The city of London, Ontario, and the OHL’s London Knights will host the 2014 Mastercard Memorial Cup, the league announced Tuesday.
The Knights earned the right to hold the CHL’s annual tournament, which includes champions of the OHL, WHL and QMJHL and the host club, over the Barrie Colts and Windsor Spitfires. Officials from all three clubs made formal bid presentations to the site selection committee this past April 17.
The Knights’ potential roster, which has more than 22 players eligible to return from a team that won a second straight league championship Monday, proved to be in the Knights’ favor. “The site selection committee determined that while all three clubs possess sufficient elements for a suitable host city,” OHL legal counsel Gord Kirke, a committee members, said in a statement, “it is the projected quality of the London Knights Hockey Club next season that is the decisive factor.” The 96th annual tournament will be held at Budweiser Gardens in London May 16-25, 2014. The Knights begin play in the 2013 Memorial Cup Friday in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, against the host Saskatoon Blades.

Plymouth Whalers (34-17-5-4) at Erie Otters (17-36-3-5)
When: Today, 7 p.m.
Where: Erie Insurance Arena
On the air: WFNN-AM/1330, www.ottershockey.com (live stream)
Upcoming schedule: Saturday vs. Windsor, 7 p.m., March 8-9 at Owen Sound, 7:30 p.m.
What to expect: The Otters have lost five straight – two shy of their matching season-worst skid set Jan. 21 to Feb. 3 – and eight of their last 10 games. … They will play without four regulars suspended by the OHL – forwards Dane Fox (14 goals, 30 points in 31 games), Jake Evans (5-11-16) and Hayden Hodgson (8-4-12) and defenseman Adam Pelech (7-30-37). … Hodgson will miss the final seven games of the season and first three games of the 2013-14 season for a hit that injured rookie LW Henri Ikonen, Kingston’s leading scorer, in last Sunday’s loss. … Evans will miss both games this weekend for instigating the second fight in the same stoppage during that game. … Fox completes a two-game suspension tonight for instigating a fight in the last five minutes of a loss to Sarnia Feb. 22. … Pelech completes his five-game suspension this weekend for a 5-minute cross-checking penalty and game misconduct Feb. 18 in London. … The Otters also remain without captain Connor Brown (concussion). He hopes to resume skating next week, and holds out hope he can rejoin the lineup before the season ends March 16 against Guelph. … Otters coach Kris Knoblauch said club officials would like to recall prospects to fill in for those missing players. But those prospects are still in the playoffs with Tier II teams. Knoblauch was unsure if they could arrange call-ups in time for tonight’s game. … Otters C Connor McDavid (24-34-58) and Sarnia RW Nikolay Goldobin (26-32-58) are tied atop the league’s rookie scoring list. Both teams have seven games left. McDavid leads Goldobin by two in assists and trails Goldobin by two in goals. … Plymouth entered Thursday night’s game at Niagara leading the West Division by five points over Sault Ste. Marie and second in the Western Conference. … The Whalers have won eight of their last 10 games. … They began Thursday leading the league with 246 goals scored. The Otters have allowed 277 goals, the second-worst total. … Plymouth can sweep the four-game season series from the Otters with a win. … C Vincent Trocheck, a Pittsburgh native, ranks second in the league with 42 goals, third with 91 points and seventh with 49 assists. He has 18 goals and 41 points in 20 games since being acquired from Saginaw Jan. 10. … Windsor (24-29-1-6) entered Thursday night’s home game against OHL-leading London trailing Saginaw by nine points for the Western Conference’s final playoff spot. The Spitfires have seven games left. … They had lost seven of their previous 10 games.
Note: Plymouth’s record doesn’t include Thursday night’s game at Niagara.

* More online: Check out Otters rookie winger Hayden Hodgson’s thoughts on his 10-game suspension on the Shootout hockey blog at GoErie.com/blogs/shootout and Twitter at www.twitter.com/goeriehockey.

- Victor Fernandes

Erie Otters (17-33-3-5) at Windsor Spitfires (22-28-1-6)
When: Thursday, 7:05 p.m.
Where: WFCU Centre – Windsor, Ontario
On the air: WFNN-AM/1330, www.ottershockey.com (live stream)
Upcoming schedule: Friday at Sarnia, 7:05 p.m., Sunday vs. Kingston, 2 p.m.
What to expect: The Otters would be eliminated from OHL playoff contention for the second straight season and sixth time since the 2001-02 league championship season with a loss in regulation, overtime or shootout tonight. … The Otters are on pace to earn the No. 2 pick in the OHL Priority Selection. They have the second-worst record in the league, behind only Ottawa, which entered Wednesday night’s game at Belleville with a 15-38-0-4 mark. Peterborough stands third worst at 20-30-3-4. … The Otters are expected to play without captain Connor Brown because of a head injury suffered in Monday’s loss at London. The second-year winger, who leads the team with 26 goals, 40 assists and 66 points, has played in every game – 126 in all – since joining the club a season ago. … League officials will announce today if D Adam Pelech will be suspended for a five-minute, cross-checking penalty and game misconduct against the Knights. League vice president Ted Baker didn’t rule out suspending Pelech indefinitely if more time is needed for the review. Pelech was suspended indefinitely before being issued a four-game ban less than a month ago for a five-minute kneeing penalty and game misconduct Jan. 23 against Saginaw. … C Connor McDavid (24-31-55) holds a three-point lead over Sarnia RW Nikolay Goldobin (24-28-52) in the league’s rookie scoring race. Brampton LW Blake Clarke (18-27-45) trails McDavid by 10 points. … J.P. Labardo (20-34-54) has scored 20 goals in a season for the first time in his five-year OHL career. … The Otters lost the first two meetings with the Spitfires by a goal – 2-1 in Windsor Oct. 18 and 3-2 two nights later at Erie Insurance Arena. They meet for the final time March 2 in Erie. … Windsor has lost five straight games and eight of its last 10 to fall 11 points behind Saginaw in the race for the Western Conference’s final playoff spot. Any combination of Windsor losses, as well as Spirit wins in regulation, overtime and shootouts, totaling 12 points would eliminate the Spitfires from contention. … The Spitfires rank near the bottom of the league with 169 goals scored and 221 goals against. … RW Kerby Rychel, son of Spitfires vice president and general manager Warren Rychel, ranks among the league leaders with 33 goals and 69 points. … C Alexander Khokhlachev has 13 goals and 28 points in 18 games since leaving the Kontinental Hockey League in his native Russia to rejoin the Spitfires. … RW Josh Ho-Sang, McDavid’s former teammate with the Toronto Marlboros and the fifth pick in the 2012 OHL draft, has 11 goals and 37 points in 52 games.

- Victor Fernandes

Erie Otters winger Stephen Harper stands eighth among OHL skaters on NHL Central Scouting’s preliminary rankings for next summer’s NHL Entry Draft, which was released Tuesday. Ottawa center Sean Monahan tops the list, followed by Sault Ste. Marie defenseman Darnell Nurse, Windsor winger Kerby Rychel and London’s frontlin duo of Max Domi and Bo Horvat. Mississauga’s Spencer Martin headlines the list of the OHL’s top goaltenders, followed by Peterborough’s Michael Guigovaz and Barrie’s Alex Fotinos.

The Erie Otters rallied from a goal down twice against the Windsor Spitfires Saturday night.
But the Otters didn’t have one more rally in them in the third period, as they lost 3-2 in front of 2,652 fans at Erie Insurance Arena.
Connor McDavid and Jimmy McDowell scored for the Otters (3-7-1-1), while Connor Brown had two assists. Kerby Rychel scored twice for the Spitfires (6-4-0-3), including the winning goal on the power play with 6 minutes, 57 seconds left in the second period.
Windsor scored twice on five power-play chances on the way to outshooting the Otters 39-19. They also neutralized Erie’s top line of McDavid, Brown and J.P. Labardo in the final two periods behind the line of Brady Vail, Ben Johnson and Derek Schoenmakers.
However, defense was optional in the first period, as these teams traded four goals in rapid-fire fashion during a 10-minute stretch.
Schoenmakers scored on the power play off assists from Nick Ebert and Vail at the 6:02 mark to hand the Spitfires the early lead. The Otters responded on the power play three minutes later, as McDowell scored his first goal of the season on assists from Adam Pelech and Brown. Windsor regained the lead at 2-1 on Rychel’s first of two goals – his seventh and eighth of the season – with 8:57 left in the period. Then McDavid tied the score at 2 – and tied Brown for the team lead in goals with six – at the 15:54 mark. McDavid has points in 10 straight games and 10-of-11 overall. He leads all OHL rookies with 14 pointrs in 12 games.
Defenses clamped down in the second period. Windsor held the Otters to four shots on goal in the period and 10 through the first 40 minutes. Meanwhile, the Otters’ penalty kill stymied the Spitfires during a four-minute power play early in the middle period.
But the Spitfires snapped the 2-2 tie on Rychel’s second goal with 7:57 left in the period, once again with assists from former Otters winger Chris Marchese and 2012 first-round pick Josh Ho-Sang. Windsor held the Otters at bay the rest of the way, although Erie had several quality chances in the third period and pressured the Spitfires in the game’s waning moments. Jaroslav Pavelka stopped 17-of-19 shots for the Spitfires. Devin Williams made 36 saves in a losing effort for the Otters.

- Victor Fernandes

WINDSOR, Ontario – The Erie Otters lost their fourth straight game Thursday night.
The penalty kill that extended their season-high skid was longer. Windsor took advantage of a rare seven-minute power play, scoring late in the second period and early in the third, on the way to handing the Otters a 2-1 defeat in front of 5,501 at WFCU Centre.
The Otters (2-6-1-1) and Spitfires (5-3-0-3) battled to a scoreless tie late in the second. Then Otters defenseman Adam Pelech received 17 minutes in penalties and a game misconduct, including two minutes for instigating and five for fighting, with 4 minutes, 4 seconds left in the period. The Spitfires scored twice on the power play – Kerby Rychel’s goal with six seconds left in the second and Derek Schoenmakers‘ goal 42 seconds into the third. That was enough offense for the Spitfires, which snapped a three-game losing streak.
Standout rookie Connor McDavid’s fifth goal of the season, sliced Windsor’s lead in half at 2-1 with 9:30 left in the game. J.P. Labardo and Luke Cairns assisted on the goal. But the Otters couldn’t produce the tying goal against goaltender Jaroslav Pavelka, who finished with 26 saves. Rookie goaltender Oscar Dansk suffered the loss despite stopping 45-of-47 shots – two saves shy of his season high.
Former Otters winger Chris Marchese had an assist for the Spitfires. The Otters travel to London today for a 7 p.m. game against the Midwest Division rival Knights. The game will be televised on NHL Network, which can be found on Channel 157 (DISH Network), Channel 215 (DirecTV) and Channel 324 (Time Warner Cable).

Toronto – The Ontario Hockey League announced today that forward Ryan Kujawinski of the Kingston Frontenacs is the OHL Player of the Week for the week ending Sept. 30 after recording five points in two games scoring twice with three assists and a plus-minus rating of plus-2.

Kujawinski helped lift the Frontenacs to a pair of victories over the weekend beginning Friday night, where he picked up three assists as second star when the club erased a 5-3 third period deficit to comeback and beat the Erie Otters 6-5 in overtime.
On Sunday afternoon, he received first-star honours with two goals in a 5-4 win over the Niagara IceDogs giving the Frontenacs their best start to a season since 1997-98 with a perfect 3-0-0-0 record as the only undefeated team remaining in the OHL.

Kujawinski, a 17-year-old from Iroqouis Falls, ON, is playing in his second OHL season. Eligible for the 2013 NHL Entry Draft, Kujawinski was a first-round pick of the Sarnia Sting in the 2011 OHL Priority Selection, but finished his rookie campaign with the Frontenacs where he scored 15 goals and 15 assists for 30 points in 30 games.

Also considered for the award this week was Columbus Blue Jackets prospect Boone Jenner of the Oshawa Generals who scored four goals and four assists for eight points in three games, and Montreal Canadiens prospect Brady Vail of the Windsor Spitfires who picked up three goals and four assists for seven points in three games.
In goal, Detroit Red Wings prospect Jake Paterson of the Saginaw Spirit posted a 1-0-1-0 record including a shutout victory with a goals-against-average of 1.46 and save percentage of .955.

- From OHL news release

Toronto – Ontario Hockey League Commissioner David Branch met with representatives of the Windsor Spitfires Hockey Club to review the sanctions taken by the league against the Spitfires for violations of the league’s Player Recruitment Policy which resulted in the team having to make a payment of $400,000, losing three first-round draft selections and two second-round draft selections.
During the meeting with the Commissioner, the Spitfires accepted that there were certain violations of the league’s Recruitment Policy. In recognition of the acknowledgement and the cooperation of the Windsor Spitfires, Commissioner Branch modified his earlier decision and the team will pay to the league a payment of $250,000 and will lose a first-round draft pick in 2013, second-round draft pick in 2015, first-round draft pick in 2016 and a second-round draft pick in 2017.
As a result the Windsor Spitfires will not appeal the decision. Neither the league nor the Windsor Spitfires will be making any further comment in relation to this matter.

- From OHL news release

Victor Fernandes unveils his predictions for the 2012-13 OHL season:

REGULAR SEASON

Eastern Conference
East Division
1. Belleville
2. Oshawa
3. Ottawa
4. Peterborough
5. Kingston

Central Division
1. Barrie
2. Niagara
3. Brampton
4. Mississauga
5. Sudbury

Western Conference
Midwest Division
1. Kitchener
2. Guelph
3. Owen Sound
4. London
5. Erie

West Division
1. Plymouth
2. Windsor
3. Sarnia
4. Saginaw
5. Sault Ste. Marie

PLAYOFFS

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

Western Conference
Quarterfinals
No. 1 Kitchener def. No. 8 Erie, 4-1
No. 2 Plymouth def. No. 7 Sarnia, 4-1
No. 3 Guelph def. No. 6 Windsor, 4-2
No. 4 Owen Sound def. No. 5 London, 4-2
Semifinals
No. 1 Kitchener def. No. 4 Owen Sound, 4-1
No. 2 Plymouth def. No. 3 Guelph, 4-2
Finals
No. 1 Kitchener def. No. 2 Plymouth, 4-3

League finals
No. 1 Kitchener def. No. 2 Belleville, 4-2

- Victor Fernandes

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 Western Conference’s West Division (listed in alphabetical order):

Plymouth Whalers
Coach/GM: Michael Vellucci
2011-12 finish: 47-18-2-1, 1st division, 2nd conference
Playoff finish: Lost to Kitchener 4-3 in conference semifinals
Key players: LW Stefan Noesen (38 goals, 44 assists, 82 points; signed with Ottawa), C Mitchell Heard (29-28-57; signed with Colorado), RW Alex Aleardi (36-29-65), LW J.T. Miller (25-37-62; signed with N.Y. Rangers; G Matt Mahalak (19-8-0-0 record, 2.66 goals-against average, .923 save percentage, 3 shutouts; Carolina prospect)
Key losses: G Scott Wedgewood (28-10-2-1, 3.02, .911, 3 SO; signed with New Jersey), D Beau Schmitz (14-40-54, +37; signed with Carolina), C Andy Bathgate (19-44-63)
Outlook: The Whalers had a chance to reach the Western finals last season, but they lost Game 7 at home to Kitchener. They lost some key players off that team, but the Whalers still have are strong enough to make a deeper run this season.

Saginaw Spirit
Coach/GM: Greg Gilbert/Jim Paliafito
2011-12 finish: 40-22-4-2, 3rd division, 5th conference
Playoff finish: Lost to London 4-2 in conference semifinals
Key players: C Vincent Trocheck (29-56-85; signed with Florida), LW Brandon Saad (34-42-76; signed with Chicago), LW Garret Ross (25-29-54), C Eric Locke (20-20-40), D Dalton Young (5-15-20)
Key losses: LW Josh Shalla (40-36-76; signed with Nashville), RW Michael Fine (22-45-67), C John McFarland (20-21-41; signed with Florida), D Brad Walch (5-18-23, +21)
Outlook: Trocheck and Saad headline an offense that ranked fifth in the league a season ago with 259 goals. Now they have to solidify a defense that allowed 259 goals, the fourth most in the league. Clint Windsor and Jake Paterson are the keys in net.

Sarnia Sting
Coach/GM: Jacques Beaulieu
2011-12 finish: 34-27-2-5, 2nd division, 4th conference
Playoff finish: Lost 4-2 to Saginaw in conference quarterfinals
Key players: C Alex Galchenyuk (0-0-0 in 2 games; signed with Montreal), G J.P. Anderson (27-23-2-4, 3.03, .908, 3 SO), LW Reid Boucher (28-22-50), D Connor Murphy (8-18-26; signed with Phoenix), D Alex Basso (9-27-36, +5)
Key losses: RW Nail Yakupov (31-38-69 in 42 games; signed with Edmonton), C Brett Thompson (32-38-70; former Otter), C Ryan Spooner (29-37-66; signed with Boston), LW Tyler J. Brown (21-27-48), D Adrian Robertson (10-28-38, +13)
Outlook: Yakupov, the No. 1 pick in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft, isn’t expected to rejoin the Sting. But Galchenyuk, the No. 3 pick in the draft, returns after missing nearly all of last season with a knee injury. But can the Sting overcome other key losses?

Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds
Coach/GM: Mike Stapleton/Kyle Dubas
2011-12 finish: 29-33-2-4, 5th division, 9th conference
Playoff finish: Did not qualify
Key players: C Nick Cousins (35-53-88; signed with Philadelphia), G Matt Murray (13-19-0-1, 4.08, .876; Pittsburgh prospect), D Ryan Sproul (23-31-54, +16), RW Andrew Fritsch (13-19-32 in 35 games; Phoenix prospect), LW Michael Schumacher (26-24-50)
Key losses: C Brett Findlay (20-36-56; traded to Peterborough), C Carson Dubchak (16-16-32)
Outlook: The Greyhounds are trying to avoid a third straight season out of the playoff picture. But does Stapleton, the Otters’ former associate and assistant coach, have enough talented depth to make that happen in a challenging conference?

Windsor Spitfires
Coach/GM: Bob Boughner/Warren Rychel
2011-12 finish: 29-32-5-2, 4th division, 8th conference
Playoff finish: Lost to London 4-0 in conference quarterfinals
Key players: LW Kerby Rychel (41-33-74); C Brady Vail (22-30-52), LW Chris Marchese (18-25-43; former Otter), D Nick Ebert (6-33-39), RW Joshua Ho-Sang (No. 5 pick in OHL Priority Selection), LW Ben Johnson (18-20-38)
Key losses: C Alexander Khokhlachev (25-44-69; playing in Russia), C Zack MacQueen (18-20-38; son of former Otters coach Dave MacQueen)
Outlook: The unexpected departure of Khokhlachev will hurt thre Spitfires, unless forwards like Rychel, Vail, former Otter Marchese and first-round pick Ho-Sang pick up the slack. But will they have enough on defense and in net to win consistently?

- Victor Fernandes