Should Stamkos Make Olympic Team?

Last year I wrote something asking if Jonathan Toews should get Olympic team consideration. With his versatility and return from injury, I can't see him not being named to the team.

So now let's consider another young star. Steven Stamkos. With a terrific goal tonight where he put away a backhand while falling down,

he now has 14 goals and 22 points, tying him for 15th in league scoring, and 10th among Canadian skaters. He's red hot right now with 11 goals and 4 helpers in his last 13 games.

I know your first question will be, who does Stamkos replace if he's going to play centre? Well noone, but he doesn't have to play down the middle. He's smart, fast, and skilled. I'm not saying he should be a lock for the team, but Canada can't ignore young stars like they did in 2006 when Sidney Crosby was left off the squad.

Stamkos was one of the names brought up quite a bit this summer when I was at the Olympic orientation camp. Steve Yzerman was apparently watching him play the Ducks tonight and has to be impressed with the start. At the very least the sophomore deserves to make the taxi squad, if it exists this season.

What do you think?

Meet Team OHL-International

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As the Subway Super Series moves from the QMJHL in OHL territory, the touring Russians carry a 0-2 record and have been out shot 99-48 and outscored 12-4. Game 3 of the Series goes tonight in Barrie, Ontario with the Russians having traveled from Shawinigan after their game against the QMJHL last night.

Last week I made the argument that the event should feature the Canadian CHLers playing against their European and American counterparts from the same league. You can find my reasons for feeling that way by clicking HERE. Prior to the two games against the QMJHL I released the roster of the team I would have preferred to see play. You can see the make up of Team Q-International HERE.

Following suit, here is the roster for Team OHL-International that I wish we were seeing play tonight and Monday instead of the extremely disadvantaged Russians...

Goalies

WHile it was slim pickings in the QMJHL for American or Euro goalies, that's not the case with the OHL. By my count there are 9 goalies with the required passport to play for my team and I finally narrowed it down to a quartet, they can all play a period and a half.

Brandon Maxwell of the Kitchener Rangers was a 6th round pick of the Colorado Avalanche last June. In 13 games with the Rangers this year he has a .916 save percentage and a 3.04 GAA. I'd have him sharing the Barrie game (tonight) with German Philipp Grubauer who plays for the Belleville Bulls. Grubauer was recently recognized as one of the top goalies available in 2010. Thus far he's played in 21 games for the Bulls and boasts a .912 save percentage and .327 GAA.

In the other game I would send out London Knights goalie Michael Houser, eligible for the 2010 draft by a mere two days. Houser has the third best GAA in the OHL at 2.48 but he's only appeared in 8 games. Still, his .917 save percentage suggests he's on the same pace as most of the top starters in the league. His partner on Monday night would be Robin Lehner (pictured), the Swede was taken in the 2nd by the Ottawa Senators last June. Lehner plays for the Soo Greyhounds and is in the OHL top 10 for both save percentage and GAA.

Defence

There are a few obvious choices for the blueline starting with 2010 marquee prospect Cam Fowler. The American plays for the powerful Windsor Spitfires and leads the OHL in scoring by defencemen with 29 points in 25 games. Fowler (pictured below) is listed a 6'2 and 190 lbs and is a surefire top 5 pick this June.

2009 guest blogger John Moore made the move from the USHL to the OHL this summer and now plays for the Kitchener Rangers. After arriving late from Columbus Blue Jackets camp (1st round pick, 2009) Moore finally got into action and has collected 12 points in 19 games.

Adam Comrie was a 2008 selection of the Florida Panthers. The Virginia born blueliners is now a member of the Guelph Storm after two seasons in Saginaw. HIs 17 points in 22 games with the Storm have Comrie ranked 10th in D-men scoring in the league this year. At 6'4 and 213 lbs, Comrie is definitely an interesting player to watch for in the future.

Another 2008 draftee is Michal Jordan of the Plymouth Whalers. Carolina chose the Czech native in the 4th round that year and he responded by nearly doubling his statistical output to a total of 42 points last season. Jordan has international experience with his country's junior team and even made my proposed team last year in this same exercise.

Undrafted Brian Lashoff gets a nod here as a 6'3, 204 lb two-way defender. Lashoff plays for the Kingston Frontenacs but also appeared in 6 AHL games last year with the Grand Rapids Griffins (DET) where he managed to pick up 5 points. Lashoff has 10 points so far this year with the Frontenacs.

Another undrafted player that caught my eye is Tony DeHart of the Oshawa Generals. With 21 points in 22 games, DeHart has already almost equaled his output from all 67 games last season. He is in his fourth OHL campaign but his first two years in London saw him play sparingly and contribute just 9 points over 72 games. The Missouri product easily eclipse that mark last year playing with the Generals and is well on his way to having a banner season.

The first of my two spares on my team are going to be Sarnia Sting defender Joe Rogalski, a late '91 born player from Lancaster, New York who has 14 points in 23 games this year. The second is native Pennsylvanian Tyler Hostetter who plays in his home State for the Erie Otters. Hostetter has is a bit undersized, went undrafted last year but has 14 points in 20 games this season for the Otters.

Left Wing

As we often see with "All-Star" teams, I'm going to have excess centers where one or two will have to move to the wing. For that reason, I only have 3 natural left wingers on my list. The first is Mississauga's Swedish import William Wallen. The tiny forward has 20 points, just two back of his total from last year when he was a rookie with the Majors. He's 5'8 and 170 lbs so I don't know how much of a pro future he has... just another reason why an event like I'm proposing is an interesting one for these types of players.

Rookie Jeremy Morin of the Kitchener Rangers is someone most people will recognize as a 2nd round pick of the Atlanta Thrashers at last June's NHL draft. Morin has an impressive 27 points in 21 games, third best on the strong Kitchener team. The New York product was a standout on the US-NTDP for the past two years.

A.J. Jenks was a 2008 draft pick of the Florida Panthers. The forward is now playing in his fourth season as a member of the Plymouth Whalers in his home State of Michigan. Jenks has had back-to-back 20 goals campaigns and is on pace to make it a third. The 6'2, 200 lb power forward is projected to be a solid checker at the pro level.

Right Wing

A recent guest on The Pipeline Show, Austin Watson is definitely a player of interest of for the 2010 NHL draft. He's only 9th in scoring on his own team but when that club is the Windsor Spitfires... you have to realize that 17 points is still pretty darn good.

NCAA deserter Kenny Ryan found his way North to the Spitfires after leaving Boston College on the eve of their regular season. The Toronto Maple Leafs chose Ryan in the 2nd round in the 2009 draft and so far this year he has compiled 11 points in 12 contests.

Brampton forward Philip Lane is a 2010 eligible rookie who makes my proposed roster. The Rochester, NY native has 11 points for the Battalion so far this year after 23 games played.

rounding out the right side is another Kitchener player in Gabriel Landeskog. The Swede comes recommended by OHL Prospects writer Brock Otten who suggests the 6'1, 200lb forward was overlooked by me on my initial roster I sent his way. Landeskog has 12 points in 22 games for the Rangers. As a late '92, Landeskog isn't NHL draft eligible until 2011.

Center

So with only 7 wingers on my roster, I'll add five centers and a couple of spares who also happen to be middlemen on their OHL club team. First off are two players who will actually be taking part in the real life Subway Super Series - Russians Alex Burmistrov and Ivan Telegin.


Burmistrov (pictured) is third in scoring for the Barrie Colts with 27 points but has quickly made a name for himself with scouts for the 2010 NHL draft. The dynamic pivot has a team high 18 assists to go with his 9 goals. Telegin plays for the Saginaw Spirit and has 29 points this year including 17 goals. The Saginaw forward stands 6'3 and is listed at 185 lbs.

Richard Panik is another European that was drafted last June. A product of Slovakia, the skilled center currently plays for the Windsor Spitfires and has contributed 12 points in 23 games, arguably a little disappointing considering a certain amount of hype leading into the season. The Tampa Bay Lighting took Panik in the 2nd round in 2009.

London Knights forwards Phil McRae and Jared Knight make the squad although I think the latter will have to be one of the spares considering his sluggish start to the season. McRae, a St. Louis Blues prospect, is just off a point-per-game pace with the Knights whereas his Michigan born teammate has just 15 points in 22 outings.

Erie forward Andrew Yogan has bounced back from serious injury late last season to have 24 points in 22 games so far in 2009-10. He's a late '91 so eligible this June and at 6'3 and 202 lbs you know he'll have plenty of eyes on him.

Finally, I've decided to include 2011 eligible Vincent Trochek of the Saginaw Sprit simply because I think he's earned it. The Pittsburgh native has 15 points as a 16-year-old rookie. Perhaps it's just a gesture for the youngster but he's the last player on my team.

Breakdown

Nationality: USA (18), Sweden (3), Russia (2), Czech (1), Slovakia (1), Germany (1).
NHL Drafted: 10
2010 Eligible: 9

Thanks to Brock Otten from OHL Prospects for his input.

Top 5 Tuesday: Things Rolling Around My Head

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So every week we come up with a new list of things that fall into a nice neat category. This week I'm doing something a bit different in just throwing out 5 topics that I've been mulling over as of late. With luck, you'll find them interesting enough to leave some feedback on.

Grab a coffee and get comfortable because this will be a long one... here goes.

5. Top Prospects Game Rotation

The 2010 Home Hardware CHL/NHL Top Prospects game is being held in Windsor this year. I am not 100% sure of the criteria of how the host site is selected; do teams bid on it like they do the Memorial Cup? If so it's certainly not as public. I think it's probably a bit more behind the doors negotiating for the event. Edmonton hosted it in 2008 a season after their return to the WHL and I get the sense that there was more than a little politics involved. I'm not trying to suggest that the eventual host does anything wrong, I just would prefer to see the site decided a little bit more in the open than it is now.

The fact that the big game is in the OHL for the second consecutive year bugs me a little bit too. Oshawa hosted the 2009 Top Prospects Game so why shouldn't the 2010 edition be in either the QMJHL or the WHL? The Memorial Cup is rotated every year from one CHL league to the other... why can't the Top Prospects Game follow suit?

why not spread the big events around if you possibly can? I think it's unfortunate that there isn't a third national event to go with the Top Prospects Game and the Memorial Cup so that each of the three CHL leagues would be hosting something special each year. Perhaps Hockey Canada could host the December World Junior Camp and play their exhibition games in the territory of the league that isn't involved with either of the other two showcase spectacles.

Maybe the three CHL leagues could do away with their own All-Star games (the WHL doesn't have one anyway) and instead play a small 3-team round robin at some point during the year? I'd watch that for sure! I know at one time there was something similar but that was before my exposure to junior hockey so I'm not well versed in what used to be done. Someone feel free to explain/describe how it went and why it was scrapped.

4. The Pipeline Channel

Recently I was trying to find some NCAA hockey coverage on the NHL Network (the actual reason I even added the channel to my particular subscription package) but came up out of luck. I've been able to track down only one listing for NCAA hockey games being shown in Canada this year... so THANK YOU to the Big Ten Network! (if someone else has, please direct me to a link for the info).

Anyway, it got me thinking: Would there be a TV audience to justify an all-hockey prospects channel? The levels to be covered would be junior, major junior, NCAA, CIS and minor pro.

Between that many leagues there would be at least one live game a night and on the weekends it would be nearly wall-to-wall coverage of live hockey that apparently isn't being shown (at least in Canada) to a wide audience.

Here in Western Canada we get a WHL game of the week on Shaw TV which is great... if you happen to be a subscriber to Shaw Cable, like me. However, I see ZERO games from the OHL or the QMJHL. Nothing of the NCAA (despite the fact that 25% of the players in US college are Canadian), zip for the AHL and only the gold medal games are shown from events like the RBC Cup, World Junior A Challenge or the World U18s.

Are you seriously telling me that there is an audience for "Cosmopolitan TV" and a half dozen cooking/life style/shopping channels but an all-hockey one wouldn't work? If it's an expense thing, I might be able to buy that but there is at least an in-rink feed for games in most markets and all teams (except the PEI Rocket) have radio deals... couldn't something be done there? A ton of NCAA games are shown in the States, would it be that costly to tap into those feeds?

I assume there are much bigger issues here than I am aware of, someone fill me in if I'm missing something. All I know is, I'd like to see a Kitchener/London game, the Beanpot, North Dakota hosting Minnesota, Springfield taking on Manchester... and I CAN'T.

3. Will Edmonton Move Torrie Jung?

A couple of months ago I floated the question as to whether or not the Oil Kings, at some point, might consider dealing their 2008-09 MVP. As far fetched and unlikely as it sounded, I specified that I would only consider it if the team was clearly not a contender and was failing to live up to its top-5 potential. Well guess what? The WHL trade deadline is now 7 weeks away and the Oil Kings currently hold down 10th place in the 12-team Eastern Conference.

There have been several reasons why the Oil Kings have struggled through the first couple of months this year. Injuries hit early, hard and frequently as several starters went down with different hurts including a few concussions. The blueline was especially hit hard and there were nights when 6 healthy bodies were hard to find so 16-year-olds were brought in for temporary relief. Then, like many teams, the flu bug had its way with the locker room. Unfortunately for Steve Pleau, his injury riddled roster meant a bunch of guys had to play sick. Add to injury and illness the fact that the team had played the toughest schedule through September and October... and it's like the perfect storm. Hence 10th place in the standings.

And yet the question is relevant and has to be asked. Might the Oil Kings best serve themselves in the long run by dealing Torrie Jung?

Can they live without him? Well it would obviously be harder without your starter but considering back up Cam Lanigan has played very well in his 10 starts (.901 sv% and 3.16 GAA), perhaps he's shown enough that he can shoulder a heavier workload. It would make sense that a goalie would come back in the deal so it's not like 16-year-old Laurent Brossoit would have to be rushed into service.

Things could change between now and the deadline but if the team simply plays .500 hockey...

If now isn't the time to consider dealing Jung, I wonder when that time will be (if ever)? Have the Oil Kings have already decided not to move the goalie and that simply making the playoffs is good enough this year? Will Portland shop 20-year-old Kurtis Mucha and might that affect the market for Jung? All things to think about.

I had a conversation earlier today with a long time WHL personality who suggested an overage netminder like Jung might only fetch a 4th round pick, maybe a 3rd at best. That said, would it even be worth it for the Oil Kings to trade him? considering the playoffs are much more likely with him that without... I'm thinking "No".

2. CHL Traditions

Sometimes we take flak for talking as much NCAA hockey on the show as we do but Dean and I have always felt that it is our NCAA that helps set us apart from other radio shows. Dean grew up in Brandon so with North Dakota just over the border, he's had exposure to the NCAA version of the sport all his life. I haven't so I'm still enjoying the NCAA game from afar and ever year I get more and more intrigued. I'm to the point now that I'd much rather fly to see a Michigan game at Yost or see the Badgers at home than I would fly to a WHL game in Regina or Kamloops.

Don't get me wrong, I love the WHL but I'm also very eager to take in the NCAA experience. I've spoken with a lot of Canadian players who have chosen the college route and when I ask them why, it almost always comes back to the impression that was made on them when they took in a game. I recently made reference to a fine write up from Ryan Lambert at Puck Daddy where traditions around NCAA hockey is detailed. I did some internet exploring for more examples and came away with some interesting video clips like the simple "c-ya" chant Michigan fans give an opposing player taking a penalty... Wisconsin crowd dancing... Cornell's extensive guide and list of traditions, and in rink fun (example one and two).

I spent an hour watching various You Tube clips of fan chants, songs and rituals and came away with one question: Why are there no traditions at games in the CHL?

I made some calls and checked with guys who have followed junior hockey longer than I have and in the WHL, I've witnessed only one ongoing tradition and have been told about 3 others, 2 of which no longer happen.

The one I have seen and heard first hand occurs in Red Deer. As the crowd quiets and awaits for the start of the national anthem, a fan from section N clearly yells out the last name of the visiting team's starting netminder...eg; "Flaaaa-mmminnnggg!" to which the entire crowd responds with a hearty "SUCKS!!!". It's funny but it lasts 5 seconds and then it's done.

I'm told the Spokane Chiefs have used the same goal celebration song for several years and so I checked on You Tube and sure enough...

Not bad but not equal to the standard set by the NCAA crowds.

The Portland Winterhawks used to be welcomed to the ice by P.A. announcer Dan Folwick who would issues a rousing "Here come, the Hawks!". Unfortunately, Mr. Folwick has since retired leaving long-time WHL people like Kelowna voice Regan Bartell to take notice

"It just seemed odd when the Hawks entered the ice surface last night and Dan's big voice saying "Here come the Hawks' was no where to be found."

Regan would also remember when the crowd in Kelowna would shout "Guard!" at the end of O'Canada (..."we stand on GUARD for thee..."). Much like Dallas Stars fans do with "stars" during the Star Spangled Banner, Rockets faithful turned it into a salute for Kelowna goalie Kelly Guard. He's since turned pro and the tradition ended with his junior career.

And that's it. If you have seen or heard of others... please list them in the comments section.

The difference? Obviously the fact that the NCAA game is played in front of a large student body makes a huge difference. The party atmosphere is instantly created by the well lubricated students... but that's a good thing.

The CHL rinks I have visited have crowds comprised of families and people of all ages so you don't get that same party atmosphere. In Edmonton for example, the marketing of tickets sales is largely directed at families and so you end up with half of your 5000 tickets being held by fans who can't get into a PG-13 movie. Some people might find what the NCAA crowds do to be annoying or silly but I'd gladly take organized chants and opposing goalie harassing over the "air guitar cam" for the 10 and under crowd at Oil Kings home games.

Is it possible that Americans just know how to enjoy live hockey more than we do up here in Canada? Are we just stuck in "we know the game and just concentrate on watching what happens" so much that we can't have fun while we do it? Canadians go to hockey games to be entertained, Americans seem to go knowing ahead of time that they are a part of that entertainment. Big difference.

1. Would Taylor Hall be Carolina's Choice?

I know all the 2010 talk for the last several months has been about the Taylor Hall Sweepstakes, his is the name mentioned by message board fans of NHL teams that are struggling in the standings. I'll agree that he'll probably go first overall but I don't know that he would be every team's target if they somehow hit the podium first.

NHL Central Scouting released their rankings today and Hall was not the top OHL player. It's not the first time I've seen another name at the top and in my opinion, should the Carolina Hurricanes end up with that 1st overall pick... I'm not convinced that Hall would be their guy either. I think it would be Tyler Seguin.

Seguin got off to a very hot start, he's cooled off a bit but for a while, he led the OHL in scoring. Hall has since past him by but Seguin's first impression in his draft year will stick with scouts. The Ontario native has 36 points in 18 games, he's missed 4 games due to injury, yet still leads his team in scoring by 9 points.

Seguin was on our show a few weeks ago and he talked about how great the Plymouth Whalers organization is from top to bottom. It might sound a bit like a conspiracy theory but the owner of that OHL franchise happens to also own the Carolina Hurricanes and it wouldn't be the first time that the pipeline between Plymouth and Raleigh was used.

2008 2nd round - Zac Dalpe (C) Penticton Vees (OHL rights... Plymouth)
2008 4th round - Michal Jordan (D) Plymouth
2007 5th round - Chris Terry (LW) Plymouth
2007 6th round - Brett Bellemore (D) Plymouth
2004 8th round - Jonas Fiedler (RW) Plymouth
2001 4th round - Rob Zepp (G) Plymouth
2000 2nd round - Tomas Kurka (LW) Plymouth
2000 4th round - Jared Newman (D) Plymouth
1999 6th round - Damian Surma (LW) Plymouth
1998 3rd round - Kevin Holdridge (D) Plymouth
signed UFA - Chad Larose (RW) Plymouth

Call me crazy but as of right now I won't be surprised to see Tyler Seguin taken 1st overall by the Carolina Hurricanes at the 2010 NHL Entry Draft.

NCAA Update - November 16

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There was a ridiculous amount of upsets this past weekend and if I thought the top 20 rankings got a lot clearer 8 days ago... well they're all messed up again now. Here is how they looked on Friday morning with results in brackets.

1 Miami (49) 0-0-2
2 North Dakota (1) 1-1
3 Cornell 1-1
4 Denver (week off)
5 Mass.-Lowell 2-0
6 Michigan 0-2
7 Bemidji State 1-1
8 Notre Dame 0-1-1
9 Alaska 1-1
10 Colorado College 2-0
11 Nebraska-Omaha 1-1
12 Yale 1-0-1
13 Michigan State 2-0
14 Massachusetts 1-1
15 Vermont 1-1
16 Boston College 1-1
17 Boston University 1-1
18 Minnesota-Duluth 1-1
19 Princeton 1-1
20 Quinnipiac 2-0

The RedHawks suffered a fairly significant set back without actually losing a game; they tied Ferris State twice. 2-2 and 1-1 were the official scores, Ferris actually won both of the shootouts giving them the interesting record of 2-2-2-2 after six games. 4 different goalies saw action as both teams went the tandem route for the back-to-back games. Miami outshot the Bulldogs by an overall margin of 72-54 but it was the road team that takes away the positives from the meeting. It's probably reasonable to expect that the RedHawks will surely fall from their perch atop the poll as a result of the two ties.

Then again, #2 North Dakota only managed to split their weekend series with the Huskies from St. Cloud State. The Sioux won Friday's tilt against a team without offensive leader Garret Roe who was suspended for "violating team rules". David Toews struck twice for UND while Ryan Lasch recorded a goal and assist for SCSU. saturday the tables were turned as St. Cloud opened up a 3-goal lead and hung on for a 3-2 win at intimidating Ralph Engelstad Arena. Freshman Aaron Dell allowed 3 goals on 6 shots, was yanked, and replaced by stalwart Brad Eidsness 14 seconds into the frame and barred the door the rest of the way. At the other end of the rink, Dan Dunn stopped 47 of 49 shots to earn the victory.

So you might be wondering Cornell might be able to leap over the stumbling RedHawks and Sioux but wait... the Big Red faltered as well. Cornell was doubled up by Yale on Friday but exacted revenge on lowly Brown Saturday to come out with a 1-1 split. The Bulldogs got goals from 4 different shooters to outlast the Big Red and hand them their first loss of the season. Cornell found its offence the next night putting 6 behind Mike Clemente in Brown's net. Interestingly, Edmonton Oiler first round pick Riley Nash didn't record a point in the blowout game. Cornell's 4th goal against Brown was an empty netter at the 17:39 mark of the third. Brown had pulled their netminder to try and stage a comeback while the game was still just 3-0; unfortunately for them, Cornell scored and then put two more past Clemente who had returned to finish out the game.

#4 Denver was off for the week... could they moved up to #1 without even having played a game?

UMass.-Lowell might have an argument to make for the top seed after being one of the very few teams to win both of their games. Unfortunately for the River Hawks, their wins were over unranked Alabama-Huntsville who have now lost 6 straight. I don;t know if that will be impressive enough to win them a lot of votes.

Well certainly the Michigan Wolverines will be moving the wrong way on the top 20 list after dropping both ends of a home-and-home against their Spartan arch rivals. MSU scored 3-2 and 2-0 wins and moved into sole possession of first place in the CCHA standings, ahead of even the Miami RedHawks. Could Michigan State vault from #13 all the way to the top?? Probably not but considering the CCHA standings and the fact that the RedHawks and Spartans split their series in October, the committee is going to have to recognize that the gap between the two clubs can't be considered that great anymore.

The Bemidji State Beavers are no longer unbeated after taking it on the chin Saturday night at the hands of the Minnesota Golden Gophers. In the opening battle of the small furry animals, Minnesota scored a 4-1 win but that would not carry over to Sunday's rematch. The Beavers pounded Minnesota 6-2 to even the weekend with their non-conference but inter-State rival.

The luck of the Irish continues to be bad as Notre Dame went 0-1-1 against Northern Michigan, one of the few teams below them in the CCHA standings. Brian Stewart made 36 saves for the Wildcats on Saturday as his club bested Notre Dame 3-2. Sunday's rematch ended in a 2-2 tie after Bill Maday scored twice to erase a two-goal Wildcat lead. The Irish would went on to win the shootout.

I thought Alaska had a gimmie weekend in store against last place Bowling Green but the best jerseys in the conference helped the Falcons get a split against the #9 ranked Nanooks. Bowling Green won the opening game with a 3-1 final but couldn't repeat the next night and gave up five in a 5-3 loss. Don Knelson and Jarret Granberg both scored twice in Saturday's game for Alaska.

You know, for a team that most expected to struggle this year, kudos have to go out to the Colorado College Tigers. Two more wins this weekend should lift the #10 team at least three positions. Rylan Schwartz scored the lone goal in a 1-0 win on Friday and he also assisted on the GWG Saturday in CC's 3-2 win over Minnesota State. Goalie Joe Howe has lost only 1 of his 9 starts and has a .934 save percentage to go along with his 2.08 GAA.

#15 Vermont and #16 Boston College hooked up and split their two games. BC trounced the Catamounts 7-1 but Vermont was able to rebound and take one from the Eagles by a 3-2 score. Jimmy Hayes had four assists in the opener for the Eagles during which they only accounted for 19 shots on goal in total - and scored 7 times! BC's power play went 3-4 in that game but were 0-4 the next night in their loss.

The Terriers from Boston University have been battling injury and illness and it cost them on Friday when the upstart Merrimack Warriors welcomed their visitors with a 6-3 kick in the junk. Kieran Millan was pulled after the fifth goal against, he'd face just over 20 shots a few minutes into the third period and it was 5-1 for Merrimack. Saturday the scene shifted back to BU's barn and the home side pulled out a 6-4 goal-fest. BU opened the game with four first period tallies and this time it was Merrimack's goalie who was pulled as Andrew Braithwaite was pulled after the first period in favor of Joe Cannata who helped the Warriors win the last two periods.

Speaking of scoring in bunches, Minnesota-Duluth beat Michigan tech 8-1 on Saturday but unfortunately for the Bulldogs, that was on the heels of a 3-2 upset loss the night before. Steven Seigo had two points for the Huskies in the win for Michigan Tech but that hardly measures up to the night that Mike Connolly and Justin Fontaine had in the rematch. Connolly came away with a goal and 4 assists while Fontaine scored 4 times and added a single helper; 10 points between the pair of former AJHL stars! Fontaine currently leads the NCAA in scoring with 18 points and a 1.64 pts/game pace second only to Merrimack's Stephane Da Costa (1.88) after just 8 games.

The Quinnipiac Bobcats captured both of their games so should see some movement upwards on the poll. With an overall 8-1-0 record, on paper they sound impressive but I'd like to see how they fare against the "better" programs in their conference let alone teams from outside the ECAC. with apologies to St. Cloud, Quinnipiac's non-conference schedule this year is quite weak.

My top 20: (1) UND, (2) Miami, (3) Denver, (4) Mass.-Lowell, (5) Cornell, (6) Colorado College, (7) Michigan State, (8) Bemidji State, (9) Alaska, (10) Michigan, (11) Notre Dame, (12) Nebraska-Omaha, (13) Yale, (14) Massachusetts, (15) Boston College, (16) Vermont, (17) Boston University, (18) Minnesota-Duluth, (19) Wisconsin, (20) Quinnipiac with St. Cloud the next team on the honorable mentions list.

Ryan Lambert of Puck Daddy / Yahoo Sports had a very entertaining story last week. "Five fun traditions you won't find elsewhere" is recommended reading. for a Canadian who grew up in NE Alberta a dozen hours North from the US border and still planning my first live NCAA game, articles like this one are really great to come across. something so simple like an organized cheer... why don't we see anything like this in junior hockey?

Meet Team Q-International

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As promised, today is the day that I release my roster of European and American players that make up the International roster that I would prefer play in the Subway Super Series. If you're wondering why I'm proposing this, then I assume you missed yesterday's opening argument which you can find HERE.

I'll be honest and say up front that I had a pretty tough time making up the team from the Q. In my opinion, it's a particularly down year for imports in the QMJHL especially on the blueline and between the pipes. There is no Timo Pielmeier available in net, no Dmitri Kulikov for the defence. There is a pretty interesting crop of forwards though.

Would my team be good enough to beat the Canadian QMJHL side of the Subway Super Series? I highly doubt it, but that's not the point. The point is that my team would beat the selection of Russians who are actually going to play the games. My international team is better than the Russians and therefore, they'd be the better opponent for Canada's Q-league boys.

Maybe you will disagree and if so, please tell me why in the comments section below. One more piece of business to get to before the unveiling; my thanks to Kevin Forbes of Hockey's Future and Future Considerations for his input in helping me fill out the depth of the line up.

Goalies

My two picks in net are Chris Holden of Cape Breton and Chicoutimi's Christopher Gibson. Holden is the back up to Olivier Roy with the Eagles and this year has a 5-2-1 record with a 2.74 GAA and .893 save percentage. The 19-year-old from new Hampshire is undrafted and playing in his second season in the QMJHL. Gibson is a Finnish born netminder that is splitting time for the Sagueneens this season as a rookie. The 16-year-old has a 5-4-1 record and 3.09 GAA but a .900 save percentage while playing for the sub-.500 club. Gibson is the one pictured while he played with the Notre Dame Hounds in Wilcox, SK.

Admittedly, neither are stud netminders like the Canadian guys they will face and probably are not on par with Russian Igor Bobkov who is accompanying the Russians. However, they are the best of a short list of imports who are wearing the pillows in the Q this season.

Defence

Rookie Adam Janosik makes the team as his 14 points with Gatineau this year is second best amongst first year defencemen. The 17-year-old from Slovakia has helped the purple and orange to s pretty decent start to year.

Also on the list is Konrad Abeltshauser from the last place Halifax Mooseheads. The 6'3, 200 lb German rearguard has 10 points so far this year, his first in North America. Abeltshauser turned 17 in September.

[*Edit] Dillon Donnelly is a 16-year-old American from New York who is plying his trade with the Moncton Wildcats. He would have been on my roster but Forbsey tells me that he's playing for Quebec at the U17 so I'm going to make a late edit to my roster....

You'll notice in the comments section that Brock Otten, my OHL input giver, asked about PEI rookie Adam Polasek. He's off to a strong start with the Rocket and deserves a spot on this squad in the first place and so gets the nod as Donnelly's replacement. Polasek stands 6'2 and is nearly 190 lbs so the nearly 18-year-old will have eyes on him this winter for the 2010 draft.

One guy who was on my suggested team last year that makes it again this time around is David Stitch, now with the Montreal Juniors. The veteran of the group, Stitch is playing in his fourth season in the Q but in new surroundings since being dealt from Saint John. Stitch played 4 games in the AHL last spring with the Hartford Wolfpack.

Lauri Tokoi makes the team on the recommendation of Mr. Forbes. I admittedly know nothing of the Finn aside from his age (18) and his point total (2). Then again, if Mr. forbes suggests he's on of the top 6 Euro or American blueliners in the Q... that's good enough for me.

Rounding out my starting 6 is Russian Dmitri Kostromitin. The 6'5, 19-year-old has 16 points this year with Rouyn-Noranda which is 11th best in the league. We saw him first hand during Oilers rookie camp in September and the big man didn't disappoint. He didn't really stand apart from the crowd either but the fact that he didn't look out of place was a positive for him. He's seen above in his Montreal garb from last season.

The two blueliners getting voted in as replacements are Dominik Schlumpf of Shawinigan and Riku Dufva from Lewiston. Schlumpf is a 18-year-old Swiss product in his second Q season and has 10 points under his belt this year. Dufva hails from Finland and is 20 games into his debut campaign in North America.

Left Wing

Ryan Bourque makes the grade as a point-per-game forward in his first Q season. The son of the Hall of Fame Bruins defenceman is playing for another Hall of Famer in Patrick Roy with the Remparts.

Russian Kirill Kabanov and Stanislav Galiev are obvious selections to the team. Both are potential top-10 NHL picks in 2010 and are big contributors to the Wildcats and Sea Dogs respectively. I know that Kabanov is out with a new injury but for the sake of this exercise... he's on the list.

Drummondville is one of the top teams in the again this season and Czech rookie Ondraj Palat is part of the reason why. He has 18 points so far but the 18-year-old forward is still getting used to the league.

Rimouski Oceanic forward Petr Straka is scoring at a point-per-game pace and has 13 goals in 23 games. At 6'1 and 180 lbs, Straka has decent size and the 17-year-old is eligible in June of 2010.

Centers

Baie-Comeau pivot Simon Olsson is having a solid season. He played two seasons in the USHL before coming north to the Q and now the 20-year-old swede is having a career year with 27 points in 20 games. He's a tiny 5'6 so an event like this might be the highlight of his junior career.

Back to Gatineau in order to add 17-year-old rookie center Denis Kindl. The first year Czech native is 4th on his team in scoring with 17 points.

I'm a bit surprised but the last place Halifax Mooseheads have another player on my roster in Tomas Knotek. The 19-year-old is in his 3rd Q-league campaign, all with Halifax, and is on pace to set new career highs. He had 66 points as a rookie but has 21 already this year.

Jakub Culek is a big 6'4 center pictured above. Originally from the Czech Republic, he's lighting it up this year for the Oceanic. Culek's 25 points are third best on the squad and he just turned 17 in September. He's barely a week old enough for the 2010 draft which will make him a player of interest this June.

The last center on my list is Tomas Kubalik from Victoriaville. The Tigres middleman has racked up 30 points in 21 games as a 19-year-old rookie and at 6'2 and 189 lbs, has the size that gets him drafted. He was, by Columbus in the 5th round of 2008.

Right Wing

Andrej Nestrasil (DET, 2009) has 28 points for Victoriaville giving the Tigres a 1-2 import punch with Kubalik. The 18-year-old is reportedly playing inspired hockey this year and is on pace to shatter his 57 point mark from his rookie year in the league.

Another addition from the Quebec Remparts is also a player who appears on the Russian list as well; Dmitri Kugryshev. The winger was a 2nd round pick by Washington back in 2008 and is having a point-per-game season with Quebec which is off his pace from last season.

German Toni Ritter is now with Shawinigan after being dealt from Montreal earlier this year. I actually thought Ritter would get drafted late last June but he went unselected and remains on the market. Ritter turns 20 later this winter.

Last but certainly not least is Mikhail Stefanovich. The third Quebec Rempart on my team is also one of the most talented as the Toronto Maple Leafs decided when they picked him in the 3rd round last June. The Belorussian has 10 points in 9 games after a late start to the season.

Breakdown

Nationality: Czech Republic (9), Russia (4), USA (2), Finland (3), Germany (2), Slovakia (1), Belarus (1), Sweden (1), Switzerland (1)
NHL Drafted: 5
2010 Eligible: 8

Subway Super Series... Made Better!

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Next week the CHL will open their doors to a traveling Russian squad for a 6-game exhibition series that, to date, has proven to be far from competitive.

Recently on The Pipeline Show one of our Bad Ass Trivia questions asked listeners "How many of the 36 games have the Russians won in the annual exhibition series?". We got guesses like 14, 17, 12, 15... all WAY off.

The overall Canada/Russia record is currently in favour of the CHL to the tune of 30-4-0-2. The OHL is a perfect 12-0-0-0, the WHL is 11-1-0-0, and QMJHL is 7-3-0-2. So some quick match has the Russians sporting a 6-30-0-0... with two of those six victories coming after regulation time.

If the purpose of the series was to provide an interesting clash between traditional hockey powers... well the cyber-phrase "Epic Fail!" would apply.

It's hardly fair to ask the Russians to be competitive; most of their best players are playing in the KHL and if they're contributing at all, those teams aren't going to free them up for this exhibition - it's NOT the World Junior Championship we're talking about here but a friendly 6-game set. So right off the hop, the Russians are at a disadvantage. Factor in that they have to travel across the planet and then play 6 road games in 10 days spanning the 2nd biggest country in the world... and you can imagine that fatigue has got to be a huge issue for the visitors.

Considering all of that, is it really a surprise to see that 5 of Russia's wins have come against the Q, where the first two games are played?

Hockey Canada uses the series as a final audition for players who hope to earn an invite to the December World Junior camp. You'll see players who were not involved at the August sessions but who have gotten off to strong starts during the CHL season. Looking at the WHL roster that will take on the Russians this year and you'll notice 21 players who have been drafted by NHL clubs (including 6 who were 1st rounders) as well as 4 other players who were signed as free agents.

The Russians? Well they have just 3 players who were drafted, only one of whom was a 1st round pick.

I have spoken with scouts over the years who have told me that they really don't know what to make of the event. There aren't many undrafted players on the Canadian team and for the most part, the Russians who come over are not really on the radar. I know a few who have told me they don't even both taking the games in because they could better spend that game night in a different rink.

The games are nationally televised on Rogers Sportsnet but I have no idea what the ratings are for it. I do not hear many fans or media discussing the event so I do not get the impression that, outside of prospect junkies like Sportsnet duo Peter Loubardias and Sam Cosentino (above), Dean Millard and myself, the games don't register very high with general fans or media.

With all that said... I still believe that this is a valuable opportunity for Hockey Canada, the Canadian Hockey League, the QMJHL, the OHL and the WHL and should not be scrapped. It should be changed.

It's something I've talked about before and I still feel the same way. The team that the Canadians from the Q, OHL and 'Dub should be playing against is not a 'B' squad (or 'C' squad) from Russian; it should be an international team consisting of the import players who have made the commitment to play Major Junior in Canada.

It would be better for the CHL.

It's a chance for the leagues to showcase the international talent that is playing in their circuit. Wouldn't that help the leagues attract more of the top European talent through the CHL import draft or in recruiting efforts for American players South of the border? CHL team GM to player and his agent:

"Look, not only will you get to play in what we feel is the best development league in the world for players your age but you'll also have a great opportunity to play in the Top Prospects game and another showcase event."

Obviously, draft eligible players who are in the CHL may also get invited to the Top Prospects game so the Canada/Russia series would just be another carrot for imports considering the CHL route.

It would be better for Hockey Canada (and other countries).

The Canadian roster wouldn't change at all but the quality of their competition would go up drastically which would give Hockey Canada a better measuring stick for the players they are still evaluating. The added bonus would be for the national team scouts for USA Hockey and the European countries. The Americans would get to see their non-NCAA talent in a much more WJC-like setting just prior to the naming of their team. The same would hold true for the Euros.

It would be better for the fans and for the media.

Instead of a visiting team consisting almost entirely of players no one has heard of (and possibly never will), the media could play up the cross-border rivalry and also focus their attention on stories that have built up over the first few months of the regular season.

Fans will be watching a game where players on both teams are guys that they can follow before and after the series. While the Russians this year will bring perhaps half a dozen notable players, my international teams would have three times that amount.

The series would be much more competitive because it eliminates the aspect of one team being disadvantaged by travel. The international Q team would play the two games against their Canadian counterparts and that's it; no cross-country journey needed.

The international players are also familiar with the North American rinks and style of play so you wouldn't have one team completely out of their element.

A more competitive game equates to a better showcase for the CHL, a better tool for Hockey Canada, a more interesting story for the media and more entertainment for the fans.

With my scenario, everyone wins. If you can think of a reason why the status quo is better, I'd be interested to read it in the comments section below.

Over the next bunch of days I will release my annual International rosters that would play in my version of the Subway Super Series. It all starts Saturday with the International team from the QMJHL.