CHL Team of the Month presented by CCM: January 2024
The Canadian Hockey League (CHL) is proud to announce today the January edition of the CHL Team of the Month presented by CCM for the 2023-24 regular season
F – Gavin McKenna (Medicine Hat Tigers / WHL)
10G-19A, 29 PTS, +12 in 12 GP in January
With 29 points through 12 games in January, no skater in the CHL tallied more points than 16-year-old Gavin McKenna of Medicine Hat Tigers. Over the last month, McKenna averaged 2.42 points per game, which ranked second in the CHL behind only Moose Jaw’s Jagger Firkus (2.78). Eligible for the 2026 NHL Draft, McKenna registered eight multi-point outings during the last month, including six contests with three points or more. The latter included a career-high six-point effort (1G-5A) against the Tri-City Americans on January 6 at Co-op Place in Medicine Hat. Additionally, throughout January, the six-foot, 165-pound left winger recorded 19 assists, which was the most of any player in the CHL. Ultimately, the product from Whitehorse, Y.T., was held off the scoresheet twice over his last 12 games. McKenna now ranks second in the CHL rookie scoring race this season with 63 points, trailing only Prince George’s Terik Parascak (69 points). McKenna also sits second on his team in scoring with 21 goals and 42 assists in 41 games this season. Drafted first overall by the Tigers during the 2022 WHL Prospects Draft, McKenna’s 42 assists and 1.54 points per game during the 2023-24 campaign both rank first among any rookie in the CHL.
F – Calum Ritchie (Oshawa Generals / OHL)
9G-17A, 26 PTS, +19 in 13 GP in January
Following a strong January, Colorado Avalanche prospect Calum Ritchie of the Oshawa Generals now leads his team in scoring with 51 points (17G-34A) despite having played in 29 games this season. Specifically, in 13 games during the last month, Ritchie recorded nine goals and 17 assists to lead all OHL scorers. His 26 points in January trailed only Medicine Hat’s Gavin McKenna for the scoring lead in the Canadian Hockey League. Over those 13 games in January, the 19-year-old from Oakville, Ont., tallied points in 12 contests. The latter included six outings with two or more points, including a pair of five-point efforts against the Flint Firebirds on January 6 (0G-5A) and the Peterborough Petes on January 19 (2G-3A). Both of those five-point outings represented a career-high for the Oshawa Generals’ centreman. His plus/minus rating of +19 was also the highest of any skater in the CHL for the month of January. With 17 goals and 34 assists through 29 games during the 2023-24 campaign, Ritchie is averaging 1.76 points per game, which stands as the third-highest mark among skaters in the OHL. A first-round pick of the Colorado Avalanche last summer, Ritchie has tallied 51 points since November 12, which ranks first and second in the OHL and CHL respectively over that period.
F – Jagger Firkus (Moose Jaw Warriors / WHL)
10G-15A, 25 PTS, -3 in 9 GP in January
Averaging a CHL-best 2.78 points per game during January, Seattle Kraken prospect Jagger Firkus of the Moose Jaw Warriors was one of the top forwards in the CHL over the last month. In all nine of his games in January, Firkus found the scoresheet, which included registering two or more points on seven occasions. The 19-year-old from Irma, Alta., got his month off to a great start by matching a career-high with five points (1G-4A) against the Prince Albert Raiders on January 5 in Moose Jaw. Firkus’ month was also highlighted by his fourth hat trick of the season, a feat he accomplished on the road against the Swift Current Broncos on January 19. Ultimately, by tallying points in all nine of his games last month, Firkus comes into February on a 19-game point streak (15G-26A over that stretch), which stands as the longest active point streak in the CHL. His current 19-game point streak also ranks as the third-longest streak of the 2023-24 campaign behind only Kelowna’s Andrew Cristall (23 games from Nov. 3 to Jan. 19) and his Moose Jaw teammate Denton Mateychuk (23 games from Oct. 10 to Dec. 8). Firkus’ recent stretch of scoring has also helped catapult him to the top of the CHL scoring race with 84 points on the season. Meanwhile, his 37 goals over this latest campaign place him in a tie for third in the CHL alongside fellow Seattle Kraken prospect Carson Rehkopf of the Kitchener Rangers and Anaheim Ducks prospect Egor Sidorov of the Saskatoon Blades.
D – Oliver Bonk (London Knights / OHL)
10G-11A, 21 PTS, +14 in 10 GP in January
Having tallied 10 goals and 11 assists, all while helping his team to a 9-0-0-2 during January, Philadelphia Flyers prospect Oliver Bonk of the No.4-ranked London Knights put together an impressive month. Alongside Saginaw’s Zayne Parekh, Bonk led all defencemen in the CHL with 21 points. At the same time, his 2.10 points per game average and 10 goals were the most by any blueliner in the CHL in January. Over his last 10 games, the 19-year-old from Ottawa, Ont., was held off the scoresheet on just one occasion, registering five multi-point games. The latter included establishing a new single-game career-high when he collected five points (2G-3A) against the Sting in Sarnia on January 10. The 2023 Philadelphia Flyers’ first-round pick registered three games with two goals while tallying six power-play goals and being credited with three game-winning markers last month. Now holding 12 power-play goals on the season, Bonk sits tied with the Soo Greyhounds’ Arttu Karki for first among CHL rearguards in that category. The Knights’ defenceman has also set a new single-season career-high with 51 points during the 2023-24 campaign, a point total that currently ranks fifth among blueliners in the Canadian Hockey League this season. Since December 2, having collected 27 points (11G-16A) over his last 13 games, Bonk is averaging 2.08 points per game, the highest mark of any defenceman in the CHL over that stretch.
D – Zayne Parekh (Saginaw Spirit / OHL)
9G-12A, 21 PTS, +13 in 11 GP in January
Having been named to the CHL Team of the Month presented by CCM back in November, 2024 NHL Draft prospect Zayne Parekh of the No.3-ranked Saginaw Spirit becomes the first defenceman to be awarded this honour for a second time during the 2023-24 season. Alongside London’s Oliver Bonk, Parekh led all CHL defencemen with 21 points in January. Over the last month, the 17-year-old from Nobleton, Ont., was held off the scoresheet just twice. In his last 11 contests, Parekh has registered six multi-point games, including a single-game career-high of five points (3G-2A) against the Spitfires in Windsor on January 10. The latter also represented the second time this season that the projected 2024 NHL first-round pick scored a hat trick. Over his last 26 games, dating back to November 18, Parekh has only failed to register a point on four occasions. He’s tallied 16 goals (two more than his next closest competitor, London’s Oliver Bonk) and 44 points (10 more than his next closest competitor, Kitchener’s Hunter Brzustewicz) which both rank as the most by a CHL blueliner over that stretch of games since November 18. Thanks to his strong play over these last couple of months, Parekh is up to 22 goals and 66 points on the season. His 22 goals currently stand as the most by any defenceman in the CHL, while his 66 points rank second in the Canadian Hockey League behind only Kitchener’s Hunter Brzustewicz (69 points). In January, Parekh was ranked as the No. 10 skater in North America by NHL Central Scouting in their Midterm Rankings ahead of the 2024 NHL Draft.
G – Chase Wutzke (Red Deer Rebels / WHL)
8-0-0-1, 1.98 GAA, .929 SV% in nine starts in January
With a CHL-best eight wins over January, 2024 NHL Draft prospect Chase Wutzke of the Red Deer Rebels is making his first-ever appearance in the CHL Team of the Month presented by CCM. Over his nine starts last month, the 17-year-old from Debden, Sask., posted a 1.98 goals-against average (GAA) and a .929 save percentage (SV%), which both ranked first among goalies in the WHL (minimum 100 minutes played in January). Wutzke only allowed one goal during five different games last month. He also registered a pair of performances with 30-plus saves in January, one of which was a 31-save effort against the No.1-ranked Saskatoon Blades on January 17, which ultimately helped the Rebels snap the Blades’ 18-game point streak. Going back to December 6, Wutzke has won 12 of his last 14 starts, having also collected a point in all 14 of those games (12-0-1-1). Moreover, since December 6, the rookie netminder owns a 1.88 GAA and a .934 SV%, which both rank first in the CHL among goalies who have played a minimum of 300 minutes during that stretch of time. Ultimately, those strong performances over December and January have helped Wutzke as he now ranks fourth in GAA (2.24) and fifth in SV% (.922) in the Canadian Hockey League this season. In January, Wutzke was also identified as the No. 13-ranked goalie in North America in the NHL Central Scouting’s Midterm Rankings ahead of the 2024 NHL Draft.
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CCM Hockey is a leading designer, manufacturer, and marketer of hockey equipment. With its headquarters located in Montreal, the company has operations in Canada, the United States, Europe, and Asia. CCM Hockey equips more professional hockey players than any other company, including superstars like Connor McDavid, Auston Matthews, Sidney Crosby, Thatcher Demko, and Tage Thompson, key female players such as Kendall Coyne-Schofield, Sarah Nurse, and Taylor Heise. CCM Hockey is also the official outfitter of the American Hockey League (AHL), the Canadian Hockey League (CHL), the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL), and several NCAA and National teams.
