In the midst of a rollicking first round of the NHL playoffs, the CHL's Memorial Cup Tournament has arrived. The competition for the crown jewel of major junior hockey may have snuck up on you since the NHL's playoffs started a bit later than usual due to the lockout, but don't fret, because The Hart of Hockey has you covered. The field of four has been determined, so we already know what faces NHL fans and scouts will want to keep an eye on.
The following is a list of all the NHL prospects and 2013 draft hopefuls participating in this year's Mem Cup. So see if your favorite team has any promising players in the pipeline, or get an idea of what will be available in Newark this upcoming summer at the draft when you tune into Memorial Cup coverage.
HALIFAX MOOSEHEADS
Forwards:
22 Nate MacKinnon*
27 Jonathan Drouin*
79 Brent Andrews (Nashville Predators)
81 Stephen MacAulay (St. Louis Blues)
91 Martin Frk (Detroit Red Wings)
Defensemen:
10 Konrad Abeltshauser (San Jose Sharks)
24 Matt Murphy*
Goalies:
31 Zachary Fucale*
LONDON KNIGHTS
Forwards:
16 Max Domi*
17 Seth Griffith (Boston Bruins)
18 Alex Broadhurst (Chicago Blackhawks)
53 Bo Horvat*
64 Ryan Rupert (Toronto Maple Leafs)
71 Chris Tierney (San Jose Sharks)
77 Josh Anderson (Columbus Blue Jackets)
81 Remi Elie*
91 Kyle Platzer*
Defenseman:
2 Olli Määttä (Pittsburgh Penguins)
Forwards:
22 Nate MacKinnon*
27 Jonathan Drouin*
79 Brent Andrews (Nashville Predators)
81 Stephen MacAulay (St. Louis Blues)
91 Martin Frk (Detroit Red Wings)
Defensemen:
10 Konrad Abeltshauser (San Jose Sharks)
24 Matt Murphy*
Goalies:
31 Zachary Fucale*
LONDON KNIGHTS
Forwards:
17 Seth Griffith (Boston Bruins)
18 Alex Broadhurst (Chicago Blackhawks)
53 Bo Horvat*
64 Ryan Rupert (Toronto Maple Leafs)
71 Chris Tierney (San Jose Sharks)
77 Josh Anderson (Columbus Blue Jackets)
81 Remi Elie*
91 Kyle Platzer*
Defenseman:
2 Olli Määttä (Pittsburgh Penguins)
4 Miles Liberati*
3 Justin Sefton (San Jose Sharks)
6 Scott Harrington (Pittsburgh Penguins)
14 Tommy Hughes (New York Rangers)
65 Nikita Zadorov*
Goalies:
43 Anthony Stolarz (Philadelphia Flyers)
PORTLAND WINTERHAWKS
Forwards:
8 Ty Ratte (St. Louis Blues)
19 Nicolas Petan*
20 Taylor Leier (Philadelphia Flyers)
25 Taylor Peters (Dallas Stars)
27 Oliver Bjorkstrand*
28 Brendan Leipsic (Nashville Predators)
Defenseman:
2 Troy Rutkowski (Ottawa Senators)
3 Seth Jones*
26 Tyler Wotherspoon (Calgary Flames)
51 Derrick Pouliot (Pittsburgh Penguins)
Goalies:
1 Brendan Burke*
31 Mac Carruth (Chicago Blackhawks)
SASKATOON BLADES
Forwards:
9 Shane McColgan (New York Rangers)
14 Matěj Stránský (Dallas Stars)
17 Nick Zajac*
20 Josh Nicholls (New York Rangers)23 Lukas Sutter (Winnipeg Jets)
27 Michael Ferland (Calgary Flames)
38 Brett Stovin*
Defenseman:
5 Duncan Siemens (Colorado Avalanche)
44 Darren Dietz (Montréal Canadiens)
47 Dalton Thrower (Montréal Canadiens)
Goalies:
1 Andrey Makarov (Buffalo Sabres)
33 Alex Moodie*
* = 2013 draft eligible
The Halifax Mooseheads steamrolled their way to their franchise's first QMJHL Championship with a 16-1 playoff record. The Portland Winterhawks earned their right to play for the Memorial Cup after ousting the Edmonton Oil Kings in a rematch of last years WHL Final. The London Knights are a familiar face, back for their second straight Mem Cup appearance after a dramatic Game 7 victory over the Barrie Colts in the OHL Final lifted them back to where they are now. Lastly, the Saskatoon Blades play in as host of the tournament. Saskatoon set a franchise record 18-game winning streak during the regular season this year, but was disappointingly swept out of the first round of the WHL playoffs by the Medicine Hat Tigers.
This is also a rare opportunity where all three of the top North American prospects in the upcoming draft will get to play in the Memorial Cup at once. Seth Jones for Portland is widely considered to be the first overall choice in Newark, but both Nate MacKinnon and Jonathan Drouin, teammates for the Halifax Mooseheads, are No. 1 according to some scouts and deserve to be spoken in the same breath as Jones.
The Memorial Cup Tournament begins play on Friday, May 17, and round robin play will continue through Wednesday. The championship game will take place on Sunday, May 26.
3 Justin Sefton (San Jose Sharks)
6 Scott Harrington (Pittsburgh Penguins)
14 Tommy Hughes (New York Rangers)
65 Nikita Zadorov*
Goalies:
43 Anthony Stolarz (Philadelphia Flyers)
PORTLAND WINTERHAWKS
Forwards:8 Ty Ratte (St. Louis Blues)
19 Nicolas Petan*
20 Taylor Leier (Philadelphia Flyers)
25 Taylor Peters (Dallas Stars)
27 Oliver Bjorkstrand*
28 Brendan Leipsic (Nashville Predators)
Defenseman:
2 Troy Rutkowski (Ottawa Senators)
3 Seth Jones*
26 Tyler Wotherspoon (Calgary Flames)
51 Derrick Pouliot (Pittsburgh Penguins)
Goalies:
1 Brendan Burke*
31 Mac Carruth (Chicago Blackhawks)
SASKATOON BLADES
Forwards:9 Shane McColgan (New York Rangers)
14 Matěj Stránský (Dallas Stars)
17 Nick Zajac*
20 Josh Nicholls (New York Rangers)23 Lukas Sutter (Winnipeg Jets)
27 Michael Ferland (Calgary Flames)
38 Brett Stovin*
Defenseman:
5 Duncan Siemens (Colorado Avalanche)
44 Darren Dietz (Montréal Canadiens)
47 Dalton Thrower (Montréal Canadiens)
Goalies:
1 Andrey Makarov (Buffalo Sabres)
33 Alex Moodie*
* = 2013 draft eligible
The Halifax Mooseheads steamrolled their way to their franchise's first QMJHL Championship with a 16-1 playoff record. The Portland Winterhawks earned their right to play for the Memorial Cup after ousting the Edmonton Oil Kings in a rematch of last years WHL Final. The London Knights are a familiar face, back for their second straight Mem Cup appearance after a dramatic Game 7 victory over the Barrie Colts in the OHL Final lifted them back to where they are now. Lastly, the Saskatoon Blades play in as host of the tournament. Saskatoon set a franchise record 18-game winning streak during the regular season this year, but was disappointingly swept out of the first round of the WHL playoffs by the Medicine Hat Tigers.
This is also a rare opportunity where all three of the top North American prospects in the upcoming draft will get to play in the Memorial Cup at once. Seth Jones for Portland is widely considered to be the first overall choice in Newark, but both Nate MacKinnon and Jonathan Drouin, teammates for the Halifax Mooseheads, are No. 1 according to some scouts and deserve to be spoken in the same breath as Jones.
The Memorial Cup Tournament begins play on Friday, May 17, and round robin play will continue through Wednesday. The championship game will take place on Sunday, May 26.
