OHL Announces Top Performers of the Month for January

Press Release

Toronto, ON – The Ontario Hockey League today announced the OHL Performers of the Month for January, 2010.

All Weather Windows OHL Player of the Month – Tyler Seguin, Plymouth Whalers

Tyler Seguin of the Plymouth Whalers led the OHL with 26 points in 13 January games scoring 10 goals and 16 assists with a plus-minus rating of plus-4 to capture this award for the second straight month. He recorded points in 11 of his 13 games played including nine multi-point games. He was named first star of the game four times this month including twice when named the Boston Pizza OHL and CHL Player of the Week for the week ending January 24 after two consecutive four-point games. He scored two goals and two assists in a 5-1 win over the Mississauga St. Michael’s Majors on January 22 and a goal with three assists in a 4-2 win over the Peterborough Petes January 23. Seguin also competed as Captain of Team Orr at the 2010 Home Hardware CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game.

Seguin, an 18-year-old from Brampton, ON, currently leads the OHL in scoring with 37 goals and 47 assists for 84 points in 47 games so far in his second season with the Whalers. He is eligible for the 2010 NHL Entry Draft and recently competed for the Western Conference All-Stars at the 2010 OHL All-Star Classic in Kingston.

OHL Rookie of the Month – Matt Puempel, Peterborough Petes
Matt Puempel led all OHL rookies in scoring during January with 11 points in 11 games contributing six goals and five assists for the Peterborough Petes with a plus-minus rating of plus-3. He received first star of the game honours when he recorded his first career hat-trick on January 16 in a 7-4 win over the Kingston Frontenacs. He also received second star honours twice this month scoring a goal and an assist in both games January 8 in a 4-3 overtime loss to the Oshawa Generals, and January 30 in a 3-1 win over the Ottawa 67’s. He also represented Team Ontario and won silver at the 2010 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge and tied for the team lead with five points in six games.

Puempel, a 17-year-old from Essex, ON, was selected sixth overall by the Petes in the 2009 OHL Priority Selection. He currently ranks first in OHL rookie scoring with 21 goals and 19 assists for 40 points in 44 games played. Puempel was also named the January Academic Player of the Month from the East Division.

OHL Defenceman of the Month – Ryan O’Connor, Saginaw Spirit
Ryan O’Connor of the Saginaw Spirit led all OHL defencemen and also led his club with nine goals in January adding six assists for 15 points in 14 games played with a plus-minus rating of plus-2. Five of his goals were scored on the power play and he recorded points in 10 games including five multi-point games. He was named second star of the game twice this month including January 2 with a goal and an assist in a 5-3 win over the Kitchener Rangers, and again on January 29 when he scored two goals, both with the man advantage, as part of a 7-2 victory over the Sarnia Sting in one if the Spirit’s seven wins this month.

O’Connor, an 18-year-old from Hamilton, ON, is playing in his second OHL season. Originally selected sixth overall by the Barrie Colts in the 2008 OHL Priority Selection, O’Connor is now eligible for the 2010 NHL Entry Draft. He is ranked 15th in scoring amongst OHL defencemen with 12 goals and 22 assists for 34 points in 50 games.

OHL Goaltender of the Month – Philipp Grubauer, Windsor Spitfires
Philipp Grubauer went 6-0-0-1 between the pipes for the Windsor Spitfires in January and also won two games for the Belleville Bulls to begin the month. Overall he posted a goals-against-average of 2.09 and a save percentage of .928. He was forced to make more than 30 saves on three separate occasions and finished the month with 258 in total. He was named first star of the game on January 21 where he made 25 saves plus stopped all three shooters to grab a 2-1 shootout win over the Brampton Battalion. The next night January 22 he made 32 saves and was named second star despite a 4-3 shootout loss to the Kitchener Rangers. He was also named third star on January 28 when he made 24 saves in a 5-1 win over the Guelph Storm.

Grubauer, an 18-year-old from Rosenheim, Germany, is playing in his second OHL season. He was originally selected 25th overall by the Belleville Bulls in the 2008 CHL Import Draft and is now eligible for the 2010 NHL Entry Draft where he is the ninth ranked North American goaltender by NHL Central Scouting.

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