This week, I’ll break down all 20 OHL clubs division by division and unveil my predictions for the 2012-13 season. Today, let’s look at the Eastern Conference’s Central Division (listed in alphabetical order):

Barrie Colts
Coach/GM: Dale Hawerchuk/Jason Ford
2011-12 finish: 40-23-3-2, 2nd division, 3rd conference
Playoff finish: Lost to Ottawa in conference semifinals
Key players: LW Tanner Pearson (37 goals, 54 assists, 91 points; signed with Los Angeles), C Mark Scheifele (23-40-63 in 47 games; signed with Winnipeg), G Mathias Niederberger (29-14-1-2 record, 2.68 goals-against average, .918 save percentage, 3 shutouts), C Zach Hall (19-40-59), D Ryan O’Connor (8-28-36)
Key losses: C Colin Behenna (26-48-74), C Ivan Telegin (35-29-64; signed with Winnipeg)
Outlook: The continued emergence of standouts like Pearson and Scheifele, and the play of Niederberger in his first season, sparked the Colts to a 25-game improvement in the win column. Now these Colts could be tough to contend with this year.

Brampton Battalion
Coach/GM: Stan Butler
2011-12 finish: 36-22-3-7, 3rd division, 4th conference
Playoff finish: Lost to Niagara 4-0 in conference semifinals
Key players: RW Barclay Goodrow (26-26-52; Carolina prospect), G Matej Machovsky (24-13-0-4, 2.36, .902, 5 SO; Ottawa prospect), D Dylan Blujus (7-27-34), D Cameron Wind (2-19-21, +16), LW Brandon Robinson (15-9-24)
Key losses: C Sam Carrick (16-23-39; signed with Toronto), LW Ian Watters (16-14-30)
Outlook: Defense is the name of the game in Brampton, which has featured one of the league’s top defenses the past several seasons. Machovsky anchors this year’s unit, while a defense led by Blujus and Wind provide plenty of help.

Mississauga Steelheads
Coach/GM: James Boyd
2011-12 finish: 33-28-1-6, 5th division, 6th conference
Playoff finish: Lost to Barrie 4-2 in conference quarterfinals
Key players: LW Riley Brace (33-49-82), D Dylan DeMelo (7-40-47; signed with San Jose), C Kristoff Kontos (15-32-47), D Stuart Percy (4-30-34, plus-50; signed with Toronto), D Trevor Carrick (6-13-19)
Key losses: G Brandon Maxwell (33-22-1-3, 2.92, .913, 6 SO), LW Jamie Wise (31-17-48)
Outlook: This club has a new owner – Mississauga, Ontario, businessman Elliott Kerr, and nickname. But the Steelheads’ new goaltending tandem of Spencer Martin and former Otter Tyson Teichmann will have the biggest impact on this team’s success.

Niagara IceDogs
Coach/GM: Marty Williamson
2011-12 finish: 47-18-0-3, 1st division, 1st conference
Playoff finish: Lost to London 4-1 in league finals
Key players: C Ryan Strome (30-38-68 in 46 games; signed with N.Y. Islanders), D Dougie Hamilton (17-55-72, +37; signed with Boston), D Jesse Graham (4-37-41, +25; N.Y. Islanders prospect), RW Brett Ritchie (24-21-45; signed with Dallas), G Chris Festarini (16-10-0-0, 2.85, .904, 2 SO; former Otter)
Key losses: G Mark Visentin (30-9-0-2, 1.99, .926, 10 SO; signed with Phoenix), C Andrew Agozzino (40-48-88), LW Freddie Hamilton (35-51-86; signed with San Jose), C Alex Friesen (26-45-71; signed with Vancouver), RW David Pacan (29-35-64)
Outlook: Festarini faces serious pressure as Visentin’s replacement in net. But Festarini has plenty of experienced talent – led by Strome and Hamilton – in front of him that will help keep the puck out of the net as well as score a lot of goals.

Sudbury Wolves
Coach/GM: Trent Cull/Blaine Smith
2011-12 finish: 36-26-4-2, 4th division, 5th conference
Playoff finish: Lost to Brampton 4-0 in conference quarterfinals
Key players: LW Joshua Leivo (32-41-73), D Justin Sefton (3-16-19, 143 penalty minutes; San Jose prospect), LW Nathan Pancel (23-21-44), D Frank Corrado (3-23-26, +26), C Matthew Campagna (8-23-31 in 45 games)
Key losses: C Michael Sgarbossa (36-46-82; signed with San Jose), D Josh McFadden (19-53-72; signed with Florida), G Johan Mattsson (23-11-2-1, 3.16, .910), LW Andrey Kuchin (25-40-65), RW Derek Schoenmakers (26-24-50; traded to Windsor)
Outlook: The Wolves spent little time in the playoffs the past two seasons, as they were swept both times. But the departure of skilled leaders like Sgarbossa, McFadden, Mattsson and Kuchin might keep these Wolves out of the playoffs entirely.

- Victor Fernandes

Toronto – The Ontario Hockey League today announced that Andrew Agozzino of the Niagara IceDogs is the 2011-12 recipient of the Mickey Renaud Captain’s Trophy.

A three-year captain with the IceDogs, Agozzino was chosen for the award by a media selection committee as the OHL team captain that best exemplifies leadership on and off the ice, with a passion and dedication to the game of hockey and his community that Mickey demonstrated.

Nomination forms were submitted by OHL general managers on behalf of their individual team captains. The selection committee consisted of a panel of four, representing media from each OHL division.

“It is a special honor to have been awarded of the Mickey Renaud Captain’s Trophy,” said Agozzino, who competed against Mickey as a rookie with the IceDogs in 2007. “Mickey was very well respected and a great captain and to receive this in his memory is something I’m very proud of.”

On the IceDogs nomination form, Agozzino is described as a passionate and determined individual who truly cares for his teammates, his opponents, and the game. He leads by example putting team goals, objectives, and the well-being of those around him before his own personal goals. Agozzino is also very active in the community playing a large role in appearances and team initiatives in each of his five seasons, while personally raising $2,480 for Movember this year. His fundraising efforts led all OHL players in the first year of this CHL-wide initiative in support of men’s health and prostate cancer awareness.

“For five years Andrew has been the heart and soul of the IceDogs, just as Mickey was the heart and soul of the Spitfires,” said IceDogs’ owner Bill Burke. “With Mickey’s mother Jane having been from Niagara Falls and his father Mark having played for the Thunder, there is obviously a connection between the Renaud’s and the Niagara Region, making the award even more special for our team.”

Agozzino is a 21-year-old native of Kleinburg, ON, who played all five of his OHL seasons with the IceDogs after being the franchise’s first ever draft pick selected 15th overall in the 2007 Priority Selection. This season he tied for fifth in league scoring with a career-high 88 points in 67 games scoring 40 goals and 48 assists leading the IceDogs to their first Central Division title and best overall record in team history with a record of 47-18-0-3 for 97 points.

Also named the Overage Player of the Year, he led the IceDogs in both goals and points for the third time in five years finishing his career with a franchise record 159 goals and 147 assists for 306 points in a franchise record 318 regular season games played.

Agozzino becomes the fourth recipient of the award following Ryan Ellis of the Windsor Spitfires, John Kurtz of the Sudbury Wolves, and Chris Terry of the Plymouth Whalers who won the inaugural award for the 2008-09 season.

The Mickey Renaud Captain’s Trophy will be formally presented to Agozzino in addition to the Leo Lalonde Memorial Trophy at the OHL Awards Ceremony on Tuesday June 5 at the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto.

- From OHL news release

Toronto, ON – The Ontario Hockey League today announced that forward Andrew Agozzino of the Niagara IceDogs is the Leo Lalonde Memorial Trophy winner awarded to the OHL’s Overage Player of the Year for the 2011-12 season.

Agozzino tied for fifth in league scoring with a career-high 88 points in 67 games scoring 40 goals and 48 assists leading the IceDogs to their first Central Division title and best overall record in team history with a record of 47-18-0-3 for 97 points. Agozzino becomes the second member of the IceDogs’ to win the award following his former teammate Michael Swift who earned it in the club’s first season in Niagara back in 2007-08.

“It’s a great feeling to win this award and it’s something I was looking forward to at the start of my overage year,” said Agozzino. “Having the opportunity to be an overager on the same team I started with is something special and I would like to thank the entire IceDogs organization for the opportunities they have given me.”

A 21-year-old native of Kleinburg, ON, Agozzino played all five of his OHL seasons with the IceDogs after being the franchise’s first ever draft pick selected 15th overall in the 2007 Priority Selection. This season the three-year captain led the IceDogs in both goals and points for the third time in five years finishing his career with a franchise record 159 goals and 147 assists for 306 points in a franchise record 318 regular season games played. In 2010, Agozzino represented the IceDogs at the OHL All-Star Classic in Kingston, ON, where he was named Eastern Conference Player of the Game scoring an All-Star Classic record four goals.

“We couldn’t be more happy or proud of Andrew winning the Overage Player of the Year Award,” said IceDogs owner Bill Burke. “Andrew is everything you could ask for in a leader, hockey player and a person and is extremely deserving of this award. He has meant everything to this organization in our five years here and will be impossible to replace.”

The Leo Lalonde Memorial Trophy is awarded annually to the top overage player of the year as selected by OHL General Managers. Teams were not permitted to vote for players from their own hockey club. Players received five points for a first place vote, three points for a second place vote and one point for a third place vote.

Agozzino finished the voting process with 53 points just slightly ahead of Owen Sound Attack forward Mike Halmo who finished with 52 points. Defenceman Beau Schmitz of the Plymouth Whalers finished in third with 28 voting points.

Former winners of the trophy include Bill Bowler (Windsor, 1994-95), and Dan Tessier (Ottawa 99-00), along with current NHL stars Chad LaRose (Plymouth 2002-03), and Ryan Callahan (Guelph, 2005-06). Top scorer Jason Akeson of the Kitchener Rangers captured the award last season.

The Leo Lalonde Memorial Trophy was donated by the trainers of the Ontario Hockey League, in memory of the late Leo Lalonde, former Chief Scout of OHL Central Scouting. Leo Lalonde was also formerly the Chief Scout for the Belleville Bulls as well as a scout for the Peterborough Petes.

Agozzino will be formally presented with the Leo Lalonde Memorial Trophy at the 2011-12 OHL Awards Ceremony scheduled for June 5 at the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto.

- From OHL news release

The Erie Otters had a chance to beat the short-handed Niagara IceDogs on Friday night.

But the Otters mustered only 21 shots on goal in a 3-2 loss in front of 2,469 at Tullio Arena, which extended their second-longest losing streak of the season to nine straight games.

Even without several key veterans, including NHL first-round picks Ryan Strome (facial fractures) and Dougie Hamilton (10-game suspension), Niagara dominated the Otters from the outset.

The IceDogs built a 20-7 advantage in shots in the opening period. They also built a 2-0 lead through 20 minutes on goals from Alex Friesen and David Pacan 40 seconds apart midway through the period.

Friesen turned Andrew Agozzino’s centering pass into his 16^th goal of the season at the 9:13 mark. Then Pacan redirected Myles Doan’s cross-ice pass past Otters goaltender Ramis Sadikov, who had 43 saves.

The IceDogs controlled the play to start the second period as well. But a fortunate bounce allowed the Otters to slice Niagara’s lead in half at 2-1. Goaltender Mark Visentin stopped Dane Fox’s shot, but the rebound caromed to Connor Brown. The rookie winger scored into an empty net 6:45 into the period.

Jimmy McDowell also earned an assist on the goal for his first point as an Otter. Niagara regained a two-goal lead at 3-1 on Agozzino’s rebound – his 24^th goal of the season – with 10:53 left in the period. But Fox scored on the power play on an assist from McDowell to pull the Otters within 3-2 just 3 minutes later. The Otters were within a goal despite being outshot 36-17 through two periods.

Yet the Otters couldn’t find their offense in the third. They recorded one shot on goal in the opening 10 minutes of the third. They finished with four shots on goal in the period. Their best chance to tie the game – Anthony Cortellessa’s shot from the right wing – caromed off the post behind Visentin.

Agozzino had a goal and assist for the IceDogs (27-13-0-3), which has won six straight and 10 of their past 11 games. Fox (goal, assist) and McDowell (two assists) paced the Otters (5-36-1-1).

- Victor Fernandes

SUMMARY

IceDogs 3, Otters 2

Niagara  2  1  0  —  3

Erie  0  2  0  —  2

1^st Period — 1. Niagara, Alex Friesen 16 (Agozzino), 9:13. 2. Niagara, David Pacan 20 (Doan, Verhaeghe), 9:53. Penalties — Fox (E) hooking, 2:51; Agozzino (N) goaltender interference, 12:00.

2^nd Period — 3. Erie, Connor Brown 15 (Fox, McDowell), 6:45. 4. Niagara, Andrew Agozzino 24 (Ritchie, Doudera), 10:53. 5. Erie, Dane Fox 16 (McDowell), 13:46 (pp). Penalties — Graham (N) interference, 12:48.

3^rd Period — None. Penalties — Kuhnhackl (N) high sticking, 3:11; McDowell (E) interference, 10:14.

Shots on goal — Niagara, 20-16-10—46; Erie, 7-10-4—21.

Goaltenders — Niagara, Mark Visentin 15-7-0-2 (21 shots, 19 saves); Erie, Ramis Sadikov 3-17-1-1 (46 shots, 43 saves).

Power plays — Niagara (0-2), Erie (1-3).

Referees — Joe Celestin, Garrett Rank. Linesmen — Adam Harris, Mike Harrington.

Attendance — 2,469.

Three stars

* Andrew Agozzino, IceDogs (goal, assist) ** Dane Fox, Otters (goal, assist) *** Ramis Sadikov, Otters (43 saves)

ST. CATHARINES, Ontario – The Erie Otters were nearly at full strength Thursday night.

But that wasn’t enough to avoid another blowout loss and equal a franchise record for futility.

The Otters suffered their 11^th straight defeat in a 7-2 loss to Niagara in front of 3,145 at Gatorade Garden City Complex. That tied the 2006-07 club for the longest losing streak in franchise history. They have been outscored 59-18 during the skid.

The game began with promise, as goaltender Ramis Sadikov (concussion) played for the first time in nearly three weeks. Adam Pelech (fractured wrist) played on defense for the first time in two months.

Rookie winger Sondre Olden (gash on left thigh) ended a three-week absence. Second-year winger Chris Marchese also returned to action after missing the past two games. Mike Cazzola (soreness) missed the game. But Niagara’s Andrew Agozzino was in the spotlight, as his natural hat trick handed the IceDogs a 3-0 lead early in the second period.

Connor Brown put the Otters (3-23-0-0) on the scoreboard 7 minutes, 12 seconds into the third to slice their deficit to 4-1. But the IceDogs (15-10-0-2) scored three of the game’s final four goals.

Stephen Harper scored his ninth goal of the season to tie Brown for the team lead. Sadikov stopped 40-of-47 shots. Pelech had an assist was a plus-1 in his first game since Sept. 24 and third of the season.

Olden and Marchese combined for no points and a minus-2. Agozzino and Dougie Hamilton (three assists) had three points apiece for the IceDogs. Mitchell Theoret scored two goals.

The Otters return to Tullio Arena today for a 7 p.m. game against Barrie.

SUMMARY

IceDogs 7, Otters 2

Erie  0  0  2  —  2

Niagara  2  2  3  —  7

1^st Period — 1. Niagara, Andrew Agozzino 11 (Strome, Mercer), 17:48. 2. Niagara, Agozzino 12 (unassisted), 19:59. Penalties — Mercer (N) hooking, 9:12; Betz (E) slashing, 12:59.

2^nd Period — 3. Niagara, Agozzino 13 (Verhaeghe), 5:13. 4. Niagara, Mitchell Theoret 5 (D. Hamilton, Strome), 8:37. Penalties — Rover (N) elbowing, 15:16; McDonnell (E) 5-min. fighting, 15:16; Rover (N) 5-min. fighting, 15:16; Doan (N) tripping, 17:32

3^rd Period — 5. Erie, Connor Brown 9 (unassisted), 7:14. 6. Niagara, David Pacan 14 (Graham, Visentin), 9:42. 7. Niagara, Freddie Hamilton 14 (Graham, D. Hamilton), 14:34. 8. Erie, Stephen Harper 9 (Murphy, Pelech), 14:48. 9. Niagara, Theoret 6 (F. Hamilton, D. Hamilton), 17:37 (pp). Penalties — Niagara, too many men (served by Petersen), :59; Erie, too many men (served by Harper), 2:12; Pelech (E) tripping, 7:23; Glass (E) delay of game, 16:38; Maaskant (E) slashing, 17:17.

Shots on goal — Erie, 10-8-13—31; Niagara, 17-15-15—47.

Goaltenders — Erie, Ramis Sadikov 2-6-0-0 (47 shots, 40 saves); Niagara, Mark Visentin 9-7-0-1 (31 shots, 29 saves).

Power plays — Erie (0-4), Niagara (1-5).

Referees — Mike Cairns, Joe Celestin. Linesmen — Chris Thornton, Darryl Wolfe.

Attendance — 3,145.

Three stars

* Andrew Agozzino, IceDogs (3 goals) ** David Pacan, IceDogs (goal, assist) *** Mark Visentin, IceDogs (29 saves)

The Erie Otters couldn’t snap their long losing streak, even with Brad Boyes in attendance.

The Niagara IceDogs erased a two-goal deficit with a four-goal barrage in the second period to hand the Otters their seventh straight loss, 6-4, in front of 3,076 at Tullio Arena on Wednesday night.

Andrew Agozzino, Joel Wigle, Freddie Hamilton and Ryan Strome scored in the decisive period for the IceDogs (6-6-0-1), which turned a 3-1 deficit into a 5-3 lead.

Dougie Hamilton led the IceDogs with a goal and two assists. Agozzino had two goals while Freddie Hamilton and Strome had two points apiece.

A surprise visit from Boyes, the Buffalo Sabres forward and most revered player in Otters’ franchise history, seemed to inspire the home team. The Otters overcame Agozzino’s goal 1:15 into the game by scoring three straight goals, starting with Brett Cook’s tying goal at the 4:04 mark of the period.

Cook turned assists from Greg McKegg and Brett Thompson into his second goal of the season. Then the Otters scored twice in less than three minutes late in the period to take a 3-1 lead into the intermission.

Rookie winger Sondre Olden scored his team-leading fifth goal of the season, this one on the power play, on assists from Connor Brown and Kris Grant to snap the 1-1 tie with 5:31 left in the first. Then first-round pick Stephen Harper scored his second goal on an assist from Brown with 2:14 left in the period.

But things fell apart for the Otters in the second, as the IceDogs scored four goals to take a 5-3 lead.

Agozzino scored his second goal of the night, this time with the man advantage, at the 6:42 mark. Then the IceDogs capitalized on sloppy play from the Otters’ power play to take a two-goal lead.

Freddie Hamilton scored short-handed on an assist from David Pacan with 6:33 left in the period. Then a mix-up in front of Otters goaltender Tyson Teichmann led to Strome’s short-handed goal 10 seconds later. Erie rebounded early in the third with a short-handed goal, as Thompson and McKegg teamed to pull the Otters within 5-4 at the 2:45 mark while the IceDogs were on a 5-minute power play. But the IceDogs responded on the same power play, with Dougie Hamilton scoring 57 seconds later.

- Victor Fernandes