CHL Today: Red-hot Spitfires win take down no. 1 ranked Steelheads

Photo credit: Charles Warburton

Headlines

• In the first CHL Game of the Week of the 2024-25 season, the North Bay Battalion beat the Erie Otters 3-2 in a shootout. Jacob LeBlanc tied the game with 4.2 seconds left in regulation before Owen Van Steensel and Shamar Moses scored in the shootout. Full story
• Guelph’s Jett Luchanko (PHI) and Swift Current’s Conor Geekie (TB) each made their NHL debuts last night. Full story
• The Brantford Bulldogs are one step closer to a new home. Brantford city councillors, at a special committee meeting this past Tuesday, recommended for approval a financial plan to build a new arena and event centre. The recommendation was unanimous and will go before city council for approval on October 29th. Full story

CHL Top 10

• With a 7-5 loss to Windsor, the top-ranked Brampton Steelheads (1) suffered its second straight loss. In six games, the Steelheads have scored 30 goals, the third most in the OHL.
• The Sherbrooke Phoenix (4) saw its five-game winning streak snapped after they were shutout 3-0 by Saint John. The defeat was just the second of the season for the Phoenix.
• Memorial Cup hosts Rimouski Oceanic (6) collected a third straight win after a 5-4 shootout win on the road against Chicoutimi.
• A 6-4 loss to Owen Sound saw the Niagara IceDogs’ (8) perfect start to 2024-25 come to an end. The IceDogs had started the season 4-0-0 and were the final OHL club to have not previously lost in regulation.
• Gavin McKenna (2026) scored his first goal of the season to help steer the Medicine Hat Tigers (9) to back-to-back wins after a 6-1 victory against Brandon.
• The London Knights (10) got back to .500 after a 5-4 win against Barrie as they secured a second straight victory. London owns the OHL’s best power play at 34.3 per cent.

NHL Prospect Watch

• Owen Sound captain Konnor Smith (ANA) registered his first OHL hat-trick in a 6-4 win over previously unbeaten Niagara. Smith has four goals this season already a year after he established a career high with nine in 2023-24.
• Sam Dickinson (SJ) scored three times on the power play in London’s 5-4 win against Barrie. On the heels of his first OHL hat-trick, Dickinson now has seven points (four goals) in four games. His teammate, Jesse Nurmi (NYI), the 58th overall pick in the 2024 CHL Import Draft, scored his first OHL goal in the win, while Easton Cowan (TOR) pushed his point streak to 38 games thanks to a pair of assists.
• In his Barrie debut, Dalyn Wakely (EDM) scored twice shorthanded for the Colts in their loss to London. A year ago, Wakely finished third in OHL scoring with 104 points.
• Patrick Thomas (WSH) had five points (1G, 4A) in Brantford’s 6-3 decision over Ottawa. In six games, Thomas has 12 points and sits tied fifth in OHL scoring.
• Rimouski’s Alexandre Blais (ANA) continued his good start to the season with another three-point (1G, 2A) effort in a 5-4 shootout win over Chicoutimi. Blais sits second in Oceanic scoring with seven points this year.
• Andrew Cristall (WSH) and Tij Iginla (UTA) combined for eight points as Kelowna downed Portland 9-4 in their Pink in the Rink game. Cristall recorded five points (1G, 4A) while Iginla registered his third WHL hat-trick.
• Sawyer Mynio (VAN) was in on all three Seattle goals with two goals and an assist as the T-Birds beat Kamloops 3-1. Mynio has nine points in five games this year.

Nightly notes

• Alessandro Di Iorio, the second overall pick in the 2024 OHL Draft, netted his first career OHL goal for Sarnia in a 4-3 shootout loss to Oshawa.
• The Windsor Spitfires extended its streak to 5-0-1 after a 7-5 road win over no. 1 ranked Brampton. Windsor’s 6.33 goals per game average is the best in the CHL.
• Charles-Edward Gravel made 31 saves to record the fifth shutout of his QMJHL career. Acquired from Baie-Comeau in the offseason, Gravel owns a 1.77 GAA and .945 save percentage in five games.
• Justin Côté had the overtime winner for the Remparts in a 2-1 win against Baie-Comeau. Côté leads the QMJHL in scoring this season with 18 points in only eight games.
• Gavin McKenna (2026), the CHL and WHL Rookie of the Year in 2023-24, scored his first goal of the season in Medicine Hat’s win against Brandon. McKenna already has nine assists to his name in seven games.

OHL results (Oct. 11, 2024)

London 5-4 Barrie
North Bay 3-2 Erie (SO)
Windsor 7-5 Brampton
Kingston 7-2 Sudbury
Owen Sound 6-4 Niagara
Brantford 6-3 Ottawa
Oshawa 4-3 Sarnia (SO)
Guelph 6-3 Peterborough
Soo 5-4 Kitchener (SO)

QMJHL results (Oct. 11, 2024)

Saint John 3-0 Sherbrooke
Charlottetown 4-2 Victoriaville
Acadie-Bathurst 3-2 Halifax (OT)
Rimouski 5-4 Chicoutimi (SO)
Quebec 2-1 Baie-Comeau (OT)
Cape Breton 3-2 Rouyn-Noranda (SO)
Drummondville 2-0 Val-d’Or
Shawinigan 3-2 Blainville-Boisbriand

WHL results (Oct. 11, 2024)

Vancouver 4-3 Lethbridge (OT)
Medicine Hat 6-1 Brandon
Moose Jaw 4-2 Everett
Regina 4-1 Swift Current
Saskatoon 2-1 Spokane
Kelowna 9-4 Portland
Seattle 3-1 Kamloops
Wenatchee 4-3 Victoria

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