Notable Canadian junior performers this week:
Morgan Frost (C), Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OHL)
2017 First Round Pick, 27th overall
Frost’s postseason continues past the first round as they down Maksim Sushko and Owen Sound four games to one. Frost finished with nine points (3 G, 6 A) in five games. He is just two points off the league-lead in the postseason. Sault Ste. Marie will face the Saginaw Spirit in the next round.
Isaac Ratcliffe (LW), Guelph Storm (OHL)
2017 Second Round Pick, 35th overall
Ratcliffe and Guelph made quick work of the Kitchener Rangers, sweeping the four game series. Ratcliffe ended up with six points (2 G, 4 A) in the series. He’ll square off against the London Knights in the second round.
Matthew Strome (LW), Hamilton Bulldogs (OHL)
2017 Fourth Round Pick, 106th overall
Strome and Hamilton didn’t fare any better at home against Ottawa, getting swept in the four game series. Strome finished his last OHL playoffs with four points (2 G, 2 A) in four games. Following the defeat, it was announced that he will be joining the Lehigh Valley Phantoms for the remainder of their season.
Maksim Sushko (RW), Owen Sound Attack (OHL)
2017 Fourth Round Pick, 107th overall
Sushko’s OHL career also comes to an end, falling to Sault St. Marie. He scored four points (2 G, 2 A) in five games. No word yet if/when he will be joining the Phantoms yet.
Wyatte Wylie (D), Everett Silvertips (WHL)
2018 Fifth Round Pick, 127th overall
Everett took down Tri-City in the first round of the playoffs four games to one. Wylie contributed three points (all assists) in the five game series. Everett will move on to face the Spokane Chiefs in the second round starting Saturday.
Yegor Zamula (D), Calgary Hitmen (WHL)
Undrafted Free Agent
- 3/26 – 1 assist, 3 shots
- 3/28 – 1 assist, 3 shots
- 3/30 – 1 assist, 1 shot, 2 PIM
- 3/31 – 0 shots, 2 PIM/
Calgary has played a grueling series against Lethbridge that won’t be settled until Game Seven on Tuesday (4/2) evening. Zamula has put up four assists through six games. The winner will go on to play the Edmonton Oil Kings.
Notable European performers this week
Linus Högberg (D), Växjö Lakers HC (SHL)
2016 Fifth Round Pick, 139th overall
Vaxjo was officially eliminated last week after seven playoff games. Hogberg finished with one assist.
David Bernhardt (D), Växjö Lakers HC (SHL)
2016 Seventh Round Pick, 199th overall
As mentioned above, Bernhardt’s postseason has ended. He wound up with one assist through seven games. There hasn’t been any word if either Bernhardt or Hogberg will or won’t move stateside for the 2019-20 season.
Felix Sandström (G), HV71 (SHL)
2015 Third Round Pick, 70th overall
Sandstrom was feeling better and dressed for this week’s games, but did not play. HV71 advanced to the next round of the playoffs and will be facing off against Färjestad.
Notable collegiate performers this week
Tanner Laczynski (C/W), Ohio State University
2016 Sixth Round Pick, 169th overall
- 3/29 – 1 shot/
OSU was eliminated from the NCAA Tournament on Friday when they were defeated by Denver 2-0. Laczynski finishes his junior season with 30 points (10 G, 20 A) in 27 games. It was a season plagued by nagging injuries, but still wound up putting up impressive numbers. With Joel Farabee signing his entry-level contract with the Flyers, we now wait to see if Laczynski follows suit.
Jay O’Brien (C), Providence College
2018 First Round Pick, 19th overall
O’Brien remains out with an upper-body injury, but saw his Providence Friars defeat Minnesota State (6-3) and Cornell (4-0) this weekend. They’ll play Minnesota-Duluth in the Frozen Four on April 11th to determine who will move on to the National Championship.
Noah Cates (LW), University of Minnesota-Duluth
2017 Fifth Round Pick, 137th overall
Cates hasn’t exactly lit it up during conference and tournament play, but his team has advanced to the Frozen Four to square off against Providence on April 11th. Cates has 22 points (9 G, 13 A) in 38 games for his freshman season.
