Players of the Week

Press Release

BOUCHERVILLE, Monday, February 2, 2009 – Chicoutimi Saguenéens forward Jacob Lagacé and Val-d’Or Foreurs goaltender Raffaele D’Orso today were named the TELUS offensive and defensive players of the week for the period extending from January 26 to February 1.

Lagacé collected five goals, including a shorthanded maker, and added three helpers in three Saguenéens wins. Moreover, he posted a +6 rating. Lagacé had his best game of the season on Saturday, registering four goals and one assist in a 10-5 victory over the Baie-Comeau Drakkar. Chicoutimi is third in the TELUS Eastern division standings with 44 points.

Cédric Lalonde-McNicoll (Cataractes), Nicolas Deschamps (Saguenéens) and Dmitri Kugryshev (Remparts) were also considered.

Backstop Raffaele D’Orso is the award-winner on defence. In three Foreurs wins, D’Orso blocked an astounding 133 shots to finish the week with a 1.33 goals-against-average and .971 save percentage. Moreover, he posted a shutout, pushing away 48 shots in a 3-0 victory over the Montreal Juniors. With points in six of their last ten games, the Foreurs are making a late-season push to earn one of the final two playoff spots.

Drew Paris (Saguenéens), Marco Scandella (Foreurs) and Marc-André Bourdon (Océanic) were also strong candidates.

Press Release

Toronto, ON – The Ontario Hockey League today announced that forward Cody Hodgson of the Brampton Battalion is the Boston Pizza OHL Player of the Week for the week ending February 1. Hodgson scored four goals and three assists for seven points in three Battalion wins with a plus-minus rating of plus-5.

On Thursday night Hodgson scored a goal on the road in the 3-0 shutout win over the Oshawa Generals. Hodgson would turn up the offense on Saturday night scoring two shorthanded goals including the third period game-winner and added two assists for a four-point night in a 5-1 road win over the Peterborough Petes. The game-winning goal was his ninth of the season to lead the league in that regard. Hodgson was named first star of the game that also gave Battalion head coach Stan Butler his 400th career OHL win. Hodgson would end his week Sunday afternoon with one goal on the power play and one assist for second star of the game honours leading the Battalion to their tenth win in a row with the 6-3 win over the Sudbury Wolves. His two points Sunday extended his point scoring streak to 20 games setting a new club record and is also the longest streak in the OHL this season.

Hodgson, an 18-year-old from Markham, Ontario, is in his third OHL season with the Battalion. He currently leads the team and is ranked fifth in league scoring with 31 goals and 32 assists for 63 points in 35 games this season. Hodgson was drafted 10th overall at the 2008 NHL Entry Draft by the Vancouver Canucks and will play for the Eastern Conference All-Stars at the 2009 Subway OHL All-Star Classic on Wednesday February 4, 2009 in Windsor, Ontario.

Also considered for the award was John Tavares of the London Knights with a week highlighted by a six-point night including four goals and two assists for first star of the game honours in the 9-0 win over the Kitchener Rangers Tuesday night. Matt Dias of the Sudbury Wolves also had a strong week offensively with nine points including six goals and three assists in four games. Between the pipes, rookie goaltender Scott Stajcer of the Owen Sound Attack made 130 saves in three games earning three wins.

2008-09 Boston Pizza OHL Players of the Week

Feb. 2 – Cody Hodgson, Brampton Battalion
Jan. 26 – Thomas McCollum, Brampton Battalion
Jan. 19 – Brett Parnham, Oshawa Generals
Jan. 12 – Marcus Carroll, Owen Sound Attack
Jan. 5 – Eric O’Dell, Sudbury Wolves
Dec. 15 – Cameron Gaunce, Mississauga St. Michael’s Majors
Dec. 8 – John Tavares, Oshawa Generals
Dec. 1 – John Tavares, Oshawa Generals
Nov. 24 – Eric Tangradi, Belleville Bulls
Nov. 17 – Mathew Sisca, Niagara IceDogs
Nov. 10 – Cody Hodgson, Brampton Battalion
Nov. 3 – Ryan Ellis, Windsor Spitfires
Oct. 27 – Taylor Hall, Windsor Spitfires
Oct. 20 – Brandon Foote, Brampton Battalion
Oct. 13 – Justin DiBenedetto, Sarnia Sting

Press Release

CALGARY, AB. – The BOSTON PIZZA WHL Player of the Week is forward Drayson Bowman of the Spokane Chiefs.

Bowman picked up 10 points, scoring five goals and five assists in three games to go with a plus/minus rating of +6 this past week, helping the Chiefs post a 3-0-0-0 record in that span.

On Wednesday, January 28th, the Chiefs travelled to Everett to face the Silvertips at the Comcast Arena. Bowman scored one goal and added two assists as the Chiefs defeated their U.S. Division rivals 9-1. A couple nights later, Friday, January 30th, the Chiefs were back at the Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena to host the Chilliwack Bruins. Bowman picked up his fourth career hat trick netting three goals and two assists as the Chiefs downed the Bruins 6-0. He was also named the games 1st Star.

On Saturday, January 31st, the Kootenay Ice travelled to Spokane to take on the Chiefs. Bowman scored a goal and an assist in the 6-0 win over the Ice.

Bowman’s 10 points over the last three games has him leading his Club in points and currently sits 28th among all WHL scorers with 52 points (25 goals, 27 assists) in 40 games. With the three victories the Chiefs stretch their winning streak to 11 games, one short of a franchise record, and sit just six points back of the Tri-City Americans for top spot in the WHL U.S. Division with a 33-14-0-3 record.

Bowman, a 19 year-old forward from Littleton, Colorado, is in his fourth season with the Spokane Chiefs in the Western Hockey League. The Carolina Hurricanes draft pick (2007, 3rd round – 72nd overall) has appeared in 243 WHL regular season games accumulating 211 points (108 goals, 103 assists).

(Nathan also is a writer for Maineiacs Post to Post and the Maine Hockey Journal. He can be reached at fourniern@students.nescom.edu)