The Mastercard Memorial Cup kicks off Friday in Regina, Saskatchewan, and hockey fans should expect to see plenty of players who will appear on NHL rosters in the not-too-distant future.
The host Pats kick off the 100th edition of the Canadian junior hockey championship against the Ontario Hockey League champion Hamilton Bulldogs. The Acadie-Bathurst Titan, who won the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League title last weekend, and the Western Hockey League champion Swift Current Broncos will face off Saturday in their round-robin openers.
The tournament has 28 players, spread across all four rosters, who have either been drafted or signed free-agent contracts with NHL teams. With a focus on that group, here’s a look at the tournament field:
Acadie-Bathurst Titan
GM Sylvain Couturier, who played 33 games for the Los Angeles Kings and is the father of Philadelphia Flyers forward Sean Couturier, has masterfully overhauled his roster over the past two seasons.
Forward Antoine Morand was one of Couturier's prized draft picks in the rebuild and is now a member of the Anaheim Ducks, who took him with the 60th overall pick last spring. The Montreal-area native has been a point-a-game player in the playoffs and scored slightly more regularly than that during the regular season. He's also a player to watch for possible inclusion on Canada's World Junior roster in Vancouver next season.
San Jose Sharks free-agent signing Jeffrey Truchon-Viel won the Q's postseason MVP award after leading the Titan in scoring with 23 points (14G, 9A) in 20 games. Truchon-Viel grew up in Rimouski, Quebec, watching Sidney Crosby win a QMJHL title and playoff MVP while leading the Rimouski Oceanic to the 2005 Memorial Cup final in London.
Russian German Rubtsov joined the Titan midseason. He was a first-round pick (22nd overall) of the Flyers but his offensive production has lagged both Morand and Truchon-Viel.
Goaltender Evan Fitzpatrick, a trade pickup from the Sherbrooke Phoenix, is a draft pick of the St. Louis Blues. The 20-year-old from St. John’s, Newfoundland, has been sharp, registering a 2.10 GAA in the Titan’s run to the President Trophy.
Another Maritimer, defenseman Noah Dobson (17G, 52A), put up impressive numbers from the blue line this season and could be a first-round pick in June.
The long trip and emotional letdown after beating the favored Blainville-Boisbriand Armada suggest the Titan could be underdogs this week.
Hamilton Bulldogs
Bulldogs GM Steve Staois raised eyebrows when he left a job in the Toronto Maple Leafs organization to become president of his hometown team.
It's difficult to argue with that decision now. Staois, who has since added the GM portfolio, has assembled a talent-laden roster that has nine players who have either been drafted or signed by NHL teams.
Forward Robert Thomas, a first-round pick (20th overall) of the Blues, is one of four Memorial Cup participants attempting to add the national crown to the gold medal won with Team Canada back in January. Thomas won the OHL's postseason MVP award and has been an offensive catalyst since coming over from the London Knights. But he's part of a balanced attack that has been relentless on the puck, particularly in the Bulldogs' win over the heavily favored Soo Greyhounds in the OHL final.
Matthew Strome (Flyers), Will Bitten (Montreal Canadiens), Marian Studenic (New Jersey Devils), MacKenzie Entwistle (Arizona Coyotes), and Nicholas Caamano (Dallas Stars) are all NHL-drafted forwards at head coach John Gruden's disposal. Undrafted Brandon Saigeon (35G, 35A) was the Bulldogs' leading scorer and his tenure with the team dates back to its time in Belleville.
Strome will be attempting to become the first of his family to win the Memorial Cup. While playing for the Erie Otters, Dylan Strome lost in the final last year but won the MVP award. Seven years ago, Ryan Strome lost in the OHL final as a member of the Niagara IceDogs.
Defenseman Riley Stillman is the son of longtime NHLer Cory, who is now the head coach of the Sudbury Wolves. Stillman's grandfather, Bud Stefanski, was the associate head coach of the 2000 Barrie Colts, who lost to the Oceanic in the Memorial Cup final in Halifax. Stillman (Florida Panthers) is one of two NHL-drafted defensemen on the Bulldogs, joining Nicolas Mattinen (Maple Leafs).
Regina Pats
The Pats lost a seven-game heartbreaker to Swift Current in the first round of the playoffs and enter the Memorial Cup after being idle for more than six weeks.
The Windsor Spitfires won the Memorial Cup under identical circumstances last year. But John Paddock's team is probably more talented on paper, complete with captain Sam Steel and defenseman Josh Mahura, who both won gold with Team Canada in Buffalo.
Both Steel (30th overall) and Mahura (85th overall) were drafted by the Ducks two years ago. Defenseman Libor Hajek (New York Rangers) went the other way in the Ryan McDonagh trade this year. Cale Fleury (Canadiens) is also a leader on the Pats' defense corps.
Up front, the Pats have Jake Leschyshyn (Vegas Golden Knights), son of former NHLer Curtis; Nick Henry (Canadiens); Cameron Hebig (Edmonton Oilers); and Jesse Gabrielle (Boston Bruins). Overager Matt Bradley was the Pats' second-leading scorer behind Steel. He was drafted by the Canadiens three years ago but was unsigned and is a free agent.
Whatever can be inferred from the first-round exit, Paddock's team played at a feverish pace after Christmas but had two elite teams - the Moose Jaw Warriors and the Broncos - ahead of them in the WHL's ultra-tough east division. Those three teams effectively beat each other up during the first two rounds of the playoffs. The looming Pats-Broncos showdown could have extra meaning for that reason, but especially so in a province attempting to overcome the Humboldt Broncos tragedy.
Swift Current Broncos
Glenn Gawdin (56G, 69A) was one of three 100-point performers on the Broncos' roster, along with Aleksi Heponiemi (Panthers) and Tyler Steenbergen (Coyotes). That trio combined for an incredible 345 regular-season points, despite Steenbergen and Heponiemi each missing more than a month through injury/illness and World Junior duty.
Another storyline to watch is Steenbergen's status as the hero of Team Canada's gold medal win after he scored with 1:40 to play in the victory over Sweden. Similar exploits in Regina could make Steenbergen a hero of very rare distinction.
Gawdin was formerly a pick of the Blues but was scooped up by the Calgary Flames; he won the WHL's playoff MVP award after the Broncos' series triumph over the Everett Silvertips.
Overager Giorgio Estephan is a well-traveled and well-respected WHLer who helped the Broncos defeat his former team, the Lethbridge Hurricanes, in the WHL's Eastern Conference Final. He's a former pick of the Buffalo Sabres but is now a free agent.
On defense, New Jersey signee Colby Sissons was a point-a-game player from the back end and is joined by Colorado Avalanche pick Josh Anderson. Undrafted Sahvan Khaira is a workhorse defenseman who, like Estephan, could be in the running to earn a free-agent deal.
Goaltender Stuart Skinner was outstanding in the playoffs, recording six shutouts, four of which came on the road. He was recently signed by the Oilers, who drafted him 78th overall last season.
Forward Beck Malenstyn (Washington Capitals) rounds out the Broncos NHL-connected contingent.
Broncos head coach Manny Viveiros has an interesting backstory as well; he won the Memorial Cup with the Prince Albert Raiders 34 years ago. Since then, he has embarked on a circuitous playing and coaching career. Viveiros’s career included time with the Minnesota North Stars as a player, and then all over Europe.
He stayed in Europe to coach and led Austria to Olympic qualification four years ago in Sochi, where they played Canada in the round robin. His installation as Broncos head coach two years ago was a surprise, but he's proven as adept as a WHL coach as he was a former WHL star defenseman.
(Photos courtesy: Getty Images)
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