The Journey

Briggins lets you know who to watch for at the 2013 Memorial Cup.

This year’s edition of the Memorial Cup features a plethora of players who will hear their names called on the first day of the NHL draft this year. In fact, there is an excellent chance the first three names called will be players from this tournament. Potentially, seven players from the best CHL teams could end up going in the first round. In this week’s article, I examine the top eight ranked players from the Halifax Mooseheads, Portland Winterhawks and London Knights, and get you up to speed on how they performed in the playoffs this year. The host team Saskatoon did not have any players ranked in the top 50. All ranking numbers come from NHL Central Scouting Services’ final rankings.

In last week’s article, I looked at a handful of North American skaters who have seen their rankings fluctuate in NHL Central Scouting’s final 2013 draft prospect rankings compared to their mid-season rank. This week we hop across the pond to look at three European skaters who may see a change in when their name is called at the draft in June.

Briggins looks at four players moving up the Central Scouting list.

NHL Central Scouting has released its final 2013 Draft Prospect rankings. In this week’s article, I look at players who have made significant changes from their mid-season ranking. This week will focus on North American players while next week will look at Europeans.

A look at some rookies who are preparing for the NHL's biggest stage.

Last season, rookies Chris Kreider and Mark Stone each made their NHL debuts in the playoffs, facing off against each other in the opening round between the New York Rangers and Ottawa Senators. Kreider, without playing a single game in the regular season, went on to tally seven points in 18 playoff games before the Rangers were eliminated by the New Jersey Devils in the Eastern Conference Final.

The 2013 lockout shortened season has shown an impressive crop of rookies who will look to follow suit if given the opportunity. Some have put themselves on the fantasy radar in the regular season, others, as Kreider did last year, will hope to do so in the playoffs.

The Blues have a plethora of goaltending talent. Who will emerge?

The St. Louis Blues rank third in goals against in the Western Conference. Most of this success is because of the solid contributions of St. Louis’ blue liners and the defensive coaching style of Ken Hitchcock, not goaltending. The Blues are second in the league in Shots Against Per Game Average, just behind the New Jersey Devils with 24.3 SA/G. 

Coming off outstanding 2011-2012 campaigns, the goaltending tandem of Jaroslav Halak and Brian Ellliott have combined for a mediocre 13-11-2, 2.51 GAA this season.  However, out of the mediocrity of Halak-Elliott, a new starting goaltender has emerged. 22-year-old Jake Allen leads a crop of impressive St. Louis goaltending prospects and is immediately proving his NHL capabilities in his rookie season, leading all rookie 'tenders with nine wins in 13 games.

A look at Danny Kriston, Nick Bjugstad, and Jacob Trouba.

This week I take a break from looking at players who will be drafted in a few months. Instead, I'll take a closer look at three great young prospects who recently signed contracts this week after the completion of the NCAA season. Of course, the focus will be on what fantasy owners should expect this season and next.

Andrew Schopp takes a closer look at five prospects who changed teams at the trade deadline.

At 2:10 EST and with 50 to minutes to go, the 2013 edition of NHL trade deadline day was becoming a forgettable piece of NHL history. Then, NHL GMs went full tilt in the final hour with a flurry of trades; shipping all-stars, captains and a slew of promising prospects across the league. When it was all said and done, the Sabres began the rebuild process, the Blue Jackets look more like a playoff team, and a number of prospects found themselves on the fantasy radar. These five prospects dealt prior to the April 3 NHL trade deadline could make an impact soon.      

Jonathan Briggins profiles a top prospect for the 2013 draft.

Playing in a town in northern Quebec generally means a player doesn’t get the media attention they would playing in a bigger junior city such as Halifax, London, or Portland.

Russian draft prospect Valentin Zykov plays for the Baie-Comeau Drakkar in a town of close to 29, 000 people located six hours north of Quebec City. Picking up the Michel Bergeron Trophy for Offensive Rookie of the Year in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League is one way to grab some attention, though.

Andrew Schopp profiles two young defensemen with lots of upside.

Two 21-year-old defensive prospects from the 2009 NHL Draft got the call up to The Show this week for Colorado and Toronto. One, Tyson Barrie, saw more time in the NHL with the Colorado Avalanche after an unexpected demotion to the minors. The other, Jesse Blacker, has yet to make his NHL debut after being briefly called-up to the Toronto Maple Leafs from the Marlies earlier this week. Although at different stages of their development, both are solid defensemen with the ability to contribute offensively and have great fantasy upside as top four defensemen.