Erie Otters winger Stephen Harper stood 128th among North American skaters on NHL Central Scouting’s final rankings for the 2013 NHL Entry Draft, which was released Wednesday. Harper, 18, slid 90 spots down the list after being picked 38th in the midterm rankings released in January. He had 18 goals and 38 points in 67 games this season after totaling 24 goals and 35 points in 63 games as a rookie in the 2011-12 OHL season.
Otters winger Nick Betz, 17, doesn’t appear in the final rankings after standing 106th among North American skaters on the midterm list. He had four goals and 12 points in 44 games this season. He missed two months of the season’s opening half recovering from an appendectomy.
Defenseman Seth Jones (Portland, WHL) and goaltender Zachary Fucale (Halifax, QMJHL) top the list among North American skaters and goaltenders, respectively. Sault Ste. Marie defenseman Darnell Nurse and Ottawa center Sean Monahan rank among the top five skaters, while Mississauga’s Spencer Martin ranks fifth among goaltenders. The Finnish-born duo of Aleksander Barkov and Juuse Saros top the list of European skaters and goaltenders, respectively. The NHL Entry Draft is set for June 30 at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J.

The OHL will unveil the winner of the Emms Family Award for OHL rookie of the year Thursday at 11 a.m. Erie Otters center Connor McDavid (25 goals, 41 assists, 66 points) headlines a list of finalists that also includes forwards Sam Bennett (18-22-40 with Brampton), Blake Clarkee (19-32-51) with Brampton, Michael Dal Colle (15-33-48 with Oshawa), Nikolay Goldobin (30-38-68 with Sarnia) and Sergey Tolchinsky (26-25-51 with Sault Ste. Marie).

Victor Fernandes unveils his predictions for the OHL playoffs:

Eastern Conference
Quarterfinals
No. 1 Belleville def. No. 8 Mississauga, 4-1
No. 2 Barrie def. No. 7 Kingston, 4-0
No. 6 Niagara def. No. 3 Oshawa, 4-2
No. 4 Brampton def. No. 5 Sudbury, 4-2
Semifinals
No. 1 Belleville def. No. 6 Niagara, 4-2
No. 2 Barrie def. No. 4 Brampton, 4-1
Finals
No. 1 Belleville def. No. 2 Barrie, 4-3

Western Conference
Quarterfinals
No. 1 London def. No. 8 Saginaw, 4-0
No. 2 Plymouth def. No. 7 Sarnia, 4-1
No. 3 Owen Sound def. No. 6 Sault Ste. Marie, 4-1
No. 5 Guelph def. No. 4 Kitchener, 4-3
Semifinals
No. 1 London def. No. 5 Guelph, 4-1
No. 2 Plymouth def. No. 3 Owen Sound, 4-2
Finals
No. 2 Plymouth def. No. 1 London, 4-3

League finals
No. 1W Plymouth def. No. 1E Belleville, 4-2

- Victor Fernandes

BRNO, Czech Republic – Erie Otters defenseman Adam Pelech and Canada captured the bronze medal with a 5-4 overtime win against Finland in the third-place game at the IIHF World Under-18 Championship Sunday. Pelech no points and one shot on goal in the game to finish the tournament with no points, nine shots on goal and eight penalty minutes in seven games.
Hunter Shinkaruk, who plays for Medicine Hat in the Western Hockey League, scored his third goal of the game 2 minutes, 5 seconds into overtime to seal the victory. Belleville’s Brendan Gaunce scored a goal and Oshawa’s Scott Laughton had two assists for Canada, while Sault Ste. Marie’s Matt Murray stopped 29-of-33 shots in net. The United States won the gold medal with a 7-0 win against Sweden.

BRNO, Czech Republic – Erie Otters defenseman Adam Pelech has to settle for a chance to win a bronze medal at the IIHF World Under-18 Championship. Canada lost to the undefeated United States 2-1 Friday in the semifinals, setting up a third-place matchup against Finland on Sunday at 6 a.m. The U.S. will face unbeaten Sweden, a 7-3 semifinal winner against Finland, for the gold medal Sunday at 10 a.m.
Pelech had no points, one shot on goal and two penalty minutes against the U.S. He has no points, eight shots and eight penalty minutes in six games at the tournament. Owen Sound’s Gemel Smith scored Canada’s lone goal, which tied the score at 1 late in the first period. The U.S. scored the winning goal 6 minutes, 26 seconds into the third against Sault Ste. Marie’s Matt Murray, stopped 25 of 27 shots.

BRECLAV, Czech Republic – Erie Otters defenseman Adam Pelech and Canada defeated Russia 4-2 Thursday in the quarterfinals of the IIHF World Under-18 Championship on Thursday.
Pelech had no points, one shot on goal and two penalty minutes for Canada, which faces the unbeaten United States in the semifinals Friday at 1 p.m. in Brno, Czech Republic. Canada lost to the U.S. 5-3 in the final preliminary-round game Tuesday.
Windsor’s Kerby Rychel scored two goals against Russia. Sault Ste. Marie’s Matt Murray stopped 28-of-30 shots. Finland beat Germany 8-0 in Thursday’s other quarterfinal, setting up a semifinal matchup against unbeaten Sweden Friday at 9 a.m.

Toronto – The Ontario Hockey League today announced that Michael Houser of the London Knights is the 2011-12 recipient of the OHL’s Goaltender of the Year award.

Houser posted a 46-15-0-1 record backstopping the Knights to their fifth Hamilton Spectator Trophy as the OHL’s top regular season team, and tied an OHL single season record for most wins by a goaltender. He becomes the third member of the Knights to win the award following Adam Dennis in 2006, and Steve Mason in 2007.

“I am proud to receive this award, it was a great season individually and most importantly from a team standpoint we were successful,” said Houser. “I was fortunate to have a good group of defencemen in front of me that made my job easy.”

Houser, a 19-year-old from Wexford, PA, is just the second American goaltender to win the award following Ottawa Senators netminder Craig Anderson of Park Ridge, IL, who claimed the honour in 2001 with the Guelph Storm. This season Houser played in 62 games to lead all goaltenders, also leading the way with 1862 saves while finishing second with six shutout victories.

His goals-against-average of 2.47 was third-best in the league, and his save percentage of .925 ranked fourth overall. Houser opened the season with a shutout victory and five straight wins to claim the season’s first Vaughn CHL Goaltender of the Week award. He also recorded a season-high winning-streak of nine games from December 30 through January 22, and finished the season as the Vaughn OHL Goaltender of the Month for March. In total, Houser stopped at least 30 shots in 36 different games this season including six games with 40 or more saves.

“Michael has been a winning goaltender since he joined the team three years ago,” said Knights Goaltending Coach Bill Dark. “He has a high standard of work ethic and is a true leader of this team. Often times the more respected a goalie is among his teammates, the better the guys play in front of him, and that was certainly the case this year.”

The OHL Goaltender of the Year is awarded to the league’s most outstanding goaltender as selected by OHL General Managers. Teams were not permitted to vote for a goaltender from their own hockey club. Goaltenders received five points for a first place vote, three points for a second place vote and one point for a third place vote.

Houser received 74 points in the voting process while last year’s winner Mark Visentin of the Niagara IceDogs finished in second place with 46 voting points. John Gibson of the Kitchener Rangers finished in third place with 30 voting points.

The award was first presented in 1987-88 to Rick Tabaracci (Cornwall) with other notable winners including Andrew Raycroft (Kingston 1999-00), Ray Emery (Sault Ste. Marie 2001-02), and Mike Murphy of the Belleville Bulls who is the only goaltender to win the award twice in 2007-08 and 2008-09.

Houser will be formally presented with the OHL’s Goaltender of the Year Award on Tuesday, June 5 at the OHL Awards Ceremony held at the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto. He is also the OHL’s nominee for the CHL Goaltender of the Year.

- From OHL news release

BRECLAV, Czech Republic – Erie Otters defenseman Adam Pelech and Canada fell to Finland 4-2 Saturday in their second preliminary-round game at the IIHF World Under-18 Championship.
Pelech had no points and two penalty minutes, while Windsor’s Kerby Rychel scored a goal.
Sault Ste. Marie’s Matt Murray allowed all four goals on 39 shots for Canada, which faces host Czech Republic on Monday at 10 a.m. in Brno, Czech Republic.

BRNO, Czech Republic – Erie Otters defenseman Adam Pelech and Canada opened the IIHF World Under-18 Championship with a 6-1 win Thursday against Denmark. Pelech, an assistant captain, had no points, two shots on goal and two penalty minutes.
Windsor’s Kerby Rychel had a goal and assist for Canada, which returns to action Saturday at 10 a.m. against Finland. Oshawa’s Scott Laughton and Owen Sound’s Gemel Smith had a goal apiece. Sault Ste. Marie goaltender Matt Murray stopped 15-of-16 shots.

Toronto, ON – The Ontario Hockey League today announced that Brandon Saad of the Saginaw Spirit is the 2011-12 recipient of the William Hanley Trophy awarded to the OHL’s Most Sportsmanlike Player.

Saad, a 19-year-old from Gibsonia, PA, scored 34 goals and 42 assists for 76 points in just 44 games while recording just 38 penalty minutes in his second OHL season with the Spirit. He becomes the second member of the Spirit to win the award following current Tampa Bay Lightning forward Tom Pyatt who received the honour in 2006-07.

“It’s an honor to win any award and be recognized by the league,” commented Saad. “I’m excited about the news and happy to win the award and accept this award on behalf of the Saginaw Spirit and my teammates.”

The Spirit captain led all OHL players with 1.73 points-per-game after beginning the season with the Chicago Blackhawks who selected him in the second round of the 2011 NHL Entry Draft. Upon his return to Saginaw he immediately produced an eight-game point-streak and received OHL Player of the Week honours following his second week in action ending October 23. That week included his first career five-point game where he scored a career-high four goals October 20 as first star of a 5-2 win over the Brampton Battalion.

A member of the U.S National Junior Team at the 2012 IIHF World Junior Championship, Saad recorded 21 multi-point games this season and had the fourth longest point-streak in the league at 16 games between January 15 and February 24. He also finished with the sixth-best plus-minus rating in the OHL with a mark of plus-35.

“Brandon has been an outstanding player for the Spirit organization,” said Head Coach Greg Gilbert. “His commitment both on and off the ice exemplifies the type of player and person he is. His passion for the game and his leadership for our club have been second to none. He plays each game with determination and respect, not only for the game itself, but for his team and opponents. He is a true leader.”

The William Hanley Trophy is awarded each year based on a selection by the 20 General Managers of the Ontario Hockey League. Teams are not permitted to vote for their own candidate with players receiving five points for a first place vote, three points for a second place vote, and one point for a third place vote. The trophy is presented by the OHL to commemorate William Hanley, former Secretary-Manager of the Ontario Hockey Association for over 25 years.

“Since his first day in Saginaw, Brandon Saad has displayed an extraordinary commitment to doing things right, both on and off the ice,” said Craig Goslin, Spirit Managing Partner, President and Governor. “Whether communicating with his teammates or visiting sick kids in a local hospital or doing a community appearance, his approach is consistently conducted with class and respect for others. Our franchise has certainly been the recipient of an outstanding future NHL hockey player and an outstanding person as well.”

Saad received 45 points in the voting process ahead of Tobias Rieder of the Kitchener Rangers who received 38 voting points, and Freddie Hamilton of the Niagara IceDogs who finished in third place with 31 voting points.

Former winners of the William Hanley Trophy include Wayne Gretzky (Sault Ste. Marie 1977-78), Brian Campbell (Ottawa 1998-99), Brad Boyes (Erie 2000-01 and 2001-02), Jeff Carter (Sault Ste. Marie 2004-05), Wojtek Wolski (Brampton 2005-06), and Cody Hodgson (Brampton 2008-09). Last season OHL top scorer Jason Akeson of the Kitchener Rangers claimed the award, while Ryan Spooner won the award in 2009-10 as a member of the Peterborough Petes.

Saad will be presented with the William Hanley Trophy at the 2011-12 OHL Awards Ceremony set for Tuesday June 5 at the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto. He will also be the OHL’s nominee for Sportsman of the Year at the Annual CHL Awards.

- From OHL news release