CHL Daily: Firkus and Heidt reach 100 points
CHL Three Stars
Atley Calvert notched his second hat-trick of the season as Moose Jaw trounced Spokane 12-3. Calvert, who also added two assists, has a career high 41 goals and 79 points this year.
Drummondville’s Noah Reinhart also had a five-point showing (3G, 2A) in a 9-2 win against his former team in Saint John. Reinhart, who was acquired from the Sea Dogs at the QMJHL trade deadline, has played at a point-per-game with Drummondville in 18 contests.
Gabriel Frasca recorded his first OHL hat-trick as part of Kingston’s 8-1 win over Niagara. Eligible for the 2024 NHL Draft, Frasca 25 points (14 goals) in 32 games.
CHL Top 10
Julien Paille had three points (1G, 2A) as the Baie-Comeau Drakkar (2) doubled up Rimouski 6-3. The victory was the Drakkar’s CHL leading 45th of the season while it also extended their streak to 7-0-1.
Denver Barkey (PHI) had the shootout winner as the London Knights (3) defeated Ottawa 4-3 for their fourth straight win. London’s 42 wins are tied for the second most in the CHL this year.
While Reinhart was the dominant offensive force, Mikael Huchette had a pair of goals as the Drummondville Voltigeurs (4) defeated Saint John 9-2 to win their 40th game of the year. The Volts own the best record in the QMJHL’s Western Conference with a .768 winning percentage.
Zayne Parekh’s 28th goal of the season was the overtime winner as the Saginaw Spirit (5) beat Brantford 5-4 for their 41st win of the year.
"Are you kidding me?!"
2024 #NHLDraft prospect Zayne Parekh with a stunner in overtime for @SpiritHockey Saturday night! pic.twitter.com/FP4o7k4IEy
— Canadian Hockey League (@CHLHockey) February 25, 2024
Zac Funk recorded his eighth hat-trick of the season as the Prince George Cougars (6) beat Kelowna 6-5 in a shootout. Ondrej Becher had the lone goal in the skills contest as the Cougars won their 40th game of the year.
The Portland Winterhawks (7) skated to a second straight win after a 5-2 win in Victoria. Portland’s 39 wins and 81 points are the third most in the WHL.
Julius Miettinen had a goal and an assist as the Everett Silvertips (8) took down Seattle 3-1 in a U.S. Division match-up. The victory saw the Silvertips become the fourth WHL club to 80 points this year.
Connor Hvidston (ANA) had the overtime winner as the Swift Current Broncos (10) edged past Medicine Hat 4-3 for their sixth straight win.
#FlyTogether prospect Connor Hvidston had the OT winner for the @SCBroncos as their winning streak reached six games Saturday night! pic.twitter.com/88jAOmI6Ti
— Canadian Hockey League (@CHLHockey) February 25, 2024
NHL prospect watch
Andrei Loshko (SEA) had three points (2G, 1A) as part of Rouyn-Noranda’s 5-3 road win over Blainville-Boisbriand. In his first season with the Huskies, Loshko has a career high 25 goals this year.
Easton Cowan (TOR) saw his point streak hit 26 games after he scored during London’s shootout win against Ottawa. Cowan, who has 49 points in the streak, is tied 10th in OHL scoring with 77 points.
Riley Heidt (MIN) became the first CHL player to reach 100 points in 2023-24 after a three-point (1G, 2A) performance during Prince George’s shootout win against Kelowna. Heidt is just the third Cougars player to surpass 100 points after Quinn Hannock (1998) and Chase Wheatcroft (2023).
Jagger Firkus (SEA) shortly followed Heidt to 100 points after he had a goal and an assist in Moose Jaw’s victory against Spokane. Firkus, whose 45 goals are the second most in the WHL this year, is the 20th Warriors player to reach 100 points in a single season.
Nightly notes
Andrew Belchamber had four points (1G, 3A) and Samuel St-Hilaire stopped all 20 shots as Sherbrooke blanked Val-d’Or 6-0. The Phoenix currently sit fourth in the Q’s Western Conference, two games over .500.
Marek Vanacker had his first OHL hat-trick as Brantford collected a point in a 5-4 overtime loss to Saginaw. The 2024 NHL Draft prospect has 30 goals this year while his 69 points leads the team.
Linus Hemstrom registered four points (1G, 3A) while Jax Dubois (2G, 1A) and Christopher Thibodeau (1G, 2A) had three points each during Kingston’s 8-1 win in Niagara. The victory, their 27th of the year, got the Fronts back to .500.
Matteo Drobac made 53 saves as Brantford collected a point in their 5-4 overtime loss to Saginaw. Despite the defeat, the point took Brantford to top spot in the OHL’s Eastern Conference with 73 points while their streak was extended to 6-0-1.
Prince Albert’s Sloan Stanick had his first hat-trick of the season in a 5-2 win over Brandon. Stanick’s 73 points are a new career high.
Vancouver rookie Cameron Schmidt tallied his first WHL hat-trick in a 7-1 win over Kamloops. The 17-year-old is fifth in team scoring with 39 points.
OHL results (Feb. 24, 2024)
Ottawa 4-3 London (SO)
Erie 3-2 Guelph
North Bay 3-2 Flint
Kingston 8-1 Niagara
Owen Sound 6-3 Windsor
Saginaw 5-4 Brantford (OT)
Soo 6-2 Peterborough
Barrie 4-1 Mississauga
QMJHL results (Feb. 24, 2024)
Baie-Comeau 6-3 Rimouski
Rouyn-Noranda 5-3 Blainville-Boisbriand
Drummondville 9-2 Saint John
Cape Breton 4-1 Acadie-Bathurst
Moncton 4-3 Charlottetown
Sherbrooke 6-0 Val-d’Or
WHL results (Feb. 24, 2024)
Prince Albert 5-2 Brandon
Swift Current 4-3 Medicine Hat
Wenatchee 3-2 Red Deer
Everett 3-1 Seattle
Moose Jaw 12-3 Spokane
Tri-City 5-3 Regina
Portland 5-2 Victoria
Vancouver 7-1 Kamloops
Prince George 6-5 Kelowna (SO)
Watch live on CHL TV
Available to fans from coast to coast, CHL TV is accessible on the CHL mobile app, in addition to Apple TV, Roku, and Amazon Fire, and online at watch.chl.ca. Each year, CHL TV offers access to more than 2,000 regular-season games covering the CHL’s three Member Leagues and 60 markets across Canada and the United States. Fans can download the free CHL app via the App Store and Google Play.