Top Prospects ready for action
Thursday January 22, 2015
St. Catharines, ON – The NHL Central Scouting Service’s Midterm Draft rankings are out on the table and players are primed for a big opportunity to make an impression tonight, knowing where they currently stand amongst their peers in the months leading up to the 2015 NHL Draft.
Despite a string of losses that dates back to the 2011 CHL Top Prospects Game, Don Cherry is confident in his club heading into tonight’s game. “We’re going to have some fun tonight. Bobby’s got McDavid on his bench but we’re still going to bring it tonight, doesn’t matter.”
When asked what his approach against the dynamic skill set of McDavid will be, Cherry responded by referring to past scenarios. “The whole shadowing thing started happening in the game back when Jason Spezza played. Nathan MacKinnon has been watched closely in the past. This game isn’t about that,” Cherry said.” “The guys are here to show their skills and show what they can do. Connor will be running free tonight and I’m sure we’ll see him at his best.”
While the CHL Top Prospects Game saw high scores for many seasons, goals have been at a premium in recent years with goaltenders on their game and teams tightening up defensively. Team Orr took a 4-3 decision last year in Calgary as Vancouver Canucks first round pick Jared McCann (Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds) scored the game winner with 3:29 to spare.
Team Cherry will try and counter Team Orr’s offensive weaponry in Connor McDavid (Erie Otters), Lawson Crouse (Kingston Frontenacs) and blueliner Ivan Provorov (Brandon Wheat Kings) with a few shooters of their own. CHL leading scorer Mitchell Marner, who ranks seventh amongst North American skaters in the NHL Central Scouting midterm rankings spearheads and offence that also includes Shawinigan Cataractes centreman Anthony Beauvillier, Charlottetown Islanders speedsters Daniel Sprong and Filip Chlapik and Erie Otters leading scorer Dylan Strome.
It’ll be a full house in St. Catharines as 40 of the CHL’s best young stars square off in front of scouts from all 30 NHL teams.
The 2015 CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game gets underway tonight at 7:00pm ET and can be seen across Canada on Sportsnet. The game will also be aired on TVA Sports and can be heard on The Fan 590.
For full coverage of tonight’s game, visit www.bmotopprospects.ca.
BMO and the Canadian Hockey League
BMO Financial Group was named the Official Bank of the Canadian Hockey League in 2011. The four-year agreement also designates BMO as the Official Bank of each of the CHL’s member hockey leagues: the Ontario Hockey League, the Western Hockey League, and the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. The sponsorship builds on BMO’s partnership with the CHL of more than 10 years and affirms BMO’s exclusivity as a financial services sponsor of the league in the retail banking category. It also engrains a presence with the 48 teams who currently participate in the BMO CHL Affinity MasterCard program, which enables CHL fans to support their favourite teams through a co-branded BMO/CHL credit card.
