106	Anthony Romani	North Bay Battalion	C
114	Rodwin Dionicio	Windsor Spitfires	D
126	Owen Outwater	Kingston Frontenacs	C
129	Ondrej Molnar	Erie Otters	LW
130	Matthew Soto	Kingston Frontenacs	RW
131	Florian Xhekaj	Hamilton Bulldogs	LW
134	Matthew Andonovski	Kitchener Rangers	D
136	James Petrovski	Owen Sound Attack	D
142	Angus MacDonell	Mississauga Steelheads	C
155	Blake Smith	Flint Firebirds	D
160	Alexis Daviault	Erie Otters	D
161	Jacob Julien	London Knights	C
173	Donovan McCoy	Peterborough Petes	D
174	Joey Willis	Saginaw Spirit	C
177	Braeden Bowman	Guelph Storm	RW
178	Djibril Toure	Sudbury Wolves	D
182	Spencer Sova	Erie Otters	D
190	Beau Jelsma	Barrie Colts	C
191	Kocha Delic	Sudbury Wolves	C
198	Alex Christopoulos	Windsor Spitfires	RW
209	Lucas Moore	Hamilton Bulldogs	D
214	Calem Mangone	Saginaw Spirit	RW

GOALTENDERS:

RANK	GOALTENDER	TEAM
12	Nathan Day	Flint Firebirds
13	Charlie Robertson	North Bay Battalion
15	Zach Bowen	London Knights
25	Charlie Schenkel	Soo Greyhounds
27	Owen Flores	Niagara IceDogs
29	Andrew Oke	Saginaw Spirit
32	Corbin Votary	Owen Sound Attack

For NHL Central Scouting’s complete final rankings for the 2023 NHL Draft, visit nhl.com.

About the Ontario Hockey League
The Ontario Hockey League is a proud member of the Canadian Hockey League which is the world’s largest development hockey league with 60 teams in nine Canadian provinces and four American states. In addition to the OHL, the CHL is made up of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League and the Western Hockey League. The CHL supplies more players to the National Hockey League and U SPORTS than any other league.

OHL Writers Draft Eligible Player of the Month for March

Posted on April 4, 2023 by Dominic Tiano

It wasn’t exactly a barn burner of a March for the skaters when it comes to the players eligible for the National Hockey League Entry Draft. But it was probably the best month of the season for the goaltenders. Here’s our choices for draft eligible forward, defenceman and goaltender of the month.

Draft Eligible Forward of the Month – Max Namestnikov – Guelph Storm

We all know about the explosion of offence Namestnikov had once he was traded from the Sarnia Sting to the Guelph Storm. Max had just two assists in the month of March but tallied 12 goals in 11 games that raised his season total to 39. And 35 of those goals came after the trade, in just 47 games. He had goals in all but 3 of those 11 games and included 4 multi point games.

Also considered were Coulson Pitre of the Flint Firebirds with 4 goals and 7 assists in 9 games, Joey Willis of the Saginaw Spirit had 5 goals and 8 assists in 11 games and Brady Stonehouse of the Ottawa 67’s who had 7 goals and 4 assists in 10 games.

Draft Eligible Defenceman of the Month – Matthew Mania – Sudbury Wolves

Mania quietly put together a solid season for the Sudbury Wolves and the month of March was a very good one for him. He appeared in 12 games scoring 3 goals and adding 6 assists and a plus-7 to finish the season with 10 goals and 28 assists and a plus-21 while playing in 67 games.

Also considered was Hunter Brzustewicz who had 8 assists in 12 games for the Rangers.

Draft Eligible Goaltender of the Month – Charlie Robertson – North Bay Battalion

Robertson had a great start to the month of March posting consecutive shutouts beginning with a 20 save blanking of the Niagara IceDogs on March and 5 days later blanking the Oshawa Generals with a 28 save performance. Robertson went 5-0-0-0 in the month of March stopping 145 of 154 shots for a save-percentage of .942.

Also considered was Liam Sztuska of the Peterborough Petes who went 4-0-0-0 in 5 appearances and stopped 128 of 134 shots for a save-percentage of .955 and 1 shutout. Collin MacKenzie of the Ottawa 67’s was also considered as he posted a 7-0-0-0 record in 8 appearances with a .930 save-percentage.

We have to give a special shout out to Owen Flores of the Niagara IceDogs. He appeared in 10 games with two of those being in relief. Here are the shots he faced in his 8 full games: 66, 44, 46, 45, 48, 50, 58 and 36. In total, he stopped 399 of 440 shots he faced for a .907 save-percentage.

Forwards

Max Namestnikov – Guelph Storm – March

Nick Lardis – Hamilton Bulldogs – February

Colby Barlow – Owen Sound Attack – January

Quentin Musty – Sudbury Wolves – December

Quentin Musty – Sudbury Wolves – November

Ryan Abraham – Windsor Spitfires – October

Defencemen

Matthew Mania – Sudbury Wolves – March

Rodwin Dionicio – Windsor Spitfires – February

Rodwin Dionicio – Windsor Spitfires – January

Beau Akey – Sudbury Wolves – December

Brody Crane – London Knights – November

Hunter Brzustewicz – Kitchener Rangers – October

Goaltenders

Charlie Robertson – North Bay Battalion – March

Tristan Malboeuf – Hamilton Bulldogs – February

Jacob Oster – Oshawa Generals – January

Joey Costanzo – Windsor Spitfires – December

Andrew Oke – Saginaw Spirit – November

Collin MacKenzie – Ottawa 67’s – October

OHL End of Season Draft Eligible Statistical Leaders

Posted on April 1, 2023 by Dominic Tiano

Colby Barlow of the Owen Sound Attack. Photo by Luke Durda/OHL Images

Another Ontario Hockey League regular season has come to a close and the playoffs are in full swing. That means it’s time to look back at the regular season and the statistical leaders among players eligible for the 2023 National Hockey League Entry Draft.

Colby Barlow of the Owen Sound Attack edged out Quentin Musty of the Sudbury Wolves by just a point and injuries limited Musty to just 53 games. Nick Lardis of the Hamilton Bulldogs made a late season push to finish third. Max Namestnikov has been on fire since being acquired by the Guelph Storm and his late season push left him just behind Luca Pinelli of the Ottawa 67’s.

No defenceman finished in the top 10 in scoring this season but Hunter Brzustewicz of the Kitchener Rangers was right there and led the blue liners in this draft class with 57 points. He also led the draft class in powerplay assists.

As to be expected, the Ottawa 67’s dominated the plus/minus category.

Here’s a look at the leaders in various categories. As always, we take great care in gathering stats but you should always refer to the OHL website for official stats.

Points Leaders
Player	Team	GP	G	A	Pts
Colby Barlow	Owen Sound Attack	59	46	33	79
Quentin Musty	Sudbury Wolves	53	26	52	78
Nick Lardis	Hamilton Bulldogs	69	37	28	65
Luca Pinelli	Ottawa 67’s	67	29	34	63
Max Namestnikov	Guelph Storm	65	39	22	61
Beau Jelsma	Barrie Colts	67	31	30	61
Coulson Pitre	Flint Firebirds	59	25	35	60
Carson Rehkopf	Kitchener Rangers	68	30	29	59
Calum Ritchie	Oshawa Generals	59	24	35	59
Denver Barkey	London Knights	61	22	37	59
Goal Scoring Leaders
Player	Team		GP	G	GPG
Colby Barlow	Owen Sound Attack		59	46	0.78
Max Namestnikov	Guelph Storm		65	39	0.60
Nick Lardis	Hamilton Bulldogs		69	37	0.54
Brady Stonehouse	Ottawa 67’s		68	37	0.54
Beau Jelsma	Barrie Colts		67	31	0.46
Carson Rehkopf	Kitchener Rangers		68	30	0.44
Dalyn Wakely	North Bay Battalion		66	30	0.45
Carey Terrance	Erie Otters		67	30	0.45
Luca Pinelli	Ottawa 67’s		67	29	0.43
Zakary Lavoie	Niagara IceDogs		69	29	0.42
Assist Leaders
Player	Team		GP	A	APG
Quentin Musty	Sudbury Wolves		53	52	0.98
Hunter Brzustewicz	Kitchener Rangers		68	51	0.75
Tristan Bertucci	Flint Firebirds		63	39	0.62
Patrick Thomas	Hamilton Bulldogs		66	39	0.59
Dylan Roobroeck	Oshawa Generals		68	38	0.56
Denver Barkey	London Knights		61	37	0.61
Beau Akey	Barrie Colts		66	36	0.55
Rodwin Dionicio	Windsor Spitfires		50	35	0.70
Coulson Pitre	Flint Firebirds		59	35	0.59
Calum Ritchie	Oshawa Generals		59	35	0.59
Defencemen Point Leaders
Player	Team	GP	G	A	Pts
Hunter Brzustewicz	Kitchener Rangers	68	6	51	57
Rodwin Dionicio	Windsor Spitfires	50	15	35	50
Tristan Bertucci	Flint Firebirds	63	11	39	50
Beau Akey	Barrie Colts	66	11	36	47
Oliver Bonk	London Knights	67	10	30	40
Spencer Sova	Erie Otters	68	16	23	39
Matthew Mania	Sudbury Wolves	67	10	28	38
Chas Sharpe	Mississauga Steelheads	64	5	26	31
Powerplay Goals
Player	Team			GP	PPG
Carson Rehkopf	Kitchener Rangers			68	16
Colby Barlow	Owen Sound Attack			59	13
Carey Terrance	Erie Otters			67	13
Max Namestnikov	Guelph Storm			65	12
Brady Stonehouse	Ottawa 67’s			68	11
Powerplay Assists
Player	Team			GP	PPA
Hunter Brzustewicz	Kitchener Rangers			68	23
Alex Assadourian	Niagara IceDogs			66	15
Oliver Bonk	London Knights			67	15
Spencer Sova	Erie Otters			68	15
Quentin Musty	Sudbury Wolves			53	14
Plus/Minus Leaders
Player	Team			GP	+/-
Luca Pinelli	Ottawa 67’s			67	+30
Will Gerrior	Ottawa 67’s			68	+28
Brady Stonehouse	Ottawa 67’s			68	+28
Cooper Foster	Ottawa 67’s			63	+26
Matthew Andonovski	Kitchener Rangers			67	+25
Dalyn Wakely	North Bay Battalion			66	+24
Brody Crane	London Knights			68	+23
Ruslan Gazizov	London Knights			56	+22
Matthew Mayich	Ottawa 67’s			64	+22
Wyatt Kennedy	North Bay Battalion			63	+21
Penalty Minutes Leaders
Player	Team		GP	PIM	M/G
Connor Clattenburg	Soo Greyhounds		56	115	2.05
Quinton Burns	Kingston Frontenacs		54	106	1.96
Ryan Humphrey	London Knights		60	92	1.53
Angus MacDonell	Mississauga Steelheads		64	92	1.44
Djibril Toure	Sudbury Wolves		57	91	1.60
Faceoff Leaders (minimum 585 faceoffs)
Player	Team	GP	FOA	FOW	%
Ethan Larmand	Sudbury Wolves	50	607	340	56.0
Pano Fimis	Erie Otters	55	1001	542	54.1
Denver Barkey	London Knights	61	635	343	54.0
Beau Jelsma	Barrie Colts	67	721	384	53.3
Calum Ritchie	Oshawa Generals	59	779	413	53.0
Alex Pharand	Sudbury Wolves	67	585	303	51.8
Brad Gardiner	Ottawa 67’s	68	736	380	51.6
Longest Goal Scoring Streak
Player	Team	From	To	Gms	Goals
Colby Barlow	Owen Sound Attack	11/12	12/4	10	13
Colby Barlow	Owen Sound Attack	12/30	1/17	8	9
Nick Lardis	Hamilton Bulldogs	1/21	2/7	6	7
Longest Assist Streak
Player	Team	From	To	Gms	Assts
Quentin Musty	Sudbury Wolves	11/20	12/28	11	20
Hunter Brzustewicz	Kitchener Rangers	10/1	10/30	10	13
Ryan Abraham	Windsor Spitfires	10/14	10/29	8	14
Longest Point Streak
Player	Team	From	To	Gms	Pts
Quentin Musty	Sudbury Wolves	10/29	12/28	18	35
Colby Barlow	Owen Sound Attack	11/9	12/4	11	21
Nick Lardis	Hamilton Bulldogs	1/13	2/7	10	21
Shots On Goal Leaders
Player	Team			GP	SOG
Colby Barlow	Owen Sound Attack			59	294
Brady Stonehouse	Ottawa 67’s			68	244
Zakary Lavoie	Niagara IceDogs			69	237
Spencer Sova	Erie Otters			68	223
Carey Terrance	Erie Otters			67	214
Goaltenders Leaders – Goals Against Average (minimum 1556 minutes)
Player	Team	GP	Min	GA	Avg
Collin MacKenzie	Ottawa 67’s	30	1567	49	1.88
Joey Costanzo	Windsor Spitfires	40	2158	109	3.03
Charlie Schenkel	Soo Greyhounds	31	1753	102	3.49
Alessio Beglieri	Mississauga Steelheads	38	2118	128	3.63
Corbin Votary	Owen Sound Attack	30	1628	101	3.72
Nathan Day	Flint Firebirds	32	1659	108	3.91
Nolan Lalonde	Erie Otters	41	2211	151	4.10
Jacob Oster	Oshawa Generals	49	2555	179	4.20
Owen Flores	Niagara IceDogs	42	2209	169	4.59
Goaltending Leaders – Save Percentage (minimum 1556 minutes)
Player	Team	GP	SH	SVS	SV%
Collin MacKenzie	Ottawa 67’s	30	682	633	0.928
Joey Costanzo	Windsor Spitfires	40	1099	990	0.901
Charlie Schenkel	Soo Greyhounds	31	958	856	0.894
Owen Flores	Niagara IceDogs	42	1557	1388	0.891
Corbin Votary	Owen Sound Attack	30	862	761	0.883
Nathan Day	Flint Firebirds	32	856	748	0.874
Jacob Oster	Oshawa Generals	49	1406	1227	0.873
Nolan Lalonde	Erie Otters	41	1141	990	0.868
Alessio Beglieri	Mississauga Steelheads	38	964	836	0.867
Goaltending Leaders – Wins
Player	Team	GP	W	L	OL
Joey Costanzo	Windsor Spitfires	40	26	6	2
Collin MacKenzie	Ottawa 67’s	30	21	2	3
Alessio Beglieri	Mississauga Steelheads	38	19	15	3
Zach Bowen	London Knights	26	17	4	0
Nicholas Surzycia	Sarnia Sting	29	17	5	3
Nathan Day	Flint Firebirds	32	17	10	0
Jacob Oster	Oshawa Generals	49	17	23	4
Nate Krawchuk	Sudbury Wolves	25	13	7	1
Brayden Gillespie	Guelph Storm	25	13	6	3
Charlie Robertson	North Bay Battalion	21	12	6	0
Corbin Votary	Owen Sound Attack	30	12	9	4
Goaltending Leaders – Shutouts
Player	Team			GP	SO
Charlie Robertson	North Bay Battalion			21	3
Jacob Oster	Oshawa Generals			49	3
Charlie Schenkel	Soo Greyhounds			31	2
Liam Sztuska	Peterborough Petes			19	1
Marcus Vandenberg	Kitchener Rangers			23	1
Brayden Gillespie	Guelph Storm			25	1
Nate Krawchuk	Sudbury Wolves			25	1
Zach Bowen	London Knights			26	1
Mason Vaccari	Kingston Frontenacs			29	1

Carey Terrance – Erie Otters – Player Profile

Posted on March 25, 2023March 24, 2023 by Dominic Tiano

HT	WT	DOB	POS	SHOOTS	OHL DRAFT	NHLCS	COUNTRY
6’	174 lbs	May 10, 2005	C	L	10^th 2021	50 N A	USA

SEASON	LEAGUE	TEAM	GP	G	A	PTS
2019-2020	GTHL U15	Toronto Titans U15	33	14	14	28
2020-2021	HEO U18	DID NOT PLAY	0	0	0	0
2021-2022	OHL	Erie Otters	62	10	14	24
2022-2023	OHL	Erie Otters	65	30	16	46

Carey Terrance of the Erie Otters. Photo by OHL Images.

At this point I am unsure whether NHL Central Scouting’s ranking of Erie Otters pivot Carey Terrance is fair at 50^th among North American Skaters. I guess I have to wait until their final rankings come out to judge it.

With one weekend remaining in the season, Terrence leads the Otters in goals and points as a 17 year-old. His 30 goals lead Sam Alfano who is second on the squad by 12 and he has double the goals of anyone else. And with the lack of goal scoring on the Otters (third fewest in the OHL as a team), it might explain the almost 2-to-1 ratio of goals to assists.

His best asset may just be his skating as I think he is one of the top 5 skaters in the draft class. He has great take off speed and can create separation with his first couple of steps. But he’s not about going top speed or all out all the time. He reads the play beautifully and will slow it down to create lanes and opportunities for teammates. However, as I mentioned earlier, the finish isn’t always there with his teammates.

Terrance’s other big asset is his shot. He has a quick release and he is deceptive with his release point. He can pick his spots on goaltenders but he can also shoot it with a purpose. What he has in spades is confidence in his ability to shoot the puck so he uses it to his advantage. With 211 shots on goal he only trails defenceman Spencer Sova (221).

Terrance is also very good defensively and don’t let a minus-39 by a 17-year-old on a team that is minus-80 fool you. He understand his positioning, uses his skating to get there and close gaps on the opposition and he plays against the top players including on the penalty kill.

Terrance is still very raw and there will be plenty of growth to his game. As he matures and Erie as a team matures, I expect a big step forward for him. Unfortunately for him it’s not happening in his draft year. And moving forward, maybe as early as next season, someone may want to try him on wing because his game is suited for that.

Oliver Bonk – London Knights – Player Profile

Posted on March 18, 2023 by Dominic Tiano

HT	WT	DOB	POS	SHOOTS	OHL DRAFT	NHLCS	COUNTRY
6’2”	179 lbs	Jan 1, 2005	D	R	26^th 2021	18^th N A	CANADA

SEASON	LEAGUE	TEAM	GP	G	A	PTS
2020-2021	HEO U-18	DID NOT PLAY
2021-20222	GOJHL	St Thomas Stars	32	5	27	32
2021-2022	OHL	London Knights	10	0	3	3
2022-2023	OHL	London Knights	63	10	29	39

Oliver Bonk of the London Knights. Photo by Luke Durda/OHL Images

When you take a peek at public draft rankings around North America, you will find that almost all of them have London Knights Defenceman Oliver Bonk ranked late in the first round or very early in the second round. There is one however that has him in the middle of the third round. NHL Central Scouting has him 18^th among North American skaters on their mid term rankings and by the time you add in the Europeans, you’re looking at a late first.

One thing we know about the 26^th overall pick at the 2021 OHL Priority Selection: he has climbed on every list.

Bonk has the bloodlines. His father Radek Bonk spent 14 seasons in the NHL and played in 969 games collecting 194 goals and 303 assists.

Bonk’s greatest asset is his hockey IQ. He thinks the game at such a high level. First, in the defensive zone his positioning is near perfect. His possesses a very active stick and breaks up plays by anticipating where the puck is going and using that stick to defend. His transition game is still growing but he has the ability to skate out of the zone or utilize his teammates with good passes.

That high hockey IQ is also evident in the offensive zone. He reads and reacts quickly. He his sneaky at getting into the open areas of the ice to make himself available. On the rush, he is willing to jump up into the play and has near perfect timing. He has a good shot from the point and can get it off quickly and find the target more often than not.

Bonk skates really well for a bigger defenceman but if he could add more speed, it would be a bonus. He’s agile enough, is strong on his skates and is a very good backwards skater. While he uses his size well to engage and move players from the front of his net, he can improve on that area when he adds some bulk to his frame.

Bonk has grown into a very good player and continues to be a work in progress. At this point, it’s difficult to say whether his offensive game will translate to the next level but it’s fair to say he can find success in a defensive role if the offence doesn’t come.

But I wouldn’t bet against him.

Quentin Musty – Sudbury Wolves – Player Profile

Posted on March 15, 2023 by Dominic Tiano

HT	WT	DOB	POS	SHOOTS	OHL DRAFT	NHLCS	COUNTRY
6’2”	197	July 6, 2005	LW	L	1^st 2021	11^th N A	USA

SEASON	LEAGUE	TEAM	GP	G	A	PTS
2020-2021	AYHL	New Jersey Avalanche U16	4	4	3	7
2021-2022	OHL	Sudbury Wolves	20	12	19	31
2022-2023	Hlinka/Gretzky	Team USA	4	1	4	5
2022-2023	OHL	Sudbury Wolves	48	23	49	72

Quentin Musty of the Sudbury Wolves. Photo by Luke Durda/OHL Images

Sudbury Wolves’ winger Quentin Musty was the first overall selection of the Wolves at the 2021 Ontario Hockey League Priority Selection. He is ranked 11^th among North American Skaters on NHL Central Scouting’s mid-term rankings.

Musty has the skills set to be, well, the most skilled player in this OHL draft class. He can score. He can shoot. He can be a playmaker. He’s developed into a more physical presence as the season progressed. He has very good vision, patience and an ability to slow the game down if it means opening up lanes. His skating technique is very good and his top speed is sufficient but he lacks first step speed.

We saw Musty’s defensive game improve somewhat as the season progressed. Where he was giving up too many turnovers early in the season, he has limited them lately. The effort to defend was lacking as well earlier in the season and that too has improved.

There are some concerns out there about the defensive part of his game, or the sometimes-lacking aspect of it. There is no questioning his offensive abilities, but are they enough to overcome the defensive shortcomings. Those are legitimate concerns. And I also see some dropping his ranking into the second round of the 2023 Entry Draft.

Whoever drafts Musty is going to have to be patient. As I said, there is skill there but there are also areas of his game that need some work. If they are patient enough and can provide the development he needs, this could be a superb pick – if he indeed drops in the draft.

Luca Pinelli – Ottawa 67’s – Player Profile

Posted on March 11, 2023 by Dominic Tiano

HT	WT	DOB	POS	SHOOTS	OHL DRAFT	NHLCS	COUNTRY
5’9	165	Apr 5, 2005	LW	L	28^th 2021	49^th N A	CANADA

SEASON	LEAGUE	TEAM	GP	G	A	PTS
2020-2021		DID NOT PLAY
2021-2022	OHL	Ottawa 67’s	59	14	22	36
2022-2023	OHL	Ottawa 67’s	60	23	33	59

Luca Pinelli of the Ottawa 67’s. Photo by OHL Images.

Ottawa 67’s winger Luca Pinelli is the younger brother of Kitchener Rangers Francesco Pinelli. What the younger sibling lacks in size (Francesco has 4 inches on him) he makes up with heart. In his draft year, he’s already matched his older brother’s offensive output, who was drafted 42^nd overall by the Los Angeles Kings at the 2021 NHL Entry Draft.

Pinelli works hard at both ends of the ice. His defensive game – reading, understanding and coverage are all well accomplished. He’s also very good at transitioning to offence. Playing on the league’s best team has helped, along with a boost in confidence.

Pinelli also has some excellent hockey IQ. He reads and reacts quickly in the offensive zone. Despite his size, he has a willingness to get in on the forecheck and uses brains over brawn to come up with the puck. Along with some excellent playmaking skills, Pinelli also has a very good shot. At this level, it’s enough to beat goaltenders.

Along with his size, another issue Pinelli needs to overcome is the lack of explosiveness in his skating. And when you are on the small side like he is, you want to at least have that breakaway speed to skate away from the opposition. If he can add a speed element to his game, then it would give him all the tools to be a play driver.

There’s no doubt in my mind Pinelli will get drafted, and maybe the Kings will bring the brothers together. After all, they like drafting from the OHL. But they will have to work with him and be patient. And he’s going to have to be willing to put the work in.

Hunter Brzustewicz – Kitchener Rangers – Player Profile

Posted on March 5, 2023March 6, 2023 by Dominic Tiano

HT	WT	DOB	POS	SHOOTS	OHL DRAFT	NHLCS	COUNTRY
6’	188	11-29-04	D	R	69^th 2020	33^rd N A	USA

SEASON	LEAGUE	TEAM	GP	G	A	PTS
2021-2022	USDP	USNT U018	55	2	18	20
2021-2022	USHL	USNTDP	25	0	9	9
2021-2022	WJC-U18	Team USA	5	0	2	2
2022-2023	OHL	Kitchener Rangers	58	5	44	49

Hunter Brzustewicz of the Kitchener Rangers. Photo by Natalie Shaver/OHL Images

The thing that impresses me about Kitchener Rangers Defenceman Hunter Brzustewicz is that no matter the situation, he always appears to be calm out there even under pressure. In the defensive zone, he makes quick accurate passes to transition into offence. He’s not really one to take it up the ice himself but he has that escape ability in him.

His skating technique is very good as his mobility. His east-west movement is excellent. His edgework is excellent. If there is one thing, I hoped he would add its more speed. At 6’ he could be a little quicker.

Brzustewicz is a highly intelligent player who process what’s happening quickly. His lateral movement is so good that at the offensive blueline he moves to open up lanes and then fines his teammates for perfect tape-to-tape passes.

Defensively, he can keep gaps tight. I know I am repeating myself, but his lateral movement enables him to force players to the outside. However, he can be overwhelmed in the physicality department and he’s going to have to put some work in to get stronger and to deal with that aspect of the game.

At this point, I should have a good idea on where I would rank him, but I don’t – it will likely be in the 10-20 range among OHL players. There is a lot to like about his game and there seems to be some potential there. I’m hoping he has a good showing in the playoffs where he will face even more pressure.

OHL Writers Draft Eligible Player of the Month: February

Posted on March 3, 2023 by Dominic Tiano

Draft Eligible Forward of the Month: Nick Lardis – Hamilton Bulldogs

What a month of February it was for Lardis. In 12 games he notched 10 goals and 11 assists. He scored in all but 4 games, had 2 multi goal games and was held pointless just twice during the month. He fired a whopping 51 shots on goal for a 19.6 shooting percentage and took no penalties.

Also considered were Dylan Roobroeck of the Oshawa Generals who had 7 goals and 10 assists in 13 games and Zakary Lavoie of the Niagara IceDogs who notched 7 goals and 10 assists in 14 games.

Draft Eligible Defenceman of the Month: Rodwin Dionicio – Windsor Spitfires

Dionicio gets the nod on back-to-back months from us here. He has been on a tear since the Spitfires acquired him at the trade deadline. He appeared in 12 games in the month of February scoring 4 goals in consecutive games from February 5 through February 11. He also added 12 assists in those 12 games. He was held off the scoreboard in just 4 games. He finished the month with a plus-7 and complied 22 minutes in penalties.

Also considered were Tristan Bertucci of the Flint Firebirds who had 7 goals and 8 assists in 12 games and Hunter Brzustewicz of the Kitchener Rangers who scored twice and assists on 11 others in 12 games.

Draft Eligible Goaltender of the Month: Tristan Malboeuf – Hamilton Bulldogs

Malboeuf appeared in 7 games during the month of February and posted a 4-1-0-0 record. He stopped 163 of the 175 shots he faced for a save-percentage of .931 and included a 40 save shutout on February 20 against the Kitchener Rangers.

Also considered was Collin MacKenzie of the Ottawa 67’s who appeared in 7 games and stopped 133 of 140 shots for a save-percentage of .950. He went 5-0-1-0 on the month.

Our monthly choices were:

Forwards

Nick Lardis – Hamilton Bulldogs – February

Colby Barlow – Owen Sound Attack – January

Quentin Musty – Sudbury Wolves – December

Quentin Musty – Sudbury Wolves – November

Ryan Abraham – Windsor Spitfires – October

Defencemen

Rodwin Dionicio – Windsor Spitfires – February

Rodwin Dionicio – Windsor Spitfires – January

Beau Akey – Sudbury Wolves – December

Brody Crane – London Knights – November

Hunter Brzustewicz – Kitchener Rangers – October

Goaltenders

Tristan Malboeuf – Hamilton Bulldogs – February

Jacob Oster – Oshawa Generals – January

Joey Costanzo – Windsor Spitfires – December

Andrew Oke – Saginaw Spirit – November

Collin MacKenzie – Ottawa 67’s – October

OHL’s Draft Eligible Statistical Leaders: February

Posted on March 2, 2023 by Dominic Tiano

It’s March and we are into the final stretch of the Ontario Hockey League season so it’s time to take a look at the statistical leaders among players eligible for the 2023 National Hockey League Entry Draft.

Colby Barlow of the Owen Sound Attack continues to lead the way with 71 points in 52 games. He’s put some distance between himself and Quentin Musty of the Sudbury Wolves, but it was an injury to Musty that had a lot to do with that. Calum Ritchie of the Oshawa Generals has moved into the number 3 spot after a slow start for him.

On defence, Hunter Brzustewicz of the Kitchener Rangers sits at the top followed by Beau Akey of the Barrie Wolves. Rodwin Dionicio of the Windsor Spitfires continues his ascent after being traded at the deadline to the Spitfires.

Manning the nets, Collin MacKenzie of the Ottawa 67’s has a comfortable lead in both goals-against-average and save-percentage.

Here’s a look at the leader board. As always, we take great care in compiling stats. But always refer to the OHL website for official stats.

Points Leaders
Player	Team	GP	G	A	Pts
Colby Barlow	Owen Sound Attack	52	41	30	71
Quentin Musty	Sudbury Wolves	42	17	44	61
Calum Ritchie	Oshawa Generals	56	24	34	58
Luca Pinelli	Ottawa 67’s	56	24	32	56
Denver Barkey	London Knights	56	20	35	55
Nick Lardis	Hamilton Bulldogs	58	31	23	54
Beau Jelsma	Barrie Colts	57	27	23	50
Max Namestnikov	Guelph Storm	55	27	22	49
Coulson Pitre	Flint Firebirds	49	21	28	49
Patrick Thomas	Hamilton Bulldogs	55	16	33	49
Goal Scoring Leaders
Player	Team		GP	G	GPG
Colby Barlow	Owen Sound Attack		52	41	0.79
Nick Lardis	Hamilton Bulldogs		58	31	0.53
Brady Stonehouse	Ottawa 67’s		57	30	0.53
Beau Jelsma	Barrie Colts		57	27	0.47
Max Namestnikov	Guelph Storm		55	27	0.49
Dalyn Wakely	North Bay Battalion		56	27	0.48
Carey Terrance	Erie Otters		55	26	0.47
Calum Ritchie	Oshawa Generals		56	24	0.43
Luca Pinelli	Ottawa 67’s		56	24	0.43
Carson Rehkopf	Kitchener Rangers		55	24	0.44
Assist Leaders
Player	Team		GP	A	APG
Quentin Musty	Sudbury Wolves		42	44	1.05
Hunter Brzustewicz	Kitchener Rangers		55	41	0.75
Denver Barkey	London Knights		56	35	0.63
Calum Ritchie	Oshawa Generals		56	34	0.61
Tristan Bertucci	Flint Firebirds		54	33	0.61
Patrick Thomas	Hamilton Bulldogs		55	33	0.60
Beau Akey	Barrie Colts		55	32	0.58
Luca Pinelli	Ottawa 67’s		56	32	0.57
Pano Fimis	Erie Otters		51	30	0.59
Colby Barlow	Owen Sound Attack		52	30	0.58
Defencemen Point Leaders
Player	Team	GP	G	A	Pts
Hunter Brzustewicz	Kitchener Rangers	55	5	41	46
Beau Akey	Barrie Colts	55	10	32	42
Rodwin Dionicio	Windsor Spitfires	40	10	26	36
Spencer Sova	Erie Otters	56	15	19	34
Oliver Bonk	London Knights	56	10	24	34
Luca D’Amato	Oshawa Generals	59	5	27	32
Chas Sharpe	Mississauga Steelheads	53	5	25	30
Matthew Mania	Sudbury Wolves	55	7	22	29
Plus/Minus Leaders
Player	Team			GP	+/-
Luca D’Amato	Oshawa Generals			59	+36
Alec Leonard	London Knights			53	+26
Luca Pinelli	Ottawa 67’s			56	+26
Ruslan Gazizov	London Knights			45	+23
Brody Crane	London Knights			57	+23
Nicholas DeAngelis	Windsor Spitfires			57	+22
Brady Stonehouse	Ottawa 67’s			57	+22
Cooper Foster	Ottawa 67’s			52	+21
Dalyn Wakely	North Bay Battalion			56	+19
Colby Barlow	Owen Sound Attack			52	+18
Penalty Minutes Leaders
Player	Team		GP	PIM	M/G
Connor Clattenburg	Soo Greyhounds		46	99	2.15
Quinton Burns	Kingston Frontenacs		42	92	2.19
Djibril Toure	Sudbury Wolves		51	87	1.71
Ryan Humphrey	London Knights		49	78	1.59
Angus MacDonell	Mississauga Steelheads		54	78	1.44
Matthew Andonovski	Kitchener Rangers		54	77	1.43
Alec Leonard	London Knights		53	74	1.40
Faceoff Leaders (minimum 300 faceoffs)
Player	Team	GP	FOA	FOW	%
Ethan Larmand	Sudbury Wolves	46	586	329	56.1
Ethan Hay	Flint Firebirds	54	784	423	54.0
Denver Barkey	London Knights	56	622	336	54.0
Pano Fimis	Erie Otters	51	941	505	53.7
Easton Wainwright	Sarnia Sting	56	331	176	53.2
Calum Ritchie	Oshawa Generals	56	759	402	53.0
Alex Pharand	Sudbury Wolves	56	483	256	53.0
Beau Jelsma	Barrie Colts	57	589	306	52.0
Michael Podolioukh	Niagara Ice Dogs	49	604	311	51.5
Brad Gardiner	Ottawa 67’s	57	608	311	51.2

Goaltenders Leaders – Goals Against Average
Player	Team	GP	Min	GA	Avg
Collin MacKenzie	Ottawa 67’s	22	1134	36	1.90
Zach Bowen	London Knights	21	1136	53	2.80
Nate Krawchuk	Sudbury Wolves	20	1035	54	3.13
Joey Costanzo	Windsor Spitfires	34	1827	96	3.15
Brayden Gillespie	Guelph Storm	19	1091	59	3.24
Goaltending Leaders – Save Percentage
Player	Team	GP	SH	SVS	SV%
Collin MacKenzie	Ottawa 67’s	22	503	467	0.928
Zach Bowen	London Knights	21	565	512	0.906
Mason Vaccari	Kingston Frontenacs	22	687	619	0.901
Joey Costanzo	Windsor Spitfires	34	934	838	0.897
Nate Krawchuk	Sudbury Wolves	20	522	468	0.897

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