The finals have been set as the seventh and deciding games took place in the OHL and QMJHL. In the OHL, Brantford, who appeared to be doing alright for themselves, dropped a 5-0 shutout at home to the Barrie Colts, who will now travel to Kitchener to face the Rangers for their spot as the OHL representative in the Memorial Cup. In the QMJHL, the Moncton Wildcats took a 6-2 decision over the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada and now host the Chicoutimi Sagueneens for the right to represent the QMJHL in the Memorial Cup.
The Everett vs. Prince Albert series is all ready to go, with games starting Friday and Saturday in Everett, then Games 3 and 4 in Prince Albert. If needed, Game 5 will take place in Prince Albert and, should further games be required, they will take place in Everett, with the final game potentially taking place five days prior to the start of the Memorial Cup.
Only there does hosting the Memorial Cup hold an advantage, as very few teams not only host the tournament but also win their league championship. That said, the teams headed to Kelowna are very strong indeed, and many believe the final will be Moncton and Everett, with the Silvertips winning it all. We shall see.
What does moving up one spot and 23 spots in the Prospects Draft first round mean in value? Well, we are about to find out, as the Wenatchee Wild went all in moving from third to second overall in this year’s Prospects Draft. The trade with the Vancouver Giants saw the two teams swap picks this year, with Vancouver also receiving a first-round pick in 2030 and two second-round picks, one in 2027 and one in 2028. The Wild selected Parker McMillan, coming off a year in which he scored 56 points last season, 91 this year, and added 16 more during the playoffs. At 15, he already stands 6-foot-3 and 192 pounds, and he won’t be a full-time player until next year.
Just two picks later, Wenatchee did it again, making a deal with Victoria in which the Wild traded their 28th pick, a 2027 first-round pick, and 2029 second and third-round picks to the Royals for the fifth overall pick this year, which they used to select defenceman Jevin Morrison. It is obvious from those selections that they are building for the future and seem to have set the bar when it comes to trades of any kind heading into this upcoming season.
Portland was 10th and selected right wing Cullen Stevenson, a 5-foot-9, 135-pound forward from Warman, Saskatchewan. Portland will draft once in Rounds 2, 3, and 4, twice in Round 5, then twice in Round 9, and can select once each in Rounds 11 through 15 should they choose. More drafts will take place prior to the weekend, and all these players would have to be signed to a standard WHL contract before they can participate in games outside of training camp. None of them will be eligible to play more than a few games this upcoming season and, once their current team exits the playoffs, they can join the drafted squad.
Be the first to comment