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NHL draft picks (and future picks) taking charge in the OHL |
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There were four games on the OHL docket on Thursday night and several NHL draft picks skated into the spotlight and took charge for their respective teams.
At the cozy comfines of Jack Gatecliff Arena in St. Catherines, Ontario (capacity 3,145), the Niagara Ice Dogs lost their first home game of the season falling 4-3 to the Ottawa 67's. Blueliner Cody Ceci (Ottawa 1st round, 2012) and potential 1st round draft pick in 2013 forward Sean Monahan each had two helpers on the evening to lead the 67's offensive attack. Niagara's Ryan Strome (NYI 1st round selection in 2011) was held to one assist on the evening and currently sits in a tie for 7th in league scoring with 11 points in his first 9 games.
Meanwhile, the game of the night took place in Windsor as the West Division Soo Greyhounds faced the Windsor Spitfires. The Spitifes offense, which has been struggling thus far early in the season, propelled the Spits to a 7-4 victory and a tie atop the West Division alongside the Greyhounds. Michael Clarke (Colorado 5th round, 2012) paced the offense for Windsor with a four point night, including two empty-net goals to seal the victory. Brady Vail (Montreal 4th round, 2012) and potential 2013 first-round pick Kerby Rychel each had a goal and an assist on the evening. The star for the Greyhounds on this evening in a losing effort was young defenseman Darnell Nurse. Slated to be a top selection in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft and sometimes compared to a young Chris Pronger, Nurse had a goal and two assists on the evening as he thrived under the extra ice-time provided to him given the absence of veterans Ryan Sproul (Detroit 2nd round, 2011) and Colin Miller (L.A. Kings 5th round, 2012).
In Peterborough, 16 year-old Spencer Watson continues to turn heads in his debut OHL season as the offensively gifted played had 3 assists on the night to lead his Kingston Frontenacs to a 4-3 victory over the Peterborough Petes. Watson, now has 8 points in his first 7 OHL games as a 16 year-old and is not draft eligible until the 2014 NHL Entry Draft.
Lastly, the Barrie Colts continued their strong early season start under head coach Dale Hawerchuk with a solid 8-5 home victory over the Saginaw Spirit. The star on this evening was Andreas Athanasiou (Detroit 4th round, 2012) who had a hat-trick on the evening to lead the Colts. Unfortunately for the Red Wings, not all of their prospects had a great game as goaltender Jake Paterson (Detroit 3rd round, 2012) was pulled from the Saginaw goal after allowing 4 goals on only 9 shots.
The OHL action continues this evening with seven contests on the schedule including two premium matchups involving the Plymouth Whalers in London to face the Knights, while Barrie travels to Oshawa to play the red-hot Generals.
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