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CHL

QMJHL

 

Cory Urquhart- picking up where he left off in last seasons playoffs, Urquhart is already one of the top goal scorers in the league, even though he missed two games while at the Habs camp. In the six games he’s played, he’s picked up seven goals, two assists, eight penalty minutes, while being a -2. 6-7-2-9 8 -2 Cory plays on the top line for PEI, and can play in all situations, which should give him a good amount of ice time. Does need some work on his face-off abilities.

 

Michael Lambert- Not known for being a fan favorite for his lack of effort and defensive game, a big season by Lambert and all will be forgiven, as the Rocket will need his offensive production, if they are to make a serious bid for the playoffs. So far in six games, he’s picked up three goals, four assists, eight penalty minutes, while being a -1. 6-3-4-7 8 -1 Lambert can play both center and left wing, but with the depth at center for the Rocket, Michael will mostly be used on the 1^st line left wing.

 

Maxim Lapierre- In his 2^nd season, Lapierre will be looking for an increased role on the team, but will need to work on his offensive game to warrant increased ice time. So far in six games, he has picked up one goal, three assists, 13 penalty minutes, while being a -2. 6-1-3-4 13 -1 Known for playing a chippy game and being a pest to opposing teams, Lapierre will have a few years to work on his offensive game, while learning much under coach Alain Vigneault. Has been solid in the face-off circle so far, visit this website for the latest info.

 

Jimmy Bonneau- Drafted for his fighting abilities after only one year of fighting, Bonneau has already made a name for himself as one of the top fighters in the Quebec league. In eight games, he has picked up 1 goal, 23 penalty minutes, while being Even on the ice. 8-1-0-1 23 0 Bonneau recently had a major brawl where he needed stitches over his eye and has been told not to fight for a few days till it heels. Bonneau may be a very good fighter, but he will need to show a lot more if he is to get increased ice time for the Rocket.

 

Danny Stewart- Playing on a line with the young phnom Sidney Crosby, Stewart is off to a very impressive start. He is a center that will play on the left wing since the team has an impressive 1-2 punch down the middle. In eight games so far, he’s picked up four goals, nine assists, 18 penalty minutes, while being a +4. 8-4-9-13 18 +4 Stewart will play mostly on the 2^nd line left wing, and on the power play. Needs to play a smarter game, not taking unnecessary penalties and getting stronger in his own end.

 

OHL

Corey Locke- After being named the CHL player of the year, Locke is back in action for the Ottawa 67’s, but the team is not as strong as last season, and Locke will be without last years wingers Foy and Shepard. So far he’s continued where he left off, in five games he has six goals, six assists, 4 penalty minutes, while being a +1. 5-6-6-12 4 +1 Locke is the main weapon in Ottawa, and opposing teams know this, so he will under heavy pressure from other teams defense.

 

Mark Flood- With the loss of some key players this season, Flood will be looked for to play a major role on the Pete’s top defensive pairing. He will play in all situations, but is looked to lead the power play especially. So far in three games, he’s picked up one goal, two assists, two penalty minutes, while being a -2. 3-1-2-3 2 -2

 

Andre Deveaux- The big man stand at around 6’5 220, was traded last season to Owen Sound where he seems to have found a new home. After have a tough year in his own end, Deveaux improved in play in both ends of the rink. So far in five games, he’s picked up three goals, one assist, 10 penalty minutes, while being an impressive +3. 5-3-1-4 10 +3. Deveaux needs to improve his play in his own end, while learning to use his size to his advantage and bringing it every night. After being a horrid -22 last year, he’s off to a good start, but he will need to work hard every night if he hopes to attract attention from the Habs management, as he is in need of a contract by June 1^st. Owen Sound seems to have improved a great deal recently, and this should help Deveaux play an important role in all situations, as he is one of the top face-off men on the team, and has already won some very important late game face-off.

 

NCAA

Ryan O’Byrne- Will be starting his season at Cornell. Their season starts on October 31^st.

 

Ryan Glenn- Will be finishing his final season at St. Lawrence. Their season starts on October 3^rd.

 

Scott Selig- Will also be in his final season at Northeastern. Their season starts on October 11^th.

 

Euro Leagues

 

RSL

Andrei Kastsitsyn- Not having the kind of start fans would hope for, since he has seen little action so far. Kastisitsyn has played on two games so far, getting one assist on the game winning goal. It appears he has since been sent down to the farm club CSKA-2 where he picked up one goal and one assist so far. Hopefully more news will be available as the season goes on.

 

Alex Buturlin- Recently returned from injury, after being named to the Russian Senior National Team. A minor groin injury kept him out of the lineup for Lada, but he is back and in two games, has picked up three assists and two penalty minutes. 2-0-3-3 2 Once again he should be playing on the top line and in all situations which should give him a good amount of ice time.

 

Konstantin Korneev- After switching to a new team over the summer, Korneev joins AK Bars a team that has a big payroll and some good talent on defense. Korneev will not see the same amount of icetime he saw last season, as his team last year was very weak, thus they were moved to the High league. So far in six games, he has 0 points and 2 penalty minutes. Korneev did start the year on the top line due to injury for their top defensemen.

 

Finland

Joni Puurula- After leading his team to a bronze in last years playoffs, the young goalies season has not started in a good way. His team, HPK has brought in a veteran North American goalie, Rob Tallas, who is playing very well so far. Since being named the backup, Puurula has not gotten any starts, although he was in nets for a big game against one of the top teams in the SM-liiga. But, on the very first save of the game, he was injured as he twisted his ankle. Could miss a few weeks.

 

Oskari Korpikari- The young defensemen seems to have worked his way into the lineup of Karpat, playing on the 3^rd pairing. In six games so far, he has picked up one assist, 2 penalty minutes, while being a +1. 6-0-1-1 2 +1 Getting to play as a regular in a mens league should be a great experience for him, along with playing for Team Finland in the U-20 tournament.

 

Sweden

Johan Eneqvist- Decided to leave the SEL as his team Leksand isn’t known for developing young players, so he moved down to the tier-2 league. With his new team Hammerby, they are one of the top teams in the league, and Eneqvist will go from playing 4^th line limited ice time, to top line minutes. So far he is off to a very good start, as he leads his team in scoring. In four games he has picked up 4 goals, one assist, two penalty minutes, while being a +4. 4-4-1-5 2 +4 What’s impressive is that two of his four goals have been game winners.

 

Christopher Heino-Lindberg- Was injured over the summer, and wasn’t expected back till November, but he has made a full recovery and is back in action. Lindberg has been loaned to Vallentuna who are considered a very weak team that get outshot often. So far it’s been tough for the young net minder, as he hasn’t won a game yet, but he has gotten his goals against down to 4.18 (was 6.82) while putting up an impressive save % of 90.57. Hope he doesn’t mind seeing a lot of rubber, because in only four games he’s played, he’s faced an amazing 159 shots on goal with only 15 finding their way past him. He’s in for a long season.

 

Czech

Tomas Linhart- After playing one season in the OHL, Linhart was released from the London Knights, so he has gone back to his homeland to play in the Czech men’s league. He has spent time in between two leagues, play two games in what appears to be the mens league, where he is a +2. He has also played in the junior league I believe (I can’t read Czech) where he has played four games, picking up one assist so far.

 

Slovak

Jaroslav Halak- Is off to a good start for his team, where he has won all five of his starts. So far he has an impressive 94.08 save percentage, and a 2.23 goals against average, while getting one shutout and facing 169 shots letting only 10 past him.