67’s alumni: Jack Quinn scores two, Toffoli’s 200th, & more
The North American contingent of Ottawa 67’s alumni came up with more storylines than you can shake a stick at this week, whether it’s setting a first for the season, or catching fire and racking up the points. Keep tabs on your favourite alumni this week, right here.
Toffoli hits 200
It was a massive milestone for Tyler Toffoli, who reached 200 goals, scoring on a breakaway to tie the game against the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday. He becomes just the sixth player from the 2010 draft class to reach 200 goals, doing so in 672 games.
Toffoli became the ninth 67’s alum to reach 200 NHL goals, crossing the line shortly after Sean Monahan. After spending eight seasons with the Los Angeles Kings, who drafted him in the second round, Toffoli has bounced around, playing for the Vancouver Canucks, the Montreal Canadiens, and the Calgary Flames since 2019.
With the Barber Poles, Toffoli played in 252 games, lighting the lamp 163 times, and added another 170 apples. In his final two seasons with the club, he scores a combined 208 points, reaching 100 points in each season.
Jack Quinn gets first multi-goal game in the NHL
Scoring goals is nothing new for Ottawa native, Jack Quinn. On Wednesday night, Quinn and the Buffalo Sabres hosted the red-hot St. Louis Blues, who had won seven consecutive games prior. The Sabres came up with an incredible effort, beating the Blues 6-2. Quinn scored a pair of goals in the third period, extending the Sabres’ lead to 6-1.
Last season, Quinn spent the majority of his time with the Sabres’ American Hockey League affiliate, the Rochester Americans. En route to winning the AHL’s Dudley “Red” Garrett Memorial Award for the most outstanding rookie, Quinn scored 26 goals and 61 points in 45 games, setting the pace with the highest points per game among rookies with more than 20 games played. He scored his first NHL goal in a game against the Dallas Stars last season, also adding an assist.
The Sabres made Quinn the eighth overall selection of the 2020 NHL draft, becoming the first of two 67’s to be taken inside the top 10. It was his 2019-20 season with the Barber Poles that got him noticed, scoring 52 goals and 89 points in 62 games, becoming one of 16 67’s to reach 50 goals, and the first since Toffoli to join the exclusive club.
Kevin Bahl recalled by Devils
For a brief moment, Utica, New York was becoming a gathering point for 67’s alumni. The Comets boasted a roster featuring Graeme Clarke, Nikita Okhotyuk, and towering defenceman, Kevin Bahl. It didn’t last long, however, and a week after he was reassigned to Utica, the New Jersey Devils recalled Bahl with immediate effect.
The 22-year-old played just three games with the Comets before being recalled, and has dressed in three games with the Devils, so far this season. Although he has registered just a single point, Bahl’s defensive prowess is the basis of his game, and his size, standing at 6’6, makes him a force on the back end.
Bahl was drafted by the Arizona Coyotes in the second round of the 2018 NHL Draft, but was traded to the Devils as part of the return for Taylor Hall. A second-round pick by the Barber Poles in 2016, Bahl played in 237 games, scoring 14 goals and 87 points.
Merrick Rippon scores second-ever U Sports goal
For the first time this season, and just the second time in his U Sports career, Marrick Rippon lit the lamp for the University of Acadia Axemen. Rippon and his Acadia teammates jumped all over the Université de Moncton Aigles Bleus in the first, scoring three goals, with the Ottawa native scoring the Axemen’s second goal. Rippon’s career point total at the U Sports level is now up to 10.
Rippon was drafted by the Kitchener Rangers in the 2016 OHL Priority Selection, but the Mississauga Steelheads acquired his rights via trade before the start of the season. During his rookie campaign, Rippon, along with Jacob Cascagnette and Shaw Boomhower, were dealt to the 67’s.
Although he missed what would have been his fourth OHL season, Rippon enjoyed an impressive three-year OHL career, playing 131 games with the Barber Poles, plus another 37 with the Steelheads. He finished his OHL career with 11 goals and 54 points, with an impressive plus/minus of 65.
Monahan heating up
Sean Monahan’s transition to the Montreal Canadiens hasn’t always been easy, after spending the first nine years of his NHL tenure with the Calgary Flames, but recently, he has begun to regain the form that he had previously in his impressive career. Over the past eight games, Monahan has scored at least a single point in all but one game, and has picked up eight points in that time, including three goals.
On the season, Monahan has scored five goals and added 14 apples, currently good for fourth on the Canadiens. After a career low in points for Monahan, the Flames dealt the veteran forward, along with a conditional first-round draft choice, to the Habs for future considerations.
Before the Flames selected Monahan sixth overall in the 2013 NHL Draft, he spent three seasons in the nation’s capital with the 67’s. In that time, the Brampton, Ontario native played 185 games, scoring 84 goals and 203 points, before making the immediate jump to the NHL after being drafted. The 67’s picked Monahan with the 16th pick in the 2010 OHL Priority Selection.
