OHL Top Performers of the Month for March

Toronto, Ont. – The Ontario Hockey League today announced the Top OHL Performers of the Month for regular season games played in March 2022, including Windsor Spitfires forward Wyatt Johnston, Saginaw Spirit blueliner Pavel Mintyukov, Owen Sound Attack forward Cedrick Guindon and Hamilton Bulldogs netminder Marco Costantini.

OHL Player of the Month – Wyatt Johnston (Windsor Spitfires):
For the third time this season, Dallas Stars prospect Wyatt Johnston of the Windsor Spitfires is the OHL Player of the Month, producing 13 goals, 17 assists and 30 points in 15 March matchups. Johnston, who also registered a plus/minus rating of plus-11, posted multi-point outputs in 11 of his 15 contests, scoring four game winning goals as the Spits played to a record of 12-2-1-0. Johnston helped the Spitfires collect an important two points in a West Division clash at the beginning of the month, scoring and adding two assists in a 7-3 win over Sault Ste. Marie on Mar. 5th. He chipped in on a Will Cuylle OT winner, picking up three points in a 5-4 triumph over the Erie Otters on Mar. 12th. Johnston’s first career hat trick came on Mar. 19th in Flint as the Spits leapfrogged the Firebirds in the West Division standings with a 6-3 win. He’s riding a run of seven consecutive multi-point outings, with the latest contribution coming Thursday night with three points in a 5-1 win over Sarnia. Johnston earned star of the game recognition seven different times, picking up first star honours in four games.

An 18-year-old native of Toronto, Ont., Johnston leads the OHL with 115 points (42-73–115) in 61 games, also boasting a plus-30 rating. Johnston’s 115 points are the 11th-most in Windsor Spitfires history. He was a first round (23rd overall) pick of the Dallas Stars in the 2021 NHL Draft, and signed a three-year entry level NHL contract with the club on Sept. 28, 2021. A former World Under-18 Hockey Championship gold medalist with Team Canada, Johnston was Windsor’s first round (6th overall) pick in the 2019 OHL Priority Selection.

OHL Goaltender of the Month – Marco Costantini (Hamilton Bulldogs):
Marco Costantini of the Hamilton Bulldogs is the OHL Goaltender of the Month for March, playing to a perfect 9-0-0-0 record with a minuscule 1.03 goals-against average, .960 save percentage and two shutouts. Costantini stopped 214 of the 223 shots he faced over the course of the month, helping the Bulldogs maintain their standing atop the Ontario Hockey League. Among his best performances included a 34-save effort on Mar. 11th in Mississauga as the Bulldogs beat the Steelheads 5-1. He posted an 18-save shutout on Mar. 14th, backstopping Hamilton to a 3-0 win over the Oshawa Generals outdoors at Tim Hortons Field. Costantini earned first star honours in an East Division showdown with Kingston on Mar. 18th, making 29 saves in a 3-1 win over the Frontenacs. He recorded his league-leading fifth shutout of the season on Mar. 27th in Oshawa, stopping 16 as the Bulldogs won 3-0. Costantini becomes the first Bulldogs netminder to earn OHL Goaltender of the Month recognition.

A 19-year-old Hamilton native, Costantini owns the league’s lowest goals-against average of 2.42, going 27-9-2-2 with a .914 save percentage and league-high matching five shutouts. Costantini has won 18 of his last 19 starts. He was Hamilton’s fifth round (95th overall) pick in the 2018 OHL Priority Selection from the OHL Cup finalist Vaughan Kings U16 program.

OHL Defenceman of the Month – Pavel Mintyukov (Saginaw Spirit):
First-year Saginaw Spirit blueliner Pavel Mintyukov is the OHL Defenceman of the Month for March, leading all rearguards with 15 points including five goals and 10 assists in 13 games. The 2022 NHL Draft prospect recently competed in the Kubota CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game and registered three different multi-point outings for the Spirit in the month of March. Mintyukov became the only OHL defenceman to record six points in a game this season on Mar. 11th, setting a Spirit record for blueliners by scoring twice while adding four assists in a 7-6 win over Owen Sound. He put up a goal and two assists in an 8-5 loss to the London Knights on Mar. 18th and did so again on Mar. 25th as the Spirit staged a big comeback to defeat the Sarnia Sting 9-8 in overtime. Mintyukov is the first Spirit defenceman to earn OHL Defenceman of the Month honours since Bode Wilde last did so in December 2018.

An 18-year-old late 2003-born defenceman, Mintyukov has 15 goals, 38 assists and 53 points in 60 games this season, and is one of six blueliners in Spirit history to eclipse the 50-point mark in a campaign. The 6-foot-2, 190Ib. defender was the fifth-ranked North American skater on NHL Central Scouting’s Midterm Draft Rankings. The Spirit selected Mintyukov with the 52nd overall pick of the 2020 CHL Import Draft.

OHL Rookie of the Month – Cedrick Guindon (Owen Sound Attack):
Draft eligible Owen Sound Attack forward Cedrick Guindon is the OHL Rookie of the Month for March, recording 10 goals, eight assists and 18 points in 14 games with a plus/minus rating of plus-9. Guindon had points in 11 of his 14 March contests, producing five different multi-point performances. He became one of five OHL players to score four goals in a game this season on Mar. 4th, providing the Attack scoring in a 4-3 overtime road win over the Guelph Storm. He added a goal and an assist as the Attack beat the Storm once again on Mar. 7th. Guindon strung together points in six straight games from Mar. 11th to 22nd, helping the Attack ascend the Western Conference standings as they collected at least one point in each of them. He rounded-out the month of March with goals in back-to-back wins over the Sarnia Sting last weekend. Guindon is the first Attack player to win OHL Rookie of the Month honours since Artur Gavrus in October 2011.

A 17-year-old from Rockland, Ont., Guindon’s 54 points are the second-most among OHL rookies while his 27 goals place him third, one back of teammate Colby Barlow. He sits fourth among OHL rookies with 184 shots on goal. Guindon is having among the best seasons of any 16 or 17-year-old rookie in Attack franchise history with his 54 points standing as the most in that category. Guindon is the 76th-ranked North American skater on NHL Central Scouting’s Midterm Draft Rankings. He was the club’s first round (10th overall) pick in the 2020 OHL Priority Selection.

2021-22 OHL Performers of the Month:

Player of the Month:
March – Wyatt Johnston (Windsor Spitfires)
February – Logan Morrison (Hamilton Bulldogs)
January – Wyatt Johnston (Windsor Spitfires)
December – Wyatt Johnston (Windsor Spitfires)
November – Kyle Jackson (North Bay Battalion)
October – Sasha Pastujov (Guelph Storm)

Defenceman of the Month:
March – Pavel Mintyukov (Saginaw Spirit)
February – Michael Buchinger (Guelph Storm)
January – Brandt Clarke (Barrie Colts)
December – Ethan Del Mastro (Mississauga Steelheads)
November – Nathan Staios (Hamilton Bulldogs)
October – Jack Thompson (Sudbury Wolves)

Rookie of the Month:
March – Cedrick Guindon (Owen Sound Attack)
February – Michael Buchinger (Guelph Storm)
January – David Goyette (Sudbury Wolves)
December – Coulson Pitre (Flint Firebirds)
November – Owen Beck (Mississauga Steelheads)
October – Calum Ritchie (Oshawa Generals)

Goaltender of the Month:
March – Marco Costantini (Hamilton Bulldogs)
February – Luke Cavallin (Flint Firebirds)
January – Mack Guzda (Barrie Colts)
December – Mack Guzda (Barrie Colts)
November – Joe Vrbetic (North Bay Battalion)
October – Brett Brochu (London Knights)