With the victory of Edmonton Oil Kings over Seattle in the final of the Ed Chynoweth Cup of the Western Hockey League, the need for scouts to attend the Memorial Cup next week has decreased. Although there are a number of players re-entering the NHL 2021 draft, the four compiled lists are older, more experienced players who have already passed the draft once or twice. Hamilton defender Jorian Donovan, ranked 81st in the NHL Central Scouting, and Shauinigan defender Angus Booth (92nd) are the only two participants in the top 100 for the 2022 NHL Draft.
With that in mind, an older tournament needs to make a better tournament. There is a lot of intrigue with the hosts that St. John is absent from the 1st round. Sea Dogs will open the tournament with their first match on May 12 and will do so with a new head coach at Gardiner MacDougall.
It’s great to see Shauinigan represent QMJHL as the league champion for the first time in the league’s oldest franchise. General manager Martin Mondu was the brains when the Cats won the Cup as hosts on home ice in 2012, and he brought together another extremely talented group that can highlight the result. Head coach Daniel Reno has been in the league and has experience in the Memorial Cup as an assistant.
Then you have Hamilton, a quick recovery after racing in the 100th edition of the Memorial Cup in Regina in 2018. GM Steve Staios has a different looking team that is more skilled in the back and three lines of marking depth in front.
As for Edmonton, no team comes with more prospects for a high-class NHL, including four selected from the first round of the NHL and four others selected in the final stages of the draft. Oil Kings have been in this place before, after competing against Shawinigan in 2012 and reappearing, winning the London Cup in 2014. Culture remains a key component to the success of the franchise, which went through general managers Bob Green, Randy Hans and now Kirt Hill during this decade. Hansh’s footprints are everywhere on this list, with Hill putting the finishing touches on the list of well-maintained head coach and former NHL player Brad Lauer.
If you happen to be watching the 2022 Memorial Cup, which starts on Monday, here’s a quick guide on who to watch for each team:
Edmonton Oil Kings (WHL Champions)
Kayden Gule (MTL, 16th overall, 2020) The election of the Montreal Canadiens in the first round drew a royal ransom in a deal from Prince Albert, but it was worth every part of the return of the six parts. Big, big and nasty, Guhle is effective in both special teams and can register an entire boat in minutes. Most importantly, Guhle has experience in the Memorial Cup after playing with Prince Albert in the 2019 Cup.
Jake Naibers (STL, 26th overall, 2020) A perfect combination of willpower and skill, Neighbors already has an NHL goal in his resume. His return from the NHL in November helped GM Kirt Hill initiate a plan to add to an already talented group to defeat the Kings. The undisputed captain of the Kings, Neighbors, is a substitute offender who is just as good at scoring as he is at getting under his opponents’ skin.
Dylan Gunther (ARI, ninth overall, 2021) A true sniper, Gunther scored 45 goals in the regular season and followed 13 more in just 16 games since the season. His 296 shots on goal are third in the WHL and are the second most targeted player for St. John (Dufour of the Sea Dogs has 312). Gunther is a smooth skater who can score points on all ice. He is an effective out-of-speed player with a sneaky look. His ability to produce 5v5 is among the best among all in the Cup, with 72% of his points being scored with equal strength or better.
Sebastian Kosa (DET, 15th overall, 2021) Size matters and with six feet six and 215 pounds Kosa enters the tournament as the greatest goalkeeper of any team. His regular season results (33-9-2-1, 2.28 GAA, .913SV%) were among the top five in their respective categories. Having said that, the idea that he could be even better was suggested by some in the league. Even in the playoffs there were some unforgettable moments. In the real way of Andrei Vassilevski, Kosa won all three matches after losing in the playoffs. At his best, he has the potential to steal a game more than any other online player in the tournament.
Shauinigan (QMJHL Champions)
Mavrik Bourque (DAL, 30th overall, 2020) Limited to just 31 games of the regular season, Bourke scored 68 points. As a team, Shawinigan worked with over 31% efficiency in the power game during the regular season, thanks in large part to the creativity and exquisite play of Bourque, where he managed to score 32 of his 68 points. Burke scored five of Shauinigan’s 18 goals against Charlottetown in the league final.
Xavier Burgo (EDM, 22nd in total, 2021) Another true sniper, Burgo has a great deception in his strike. He works well to finish his game, but if the Cats have a chance to win, Burgo will have to score. Burgo has scored five goals in 14 wins in the Chauvingan playoffs, three of which are overtime. Overall, Burgo was in top form with nine points in a five-game winning streak against Charlottetown to win the President’s Cup.
Pierik Dubet (undefeated) He had a goal in each of the elimination games, including the winner of each of the last three series the Cats played. This series included the clincher against Charlottetown in the sequels. The 21-year-old right winger peaked his career with 19 goals in the regular season, but scored 12 in the playoffs.
Charles-Antoine Lavalle (undefeated) / Antoine Coulomb (undefeated) Like the last time Shauinigan was in the Cup, the Cats enter the tournament with a two-headed monster in the door. Charles-Antoine Lavalle played more minutes in the playoffs, but less in the regular season, despite leading the league with 2.40 GAA. Antoine Coulomb was stable throughout the season, playing over 2,200 minutes in the regular season with .907% and 2.73. Coulombe started the last game against Charlottetown, but was drawn in the second period, only to enter Lavallée to stop all 14 shots he took to bring the Cats to their first QMJHL title.
St. John Sea Dogs (Hosts)
Gardiner MacDougall He was never hired as a head coach just to coach the Memorial Cup. After being eliminated in the first round by Rimouski, GM Trevor Georgie relieved Gordy Dwyer of his duties by heading to Fredericton to hire the legendary USports coach. MacDougall has a wealth of experience as a coach and has won short singles and single elimination tournaments with the University of New Brunswick. However, training older players in USports is very different from dealing with the youth of the big youth teams. If he manages to fully apply his style and get the participation of the group, the Dogs will not just bark, they will bite.
William Dufour (NYI, Fifth Round, 152nd overall, 2020) Highly publicized for joining the QMJHL, Dufour, now with his fourth team, has finally figured out how to play to be successful. His 56-goal campaign helped him win an MVP award in the league as the winner of the Michel-Brier trophy. This number is the most scored player in the tournament during the regular season. With a height of 204 pounds, Dufour is at his best, playing physical games and freeing up space for himself and his teammates. Prospect of the New York Islanders has only nine games with experience in the playoffs.
Jérémie Poirier (CAL, third round, 72nd overall, 2020) was brilliant in the first half of the season, but fell behind and still finished with 16 goals and 57 points and the best in his career +30. At his best, Poirier is an elite skater with the right hands. He gets on the ice effortlessly and is always a threat to speed. Poirier has a bomb to keep honest killers on penalties. A much rounder player than the wild horse, who entered the league four years ago, Poirier has some bite in his game, but his key asset is using his offensive skills to create from the back.
Josh Lawrence (undefeated) The Small Center scored 101 points from the regular season, but after that Dufour has a significant difference until the next highest goal (Ryan Francis with 65 points). Leading a game with a great engine, Lawrence is a new commodity of the new coach and should feel as comfortable with McDougall behind the bench as any of the number of coaches he has had at St. John’s. With a number of good centers in the tournament, Lawrence will have to maintain or improve his league-leading win rate of 62.1. Playoff -5 with just one assist will also have to be removed from the memory bank to return to regular season form.
Hamilton Bulldogs (OHL Champions)
Mason McTavish (ANA, third overall, 2021) As an encore to the wild journey he took last season, playing abroad, winning gold in the U18 and scoring his first NHL goal, Anaheim’s prospect enters the tournament as the best NHL in the KHL ready player. Enjoy the trip, he will surf in Anaheim next season.
Avery Hayes (undefeated) His hat-trick in a 6-1 win in Game 7 over Windsor to win the OHL title gave him 14 playoff goals and 34 points in just 16 games of the season. Hayes had 41 shots in the regular season, was conceded twice in the NHL draft and entered the tournament with three games.
Logan Morrison (Undeveloped) Selected from the first round of the OHL, Morrison has established himself as a key producer of points. His season with 100 points is more than his first two seasons in the league combined (79), but with 46 games less. Central with a right kick, Morrison had at least one point in …
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