The Three Stars of the Week:
1. C David Desharnais claims top honours on the week amongst prospects, with an impressive two goals and three assists in his two games. Desharnais was the primary catalyst of a 5-0 victory for the Hamilton Bulldogs over the Houston Aeros on Tuesday, scoring two goals and adding two assists to his scoring totals, including assisting on the game-winning first goal of the game. Desharnais would then add an assist in an eventual loss to the Toronto Marlies on Sunday to raise his scoring totals to be first overall in the AHL in both points and assists, with 10 goals and 31 assists on his season after 33 games played and is a team-leading +13.
2. G Karri Ramo has continued his dominance in the KHL with two wins and a shootout loss on his week, which included a shutout victory and maintaining a save percentage of .929 and a 2.33 Goals Against Average on his week. Ramo is still the league leader in wins in the KHL with 21 wins in 31 games, is 3rd overall in the KHL in goals against and 6th overall in save percentage, he has the 2nd-most shutouts in the KHL with 4 on his season as well.
3. C Joonas Nattinen had a strong start to his 3rd World Junior Tournament by scoring the first goal for Finland in the USA-Finland match and delivering several powerful hits, including one that sent US player Brock Nelson to the dressing room and has his health questionable for the remainder of the tournament. It was his first goal in a World Junior Tournament since the 2009 series.
Worthy Mentions: LW Andrew Conboy is one point from tying his career-best 13 points in a season in the AHL after adding two assists to his scoring totals. C Gabriel Dumont has points in three consecutive games after some very long scoring droughts during his season. D Brendon Nash leads all Bulldogs defencemen with a +12 rating. C Louis Leblanc had an assist and was +1 in his first World Junior Championship game in a 6-3 win over Russia.
Question Marks: RW Alexander Avtsin and RW Aaron Palushaj were healthy scratches for both of the Hamilton Bulldogs games during the week. RW Maxim Trunev is without a point in his last 7 KHL games.
Selected to play in the IIHF Under-20 World Junior Hockey Championships:
C Louis Leblanc – Team Canada
| Tournament Stats | 1GP | 0G | 1A | +1 | 0 PIM |
C Joonas Nattinen – Team Finland
| Tournament Stats | 1GP | 1G | 0A | +1 | 0 PIM |
Complete Statistics for the week of December 20th:
Legend
Skaters: Games Played, Goals, Assists, +/-, Penalty Minutes
Goalies: Wins, Losses, Overtime Losses, Shootout Losses, Goals Against Average, Save Percentage
Teams: Wins, Losses, Overtime Losses, Shootout Losses, Ties (for NCAA teams only)
Season Stats: Season scoring prior to the past week.
The AHL Report: The Hamilton Bulldogs have been the AHL affiliate of the Montreal Canadiens since 2002. It is the most common route for developing Montreal Canadiens prospects into full-time members of the organization. There are currently 13 members of the Hamilton Bulldogs that can be considered NHL-viable prospects, two of which, Yannick Weber and Max Pacioretty have been called up to Montreal. The Hamilton Bulldogs sit at the top of the North Division with 43 points, five points over their closest competitor with a 19-9-1-4 record, tied for 2nd overall in the Western Conference and 4th overall in the AHL.
RW Alexander Avtsin: 19 years old, 6'3", 199 pounds, RH shot.
| Season Stats | 22GP | 4G | 4A | -2 | 6 PIM |
| Weekly Stats | 0GP | 0G | 0A | 0 | 0 PIM |
| Complete Stats | 22GP | 4G | 4A | -2 | 6 PIM |
LW Andrew Conboy: 22 years old, 6’4”, 192 pounds, LH shot.
| Season Stats | 25GP | 8G | 2A | +4 | 38 PIM |
| Weekly Stats | 2GP | 0G | 2A | +1 | 0 PIM |
| Complete Stats | 27GP | 8G | 4A | +5 | 38 PIM |
C David Desharnais: 24 years old, 5'6", 177 pounds, LH shot.
Alternate Captain
| Season Stats | 31GP | 8G | 28A | +11 | 18 PIM |
| Weekly Stats | 2GP | 2G | 3A | +2 | 2 PIM |
| Complete Stats | 33GP | 10G | 31A | +13 | 20 PIM |
C Gabriel Dumont: 19 years old, 5'10", 180 pounds, RH shot.
| Season Stats | 26GP | 2G | 5A | -2 | 21 PIM |
| Weekly Stats | 2GP | 0G | 2A | +1 | 0 PIM |
| Complete Stats | 28GP | 2G | 7A | -1 | 21 PIM |
C Andreas Engqvist: 22 years old, 6'4", 191 pounds, RH shot.
| Season Stats | 31GP | 4G | 6A | +1 | 10 PIM |
| Weekly Stats | 2GP | 0G | 0A | +1 | 0 PIM |
| Complete Stats | 33GP | 4G | 6A | +2 | 10 PIM |
C Ben Maxwell: 22 years old, 6'1", 191 pounds, LH shot.
Alternate Captain
| Season Stats | 22GP | 5G | 13A | -1 | 18 PIM |
| Weekly Stats | 2GP | 0G | 2A | +1 | 0 PIM |
| Complete Stats | 24GP | 5G | 15A | 0 | 18 PIM |
G Robert Mayer: 22 years old, 6'1", 209 pounds, catches left.
| Season Stats: | 13GP | 6-5-1-1 | 3.08GAA | .886% |
| Weekly Stats: | 0GP | 0-0-0-0 | 0.00GAA | % |
| Complete Stats: | 13GP | 6-5-1-1 | 3.08GAA | .886% |
D Brendon Nash: 23 years old, 6'3", 218 pounds, LH shot.
| Season Stats | 30GP | 2G | 11A | +9 | 27 PIM |
| Weekly Stats | 2GP | 0G | 1A | +4 | 6 PIM |
| Complete Stats | 32GP | 2G | 12A | +13 | 33 PIM |
RW Aaron Palushaj: 21 years old, 6', 183 pounds, RH shot.
| Season Stats | 25GP | 5G | 16A | +5 | 10 PIM |
| Weekly Stats | 0GP | 0G | 0A | 0 | 0 PIM |
| Complete Stats | 25GP | 5G | 16A | +5 | 10 PIM |
C Ryan White: 22 years old, 6', 198 pounds, RH shot.
Alternate Captain
| Season Stats: | 17GP | 2G | 5A | -4 | 38 PIM |
| Weekly Stats: | 2GP | 0G | 0A | 0 | 0 PIM |
| Complete Stats: | 19GP | 2G | 5A | -4 | 38 PI |
Injured:
D Mathieu Carle: 23 years old, 6', 203 pounds, RH shot.
Alternate Captain
| Season Stats | 28GP | 6G | 6A | +10 | 18 PIM |
Called up to play for Montreal
LW Max Pacioretty: 21 years old, 6'2", 210 pounds, LH shot.
| Season Stats | 27GP | 17G | 15A | +4 | 20 PIM |
D Yannick Weber: 22 years old, 5'11", 196 pounds, RH shot.
| Season Stats | 15GP | 8G | 4A | -5 | 10 PIM |
The Juniors Report: The Canadiens currently feature prospects playing in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL), the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) and the Western Hockey League (WHL).
QMJHL:
C Louis Leblanc: 19 years old, 6'1", 184 pounds, RH shot.
Junior Club: Montreal Juniors - Alternate Captain. (26W, 5L, 3 OTL, 2 SOL)
| Season Stats | 24GP | 13G | 16A | +14 | 40 PIM |
| Weekly Stats | 0GP | 0G | 0A | 0 | 0 PIM |
| Complete Stats | 24GP | 13G | 16A | +14 | 40 PIM |
LW Phillippe Lefebvre: 19 years old, 6', 200 pounds, LH shot.
Junior Club: Montreal Juniors (26W, 5L, 3OTL, 2 SOL)
| Season Stats | 34GP | 15G | 16A | +24 | 28 PIM |
| Weekly Stats | 0GP | 0G | 0A | 0 | 0 PIM |
| Complete Stats | 34GP | 15G | 16A | +24 | 28 PIM |
C Michael Bournival: 18 years old, 6’, 190 pounds, LH shot.
Junior Club: Shawinigan Cataractes – Team Captain (20W, 12L, 2OTL, 1 SOL)
| Season Stats | 31GP | 15G | 24A | +3 | 18 PIM |
| Weekly Stats | 0GP | 0G | 0A | 0 | 0 PIM |
| Complete Stats | 31GP | 15G | 23A | +3 | 18 PIM |
D Morgan Ellis: 18 years old, 6'2", 196 pounds, RH shot.
Junior Club: Cape Breton Screaming Eagles - Team Captain (10W, 25L, 1 OTL, 2 SOL)
| Season Stats | 36GP | 7G | 14A | -19 | 40 PIM |
| Weekly Stats | 3GP | 0G | 0A | 0 | 0 PIM |
| Complete Stats | 36GP | 7G | 14A | -19 | 40 PIM |
OHL:
D Jarred Tinordi: 18 years old, 6'7", 212 pounds, LH shot.
Junior Club: London Knights (15W, 14L, 2 OTL, 1 SOL)
| Season Stats | 28GP | 0G | 4A | -7 | 51 PIM |
| Weekly Stats | 0GP | 0G | 0A | 0 | 0 PIM |
| Complete Stats | 28GP | 0G | 4A | -7 | 51 PIM |
WHL:
RW Brendan Gallagher: 18 years old, 5'8", 170 pounds, RH shot.
Junior Club: Vancouver Giants (16W, 14L, 1 OTL, 4 SOL)
| Season Stats | 34GP | 25G | 20A | +14 | 66 PIM |
| Weekly Stats | 0GP | 0G | 0A | 0 | 0 PIM |
| Complete Stats | 34GP | 25G | 20A | +14 | 66 PIM |
US College Hockey (NCAA) Report: The Canadiens have drafted a number of college players in recent years, these are generally ‘project players’ who need extra time to develop.
D Mac Bennett: 6', 180 pounds, LH shot.
NCAA Team: University of Michigan Wolverines (10W, 5L, 4T)
| Season Stats | 11GP | 0G | 3A | +4 | 15 PIM |
| Weekly Stats | 0GP | 0G | 0A | 0 | 0 PIM |
| Complete Stats | 11GP | 0G | 3A | +4 | 15 PIM |
RW Danny Kristo: 5'11”, 188 pounds, RH shot.
NCAA Team: University of North Dakota Fighting Sioux (13W, 5L, 2T)
| Season Stats | 20GP | 1G | 7A | -3 | 8 PIM |
| Weekly Stats | 0GP | 0G | 0A | 0 | 0 PIM |
| Complete Stats | 20GP | 1G | 7A | -3 | 8 PIM |
C Dustin Walsh, 6’3”, 190 pounds, LH shot.
NCAA Team: Dartmouth College Big Green (6W, 4L, 1T)
| Season Stats | 11GP | 4G | 3A | +1 | 2 PIM |
| Weekly Stats | 0GP | 0G | 0A | 0 | 0 PIM |
| Complete Stats | 11GP | 4G | 3A | +1 | 2 PIM |
Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) Report:
MHL- The league under the KHL, Maxim Trunev has been going between both leagues this season.
D Alexei Yemelin: 24 years old, 6'1", 221 pounds, LH shot.
KHL Club: Ak Bars Kazan (24W, 8L, 4 OTL, 2 SOL)
| Season Stats | 33GP | 7G | 8A | +7 | 87 PIM |
| Weekly Stats | 3GP | 0G | 0A | +2 | 4 PIM |
| Complete Stats | 36GP | 7G | 9A | +9 | 91 PIM |
G Karri Ramo: 24 years old, 6'3", 207 pounds, catches left.
KHL Club: Avangard Omsk (25W, 9L, 1 OTL, 2 SOL)
| Season Stats: | 28GP | 19-6-2-0 | 1.93GAA | .926% |
| Weekly Stats: | 3GP | 2-0-0-1 | 2.33GAA | .929%
|
| Complete Stats: | 31GP | 21-6-2-1 | 1.97GAA | .927% |
RW Maxim Trunev: 20 years old, 5'11", 189 pounds, RH shot.
KHL Club: Severstal Cherepovets (20W, 14L, 4 OTL, O SOL)
KHL Stats:
| Season Stats | 21GP | 0G | 5A | 0 | 10 PIM |
| Weekly Stats | 2GP | 0G | 0A | +1 | 0 PIM |
| Complete Stats | 23GP | 0G | 5A | +1 | 10 PIM |
MHL Stats:
| Season Stats | 8GP | 3G | 4A | +7 | 55 PIM |
| Weekly Stats | 0GP | 0G | 0A | 0 | 0 PIM |
| Complete Stats | 8GP | 3G | 4A | +7 | 55 PIM |
