Canadian Hockey League teams have one more chance to select goaltenders in the CHL Import Draft.
On Tuesday, the league announced goaltenders won’t be eligible for the annual draft of European-born players starting in 2014. Goaltenders born in 1994 and 1995 can be chosen in the first round of this year’s two-round draft, which will be held July 3. The decision, which was approved by the CHL’s Board of Directors at a meeting in May, is in apparent response to the need to create more opportunities for Canadian-born goaltenders at the major junior level.
“The goaltender position is the most important in our game,” CHL president David Branch, who also serves as Ontario Hockey League commissioner, said in a prepared statement. “In partnership with Hockey Canada, the CHL has identified the need to further develop Canadian goaltenders by providing increased opportunities for them to compete in our league and succeed at the next level.”
European-born goaltenders currently with teams in the CHL’s three leagues – the OHL, Quebec Major Junior Hockey League and Western Hockey League – or selected in next month’s draft can continue to play until their eligibility expires. The Erie Otters, who have the fifth overall pick in this coming draft, already have Swedish goaltender Oscar Dansk on the roster. The Otters selected Dansk third overall in the 2012 CHL draft. They also enjoyed past success with European-born goaltenders, including Jaroslav Janus (No. 2 overall in 2007) and Ramis Sadikov (No. 36 overall in 2009).
Shootout
Staff writer Victor Fernandes has ice in his veins. Hockey – he plays it, coaches it and provides the region's best coverage of it. Read more about this blog.
Posts tagged ‘western hockey league’
Posted: June 11th, 2013
Comments (0) »
Posted: June 27th, 2012
The Erie Otters of the Ontario Hockey League selected Swedish goaltender Oscar Dansk (DAHN-sk) from Brynäs of the Elitserien with the third overall selection in the 2012 CHL Import Draft Wednesday morning.
Born February 28, 1994 in Stockholm, the 6-foot-2, 187-pound Dansk was drafted by the Columbus Blue Jackets with the 31st overall pick of the 2012 NHL Entry Draft. Dansk was ranked second among European goaltenders by NHL Central Scouting in their final rankings for the draft.
In 28 games in the junior-level Super Elitserien, Dansk had a 2.82 goals-against-average and a save percentage of .910 with Brynäs. He also won a silver medal with Sweden at the 2012 IIHF Under-18 World Championships.
Dansk has previously played in North America with the storied Shattuck-St. Mary’s program in Minnesota, which has produced hockey superstars such as Pittsburgh Penguins center Sidney Crosby, New Jersey Devils left wing Zach Parise and Chicago Blackhawks center Jonathan Toews.
Elite Prospects describes Dansk as “A very agile goalie with a large frame. Plays a hybrid style of play. Solid technical skills and is also strong mentally. Uses his size to his advantage and cuts off angles well. A good competitor.”
The Otters will select their next player in the 63rd spot.
The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League’s Moncton Wildcats used the first overall pick to select Russia left wing Ivan Barbashev. The Prince Albert Raiders of the Western Hockey League selected German left wing Leon Draisaitl with the second overall pick.
- From Erie Otters news release
Posted: June 14th, 2012
The Erie Otters of the Ontario Hockey League are proud to announce that forward Stephen Harper is one of 40 players invited by Hockey Canada to attend Canada’s National Men’s Summer Under-18 Team selection camp, August 3-6 at the MasterCard Centre in Toronto, Ont.
Harper last played on the international stage at the 2012 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge in Windsor, Ont., where he won a bronze medal with Team Ontario. Harper scored two goals in five games during the tournament.
In his first OHL season with the Otters, Harper collected 24 goals and 11 assists, sharing team Rookie of the Year honors with Connor Brown. Harper’s 24 goals were the most among 1995-born players in the OHL last season.
The roster includes four goaltenders, 12 defensemen and 24 forwards. The players, born in 1995 and 1996, were selected by Hockey Canada head scout Kevin Prendergast, in consultation with head coach Todd Gill and assistant coaches Yanick Jean and Scott Walker.
“These players are the cream of the crop of under-18 talent in Canada, and it’s going to be exciting to see them battle for 22 roster spots,” Prendergast said. “As it is every year, there were some tough decisions to get down to 40, and they’ll be even tougher decisions to make to finalize the roster.”
The camp roster includes 17 players from the Ontario Hockey League, 13 from the Western Hockey League and 10 from the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. Of the 40 players who have been invited to the selection camp, 22 will be selected for Canada’s National Men’s Summer Under-18 Team, which will play in the 2012 Memorial of Ivan Hlinka tournament, scheduled for August 13-18 in Piestany, Slovakia and Breclav, Czech Republic.
Otters defenseman Adam Pelech won a gold medal with Team Canada at last year’s Memorial of Ivan Hlinka.
Also participating in the selection camp is Otters equipment manager Mike Hildenbrand, who is set to begin his third season with the Otters after stints with the Windsor Spitfires and ECHL’s Victoria Salmon Kings.
- From Erie Otters news release
Posted in: Erie Otters, Uncategorized
Posted: May 26th, 2012
SHAWINIGAN, Quebec – The Erie Otters have a connection to Sunday’s Memorial Cup title game.
Former Otters Brett Cook, Greg McKegg and Tyson Teichmann play for the London Knights, which face the host Shawinigan Cataractes at 7 p.m. for the Canadian Hockey League championship.
McKegg has one point, a goal, in three games at the four-team tournament, while Cook has no points, a minus-1 rating and 13 penalty minutes in three games. Teichmann has not appeared in any games.
The OHL champion Knights advanced to the final with a 2-1 record. They beat Saint John, the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League champion, 5-3, before losing to Shawinigan 6-2. Then the Knights beat the Edmonton, the Western Hockey League champion 6-2.
The game can be seen live on NHL Network.
Posted in: Erie Otters, Uncategorized
Posted: May 18th, 2012
NEW YORK — For the fifth consecutive year, NHL Network™ U.S. will air the MasterCard Memorial Cup, the championship of the Canadian Hockey League. NHL Network U.S will feature a combination of live and tape-delayed broadcasts throughout the 10 days of competition from the host city of Shawinigan, Quebec.
Fans will have the opportunity to see the NHL’s future stars and 2012 NHL Draft™ picks from May 18-27 at the Canadian Hockey League’s elite event. The host Shawinigan Cataractes of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League will be joined by the QMJHL champion Saint John Sea Dogs; the Ontario Hockey League champion London Knights; and the winner of the Western Hockey League, the Edmonton Oil Kings.
Each team will play three games in the preliminary round-robin, May 18-23. The semifinal game is May 25 and the championship game is May 27.
NHL Network U.S. will telecast Rogers Sportsnet’s coverage of all the championship games with the broadcast team of play-by-play man RJ Broadhead, analyst Sam Cosentino and host Rob Faulds. Each live game broadcast will feature intermission reports from NHL Network’s own NHL Tonight™ team in Toronto. All games will be broadcast in high definition.
MasterCard Memorial Cup games will be live unless there is a Stanley Cup® Conference Final game being played that night. In those instances, NHL Network will offer a broadcast of the MasterCard Memorial Cup game on a tape delay. Additional live game coverage from the championship will be added to the NHL Network U.S. schedule as the Stanley Cup Conference Finals series conclude. Fans are encouraged to check www.nhlnetwork.com for updates.
NHL.com also will have special coverage of the championship in its entirety with a team of reporters and videographers on-site to cover the sights and sounds of the CHL’s best.
2012 MasterCard Memorial Cup on NHL Network U.S. Schedule (all times Eastern)
Date Game Time (ET)
Fri., May 18 Edmonton vs. Shawinigan 7:00 p.m. (LIVE)
Sat., May 19 Edmonton vs. Shawinigan 10:00 a.m. (tape delay)
Sat., May 19 Saint John vs. London 7:00 p.m. (LIVE)
Sun., May 20 Saint John vs. London 10:00 a.m. (tape delay)
Sun., May 20 Shawinigan vs. London 7:00 p.m. (LIVE)
Mon., May 21 Shawinigan vs. London 1:00 p.m. (tape delay)
Tue., May 22 Saint John vs. Edmonton 1:00 p.m. (tape delay)
Wed., May 23 London vs. Edmonton 1:00 p.m. (tape delay)
Thur., May 24 Shawinigan vs. Saint John 1:00 p.m. (tape delay)
Fri., May 25 tiebreaker* (if necessary) 1:00 p.m. (tape delay)
Fri., May 25 Semifinal TBA
Sun., May 27 Championship TBA
** for a complete MasterCard Memorial Cup schedule, visit
www.mastercardmemorialcup.ca.
Posted: April 22nd, 2012
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.
Posted in: Erie Otters, Uncategorized
Posted: December 15th, 2011
The Erie Otters of the Ontario Hockey League have announced that defenseman Adam Pelech will participate in the 2012 Home Hardware CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game, which will take place Wednesday, February 1 in Kelowna, British Columbia.
The 2012 Home Hardware CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game will mark the 17th annual showcase of the CHL’s top-40 NHL draft eligible players featuring talent from the Western Hockey League, Ontario Hockey League, and Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. The two-day event also features an exciting skills competition and three-on-three challenge taking place on Tuesday, January 31.
Pelech is the first Otters defenseman to participate in the Top Prospects Game since Brian Lee in 2002 and is the 14th player from Erie selected to play in the game. Andrew Yogan (2010), Ryan O’Reilly (2009), Nick Palmieri (2007) and Zack Torquato (2007) are some of the recent players to have participated in the Top Prospects Game.
In an injury-shortened season, Pelech has excelled with six assists and a plus-two rating in eight games. He appeared in all but three games last season and was selected as the team’s Rookie of the Year at the Annual Summer Awards Banquet in June. Pelech has also won gold medals at the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge with Team Ontario and at the Memorial of Ivan Hlinka with Team Canada.
- From Erie Otters news release
Posted: October 12th, 2011
Calgary, AB – The Western Hockey League announced today that the Saskatoon Blades have been selected to host the 2013 MasterCard Memorial Cup. The 2013 MasterCard Memorial Cup will be held at the Credit Union Centre in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, from May 17-26, 2013 and will mark the 95th edition of the Canadian Hockey League national championship.
Three WHL Clubs – Kelowna Rockets, Red Deer Rebels and Saskatoon Blades – submitted applications to host the 2013 MasterCard Memorial Cup. The decision to award the hosting of the 2013 MasterCard Memorial Cup to Saskatoon was made by a majority vote of the WHL Board of Governors on Wednesday, October 12th in Calgary.
The 2012 MasterCard Memorial Cup will be hosted by the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League and the Shawinigan Cataractes from May 18 to 27, 2012 in Shawinigan, Quebec. The Memorial Cup features a four team round robin format with the host club competing with the Champions from the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, Ontario Hockey League and the Western Hockey League.
- From CHL news release
Posted in: Erie Otters, Uncategorized
Posted: August 14th, 2010
Erie Otters forward David Broll and Canada captured their third straight gold medal at the Memorial of Ivan Hlinka tournament with a 1-0 victory over the United States on Saturday afternoon in Piestany, Slovakia.
The lone goal of the contest was scored by Western Hockey League forward Ryan Nugent-Hopkins 1:42 into the first period. Nugent-Hopkins, a member of the Red Deer Rebels, is the early favorite for first overall in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft.
With the championship, Broll joins Ryan O’Reilly as Otters that have played on a gold-medal winning team at the Hlinka tournament. Broll finished the tournament with three assists.
- From Erie Otters news release
Posted: July 20th, 2010
John Rosso (Contributed/Mercyhurst College)
Mercyhurst College Director of Athletics Joe Kimball announced Monday the hiring of John Rosso as a men’s hockey assistant coach. Rosso, who joins the head coach Rick Gotkin and the Lakers after serving in the same capacity with the Sioux Falls Stampede of the United States Hockey League, replaces Brian Burke, who resigned in June to take over as head coach of Victory Honda in Michigan.
“We’re really excited to welcome John Rosso to the Laker family,” said Gotkin. “With his coaching and recruiting background, we know he will make an immediate impact on our players and the program, and continue to attract the kind of student-athletes that we like to recruit here at Mercyhurst.”
Rosso, a native of Hopkins, Minn., brings an extensive hockey background to the men’s hockey program, serving as an assistant coach and recruiting scout in the USHL, the North American Hockey League, Central Collegiate Hockey Association and Western Hockey League.
Most recently, Rosso helped Sioux Falls to a 27-24-9 record and a fifth-place finish in the Western Division this past season, falling just one point shy of clinching a playoff berth. He also served as the team’s top scout, recruiting and coaching 29 players that received NCAA Division I scholarships.
Prior to joining the Stampede in 2008, Rosso spent three seasons with the Alexandria Blizzard (NAHL), working under head coach and general manager Brad Willner. In his final season, the Blizzard compiled a 29-25-4 regular season record, won the Central Division playoffs and earned a spot in the Robertson Cup Finals.
Rosso got his start in coaching at his alma mater, the University of Nebraska-Omaha, in 2004, serving as a volunteer assistant coach. The Mavericks excelled with him on staff, building a 19-16-4 record and reaching the CCHA Super Six for the first time in four years.
A 2001 graduate of UNO, Rosso earned a degree in history while playing four years of hockey under head coach Mike Kemp. Rosso’s first season as a Maverick in 1997 was a memorable one, as the school reinstated hockey after a 21-year hiatus. Three years into his career the Mavericks made the move to the CCHA and, that same year, reached the conference final after a stunning 7-4 upset of Michigan in the CCHA Final Four. During his career, Rosso was honored with several awards including the UNO Student Achievement and Most Improved Player Awards.
After graduation, Rosso spent three years working as a recruiting scout with the Waterloo Blackhawks (USHL) in 2002, Portland Winterhawks (WHL) in 2003 and Green Bay Gamblers (USHL) in 2004 before returning to Omaha.
- From Mercyhurst College news release
