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Catching the Torch: Juulsen propels Silvertips to round two; McNiven puts on a great performance

Posted on by Robert Rice

The Juniors Report

The Montreal Canadiens organization currently features prospects playing in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL), the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), the Western Hockey League (WHL), the USHL (United States Hockey League), and the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association). These leagues can be considered the primary conduit towards professional hockey in North America.

Here’s how the players in the aforementioned leagues performed from March 28 to April 3:

Weekly stats

Player League GP G A PTS PIM
Daniel Audette (C) QMJHL 3 0 3 3 0
Jeremiah Addison (RW) OHL 3 0 0 0 2
Simon Bourque (D) QMJHL 4 0 3 3 2
Matt Bradley (C) WHL 0 0 0 0 0
Noah Juulsen (D) WHL 2 0 1 1 2
Jake Evans (C) NCAA 0 0 0 0 0
Nikolas Koberstein (D) NCAA 0 0 0 0 0

Goalie League GP W L OTL GAA Save % SO
Hayden Hawkey NCAA 0 0 0 0 – – 0
Michael McNiven OHL 4 1 3 0 4.73 .859 0

Jeremiah Addison: Addison’s playoff run with the Ottawa 67’s had a rather quiet and disappointing end versus the Niagara IceDogs. After returning from an injury that saw him miss Game Two, he went scoreless in his team’s final three games, as Ottawa lost in five. Addison finished his playoff season with one goal and two assists over four games.

On Sunday evening, Addison was added to the St. John’s IceCaps after agreeing to an amateur tryout contract. He should be in the IceCaps’ lineup in their next game on Saturday.

Daniel Audette: Audette’s playoff run came to a quick halt this past week.. He recorded an assist in all three games: an 8-3 loss to the Shawinigan Cataractes in Game Three, a 3-2 double overtime loss the next game, and a 4-1 loss that eliminated Sherbrooke from the QMJHL playoffs in Game Five.

Audette scored a goal and five assists in his five playoff games, and has also joined the AHL club.

Simon Bourque: It was an unfortunately short playoff run for the captain of the Rimouski Oceanic, despite some respectable personal production. He had an assist in an 8-2 loss to the Charlottetown Islanders in the third game of the opening-round series, went scoreless a 4-3 overtime loss the next time out, picked up an assist in a 5-4 overtime win in Game Five,. and equaled that mark in Rimouski final game of the post-season in which they succumbed 4-2.

Bourque finished the playoffs with five assists in six games, which made him his team’s assist leader in their short playoff run.

Matt Bradley: Bradley’s WHL season concluded without his team qualifying for the playoffs.

Bradley made gains on his previous season’s work, with 23 goals and 28 assists for a growth to a .75 points per game average versus the previous season average of .56. An expectation of a point-per-game pace in the junior ranks to show NHL viability means Bradley has much more work to do.

Noah Juulsen: It was a fast finish to the first round of the WHL playoffs for Noah Juulsen and the Everett Silvertips. Juulsen picked up an assist a 5-3 win over the Portland Winterhawks in Game three, but went without a point in his second and final game of the week, a 4-2 win in the series’ fourth game, which ended the series with a 4-0 sweep for Everett.

Juulsen has one assist in four games in the WHL Playoffs.

Jake Evans: Evans’ sophomore season with the University of Notre Dame has concluded.

Evans finished his sophomore season with 33 points in 37 games, and led his team in assists with 25. He nearly doubled his point production from the previous season, where he scored just 17 points in 41 games. The only point of concern for Evans’ college career so far has been the lack of growth in his goal scoring, scoring only eight goals this season, and just seven the year before.

Nikolas Koberstein: The rookie season of Koberstein with the University of Alaska Fairbanks is over, and it was a forgettable campaign. He scored one goal and one assist in 23 games this season, and was scratched 12 times. Barring sudden great leaps in his progress, his likelihood to forge a pro hockey career is extremely low.

Hayden Hawkey: Hawkey’s rookie season in the NCAA has come to a close with his team eliminated from the NCAA Tournament.

He only started two games in the 2015-16 NCAA season, and had spot time in three other games, ending with a 2-0-0 record, a 1.67 goals against average and a .940 save percentage. It will remain a challenge to edge the team’s senior goaltender Nick Ellis however in 2016-17, as he finished the season with a .936 save percentage.

Michael McNiven: McNiven and the Owen Sound Attack saw an end to their bid to upset the London Knights. He allowed five goals on 41 shots in a 5-1 loss to London, and his team did not fair much better in his next start, allowing seven goals on 37 shots in an 8-5 loss.

He recorded the win in his next game, a 4-3 overtime decision in which he faced 28 shots. The final game of the series was a 5-2 loss, stopping 25 of 29 shots as London eliminated Owen Sound from the playoffs.

While McNiven finished the playoff series with an .875 save percentage, he has received accolades as Owen Sound’s best contributor in his team’s run versus the powerhouse Knights. Here’s a small selection of some of his work in the series.

Season Stats to Date

Player League GP G A PTS PIM
Daniel Audette (C) QMJHL 52 22 37 59 53
Simon Bourque (D) QMJHL 66 12 34 46 50
Jeremiah Addison (RW) OHL 65 27 29 56 72
Matt Bradley (C) WHL 68 23 28 51 35
Noah Juulsen (D) WHL 63 7 21 28 37
Jake Evans (C) NCAA 37 8 25 33 29
Nikolas Koberstein (D) NCAA 23 1 1 2 8

Goalie League GP W L OTL GAA Save % SO
Hayden Hawkey NCAA 4 2 0 0 1.98 .932 1
Michael McNiven OHL 53 21 18 10 2.94 .902 3

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