WELLESLEY, Mass. — While spring is usually hockey's downtime, that wasn't the case at Boston Sports Institute this weekend.
The Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League converged on BSI for a two-way showcase, in which players competed in two games, along with a presentation about the QMJHL for parents and players on Sunday morning.
The QMJHL has the regional rights to New England natives. Since the CHL ruling, which allowed prospects to play in the QMJHL, OHL and WHL, and still be eligible for NCAA Div. 1 hockey, the QMJHL has become a prominent option for locals.
I was at Sunday's game, and the game wasn't like most showcases. It was physical, with players going for big hits, finishing checks and getting into a handful of scrums after whistles.
Teams were split into Blue and White. On Sunday, Blue won, 4-3. MVPs were named for each team. St. Mark's defenseman Logan Cotter (Marlboro, Mass.) won it for White, while T.J. Petropoulos (Brockton, Mass.) won it for Blue.
Rimouski Océanic head coach Joël Perreault coached the White team, while Halifax Mooseheads head coach Brad MacKenzie coached the Blue squad.
There were countless QMJHL scouts in attendance.
Here are 13 standouts from Sunday's game.
Michael Barrett
Phillips Andover, 5/17/2010, F, left shot, 6-1/180
Hometown: Lynnfield, Mass.Â
Less than two minutes into the game, Barrett barrelled down on a defender retrieving a puck in the corner and crushed him. The Phillips Andover forward played big and showed himself as a power forward on Sunday. He also showcased great hands in tight and an ability to find open players in scoring areas.
Colton Cleaves
Brunswick, 8/31/2009, F, left shot, 5-9/149
Hometown: Riverside, Conn.Â
Cleaves' day started great from the jump when he scored on a 2-on-0 with Keith Olympia (Sudbury, Mass.). He was on a penalty kill midway through the first period, and his aggressiveness and stick helped him force turnovers and limit Blue's ability to break out of their own zone. Cleaves was able to drive play from the wing and his poise with the puck made him so effective when he crossed the offensive blue line.
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Logan Cotter
St. Mark's, 8/10/2010, D, left shot, 5-10/160
Hometown: Marlboro, Mass.Â
Cotter's stock rose considerably after the QMJHL Showcase. On Sunday, he scored on a fantastic shimmy down the wall and set up from Landon Roe (Belmont, Mass.). Cotter's skating allowed him to effortlessly rush pucks and elude pressure. But what I really liked seeing was his physicality. The feisty freshman was finishing his checks and using his good skating to step up and separate opposing players from the puck.
Cam Daigle
St. George's, 2/5/2010, F, right shot, 5-6/146
Hometown: East Greenwich, R.I.Â
Daigle was one of the most noticeable players in the game. On one of his first shifts, he used his quickness to hustle back, catch up to an opposing puck-carrier and dump them into the boards, stealing the puck. He was unafraid to lead with his body when going into traffic and using his strong core to withstand physicality. That was evident on a play in the third period when he won a battle along the boards and cut to the net for a scoring chance in tight. His speed, mixed with his hands and compete, made him such a force.
Jake Donatelli
St. George's, 1/4/2010, D, left shot, 5-7/156
Hometown: Barrington, R.I.Â
Donatelli had a strong day. It started when Jameson Needham hit the post with a shot, and the puck eventually reached the point where Donatelli also hit the post. Fortunately for him, the puck lay in the crease for Robert Dekleine (Westboro, Mass.), who scored. Donatelli's elusiveness and vision were on display on breakouts and from the offensive blue line. On one play, he let the puck come up the wall to him at the blue line and as the opposing forward was closing, Donatelli pulled the puck middle, escaped pressure and found Petropoulos low on the other side of the zone.
Ayden Giardina
Seacoast Performance Academy, 10/6/2009, F, left shot, 5-10/165Â
Hometown: Waltham, Mass.Â
Giardina's straight-ahead speed was enough to take notice. Late in the second period, he used his wheels to get behind the defense for a scoring chance. The former Arlington Catholic (MIAA) forward had 14 goals and 30 points in 60 games for SPA's 16U squad this winter.
Will Gwaltney
Brookline Whalers/Dexter Southfield, 4/27/2010, G, catches left, 6-0/175
Hometown: Medfield, Mass.Â
It's hard to evaluate goalies at showcases, but Gwaltney made some big-time saves. He robbed Owen Lundin (Bolton, Mass.) on a chance late in the first period. Cade Noonan (Needham, Mass.) got a great, in-tight chance that Gwaltney extended for and stopped in the second period. Moments later, he made a great save on Petropoulos from in tight. Gwaltney is at Dexter Southfield.
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Jameson Needham
St. Sebastian's, 1/6/2010, F, right shot, 6-1/165
Hometown: Woburn, Mass.Â
Needham's a fantastic play-driver, but he also showcased his poise on Sunday. Needham entered the offensive zone on an odd-man rush late in the first period. When the defender slid to take away the pass, Needham slowed up and cut middle, firing a shot off the post that eventually led to Dekleine's goal. Late in the third period, Needham stole the puck off a breakout and went in alone and dinged the crossbar.
T.J. Petropoulos
Milton Academy, 7/16/2010, F, right shot, 5-7/161
Hometown: Brockton, Mass.Â
Petropoulos was everywhere on Sunday. He had multiple chances early in the first period, with one of them being a breakaway. Late in the second period, Donatelli hit him with a fantastic pass to low in the zone that almost created a goal. Petropoulos finally found the back of the net in the third period on a nice shot off a pass from Dekleine.
Kai Scranton
Mid Fairfield, 5/3/2010, F, left shot, 5-9/137
Hometown: West Hartford, Conn.Â
Scranton's speed made him a difference-maker, as he drove play and was able to force defenders on their heels. On Ryan Porter's (Hanover, Mass.) goal, Scranton and Lundin registered assists on the play. It came from Scranton using his speed to get low in the zone and eventually get the puck to Porter in front.
Joey St. Laurent
North Jersey Avalanche, 11/4/2010, F, right shot, 5-10/154
Hometown: Greenland, N.H.Â
One sequence told me everything I needed to know about St. Laurent. Midway through the third period, he entered the offensive zone, shifted to the outside to gain space and used his speed to separate and fire a shot that missed just wide of the net. St. Laurent then skated at full speed to get back on the backcheck. That's not always the kind of effort you see from high-octane offensive players at showcases. On Cleaves' goal, it was St. Laurent who used his stick and smart positioning to force a turnover in the neutral zone that led to the 2-on-0.
Mason Stonacek
Mount St. Charles, 12/26/2010, D, left shot, 5-10/161
Hometown: Stamford, Conn.Â
Stonacek was extremely active on Sunday. On Chase Warsofsky's (Northboro, Mass.) goal in the second period, it was Stonacek who created the chance. The Mount St. Charles defenseman broke up a play in his own zone and rushed it the other way, eventually getting around a defenseman and shoveling the puck middle, where Warsofsky finished the chance. Stonacek showed nice vision on passes from the point and a hard, quick shot. In his own zone, Stonacek used his feet and stick to break up plays.
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Mason Wohlers
BK Selects, 5/20/2010, D, right shot, 6-0/173
Hometown: Somers, Conn.Â
Midway through the first period, Wohlers stepped up for a green light, open-ice hit on an opposing forward after they entered the zone and cut to Wohlers' side of the ice. The BK Selects defender was always physical and made opposing forwards think twice about putting their head down, as he stepped up for more hits throughout the game. His vision in the offensive zone was strong, too.
