OHL Announces Top Performers of the Month for October

Toronto, Ont. – The Ontario Hockey League today announced the Top OHL Performers of the Month for regular season games played in October 2022, including Flint Firebirds forward Brennan Othmann, Saginaw Spirit blueliner Pavel Mintyukov, Saginaw Spirit forward Michael Misa and Peterborough Petes netminder Michael Simpson.

OHL Player of the Month – Brennan Othmann (Flint Firebirds):
New York Rangers prospect Brennan Othmann of the Flint Firebirds is the OHL Player of the Month, producing 10 goals, 13 assists and 23 points in 13 October matchups. Othmann, who also registered a plus/minus rating of plus-seven, posted multi-point outputs in eight of his 13 contests, as the Firebirds played to a record of 7-6-0-0. Othmann started the season with a bang, scoring both of the Firebirds’ goals in their home opener against the Niagara IceDogs on Oct. 1st. He registered his first of a trio of three-point outings on Oct. 7th in Guelph, scoring while adding two assists in a 5-3 win. He netted a pair of goals and an assist as the Firebirds routed the Erie Otters 8-1 on Oct. 14th. Othmann’s talents continued to shine on Saturday night as he contributed three helpers to a high scoring 8-7 victory over the Oshawa Generals. The 6-foot, 180lb. left-winger has tallied at least one point in 12 of his 13 appearances so far this season. He becomes the first Firebirds player to ever claim OHL Player of the Month honours.

A 19-year-old native of Pickering, Ont., Othmann currently sits tied atop OHL scoring with 10 goals on the season, and ranks second in points with 23 (10-13–23) in 13 games. His 67 shots on goal lead the League. Now in his third season with the Firebirds, Othmann has produced career totals that include 77 goals, 76 assists and 153 points in 134 regular season games. The veteran winger was a first round (16th overall) pick of the New York Rangers in the 2021 NHL Draft, and signed a three-year entry level NHL contract with the club on Aug. 12, 2021. Othmann was Flint’s first round (2nd overall) pick in the 2019 OHL Priority Selection after winning an OHL Cup title with the Don Mills Flyers U16 program.

OHL Defenceman of the Month – Pavel Mintyukov (Saginaw Spirit):
Anaheim Ducks prospect Pavel Mintyukov of the Saginaw Spirit is the OHL Defenceman of the Month for October after leading OHL blueliners with 18 points including six goals and 12 assists over 13 contests. Mintyukov, who also posted a plus/minus rating of plus-7, started the season with with five points (1-4–5) in a 10-6 win over the Guelph Storm in Saginaw’s home opener. He strung together three consecutive multi-point performances from Oct. 7-9, capping it with two goals and an assist as the Spirit defeated the Sudbury Wolves 5-2 on Oct. 9th. He helped the Spirit defeat the Central Division-leading Mississauga Steelheads 4-3 in overtime, recording a goal and an assist on Oct. 29th. This marks Mintyukov’s second OHL Defenceman of the Month honour after he received League honours in March 2022.

An 18-year-old late 2003-born blueliner, the 6-foot-3, 195Ib. Mintyukov became the first defenceman to lead the Spirit in regular season scoring last season, producing 62 points (17-45–62) in 67 games to earn OHL third team all-star recognition. His 18 points (6-12–18) lead OHL defenders thus far in 2022-23. Mintyukov was selected in the first round (10th overall) by the Anaheim Ducks in the 2022 NHL Draft this past summer. The Spirit selected him with the 52nd overall pick of the 2020 CHL Import Draft.

OHL Goaltender of the Month – Michael Simpson (Peterborough Petes):
Michael Simpson of the Peterborough Petes is the OHL Goaltender of the Month for October, playing to a 6-2-0-1 record with a 2.22 goals-against average and a .923 save percentage. Simpson stopped 241 of the 261 shots he faced over the course of the October, backstopping the Petes into second place in the East Division. He recorded his first shutout of the season on Oct. 8th in Barrie, making 26 saves as the Petes defeated the Colts 5-0.  He turned in a 37-save effort on Oct. 28th in Ottawa as the Petes put an end to the 67’s undefeated start to the season, denying them a 10th consecutive win. The OHL Goaltender of the Month honour is Simpson’s second in a row after he earned the distinction to close out the 2021-22 regular season in April.

A 19-year-old London, Ont. native, Simpson owns the league’s lowest goals-against average of 2.38 and sits tied for the league-lead in wins with seven. He owns a career record of 27-20-4-1 with a 3.33 goals-against average and .896 save percentage over 55 regular season games with the Petes. The 6-foot-1, 198lb. netminder was Peterborough’s 10th round (193rd overall) pick in the 2019 OHL Priority Selection from the London Junior Knights U16 program.

OHL Rookie of the Month – Michael Misa (Saginaw Spirit):
First overall OHL Priority Selection choice Michael Misa of the Saginaw Spirit is the OHL Rookie of the Month for October, recording 10 goals, seven assists and 17 points in 13 games. Misa had points in 10 of his 13 October contests, producing five different multi-point efforts. The sixth player in OHL history to be granted exceptional status by Hockey Canada, the 15-year-old currently sits tied atop OHL goal-scoring and leads all rookies in points with 17. Misa wasted little time getting adjusted to the OHL pace, scoring twice in his debut as the Spirit defeated the Guelph Storm 10-6 on Oct. 1st. Excelling against Guelph once again, Misa recorded a goal and three assists in Saginaw’s 6-1 road win on Oct. 14th. He put together back-to-back two-goal efforts on Oct. 21st in London and again on Oct. 22nd against the same Knights in Saginaw. He rounded-out October with a goal and an assist as the Spirit defeated the Oshawa Generals 3-2 on Oct. 30th. Misa is the first Spirit player to earn OHL Rookie of the Month honours since Cole Perfetti last did in March 2019.

A native of Oakville, Ont., Misa’s exceptional status debut sat just one point shy of John Tavares’ mark through 10 games back in 2005-2006 as he outpaced both Connor McDavid and Shane Wright in that window to begin his OHL career. Entering his first season with the Spirit after setting a new OHL Cup scoring record for the championship-winning Mississauga Senators, the 5-foot-11, 160lb. forward was selected first overall by Saginaw in the 2022 OHL Priority Selection. He won’t be eligible for the NHL Draft until 2025.