CHL Daily: Saginaw’s Parekh & Brantford’s O’Brien break franchise records, while No.8-ranked Everett blank No.6-ranked Portland

CHL Three Stars

Everett’s Tyler Palmer turned aside all 34 shots he faced to secure his first shutout of the season as the No.8-ranked Silvertips blanked the No.6-ranked Portland Winterhawks 4-0. His efforts on Sunday marked what was his fifth career WHL shutout and first since February 4, 2023, when Palmer made 35 saves to shut out the Seattle Thunderbirds. His 34-save performance against the Winterhawks on Sunday marked the seventh time that the 20-year-old from Fernie, B.C. has topped 30 saves in a single game this season.

Moncton’s Julius Sumpf scored the game’s first two goals along with adding an assist as the Wildcats defeated the No.10-ranked Halifax Mooseheads 8-2. In eight games during the month of February thus far, Sumpf has tallied five goals and nine assists. Sumpf is now up to 45 points during the 2023-24 campaign, which ranks third among rookies in the QMJHL behind Baie-Comeau’s Raoul Boilard (54 points) and Chicoutimi’s Émile Guité (46 points).

Sherbrooke rookie defenceman Louis-Alex Tremblay scored twice and added an assist in the Phoenix’s 4-3 shootout loss to the Rimouski Océanic. His two goals were the most that the 17-year-old rookie from La Malbaie, Que., has scored in a single game so far this season. With 24 points (4G-20A) in 41 games, Tremblay ranks third in scoring among QMJHL rookie defencemen this season.

CHL Top-10

Despite 29 saves from goaltender Charles-Édward Gravel, the Baie-Comeau Drakkar (3) fell 2-1 in a shootout to the Tigres in Victoriaville on Sunday. 2024 NHL Draft prospect Justin Poirier scored the Drakkar’s lone goal, which was Poirier’s QMJHL-leading 41st of the season. 

Josh Bloom (VAN) scored twice, while 2024 NHL Draft prospect Zayne Parekh had a goal and an assist as the Saginaw Spirit (4) edged the North Bay Battalion 5-3 on the road. By reaching 79 points, Parekh now holds the single-season record for points by a Spirit defenceman – besting the previous mark held by Patrick McNeill. Parekh also continues to lead all CHL defencemen in goals (27) and points (79) this season.

Tallying a goal with 10:37 minutes to play, Peter Repcik (1G-1A) was ultimately credited with the game-winner as the Drummondville Voltigeurs (5) beat the Shawinigan Cataractes 3-2 to secure their seventh win in a row. The victory was also their ninth in 10 games (9-1-0-0) as they stand just six points shy of Baie-Comeau for first place in the QMJHL.

In what was the WHL’s lone game on the schedule, 2024 NHL Draft prospect Julius Miettinen scored the game-winning goal as the Everett Silvertips (8) shut out the Portland Winterhawks (6) by a score of 4-0 on Sunday. It was just the Silvertips’ second win in eight games (2-5-0-1) against the Winterhawks this season.

Wildcats forward Miles Mueller tallied a pair of goals and 2024 NHL Draft prospect Preston Lounsbury had three helpers as Moncton earned a big 8-2 victory over the Halifax Mooseheads (10). The Mooseheads will aim to avenge that loss later today in Moncton at 2:00 p.m. AT, which is a game that fans will be able to catch on TSN+ as part of the CHL Game of the Week program.

NHL Prospect Watch

A trio of NHL prospects from the Kitchener Rangers recorded multi-point outings against the Sudbury Wolves on Sunday. Carson Rehkopf (SEA) recorded his 42nd and 43rd goals of the season. Hunter Brzustewicz (CGY) registered two points (1G-1A), while Filip Mešár (MTL) had two assists as he has 41 points in 32 games this season.

Speaking of Montreal Canadiens prospects, Brantford’s Florian Xhekaj (MTL) continued his strong play as he tallied both a goal and an assist to extend his goal and point streak to six games. Over his last six contests, Xhekaj has eight goals and 11 points over that stretch, and four straight games with two or more points.

Saginaw’s Owen Beck (MTL) registered a pair of helpers, while Spirit defenceman Rodwin Dionicio (ANA) had a goal and an assist on Sunday against the Battalion. Beck is up to 12 goals and 18 assists in just 18 games with the Spirit this season, while Dionicio recorded his sixth multi-point contest in seven games (7G-10A over that stretch). 

Acadie-Bathurst’s Robert Orr (CAR) collected two points (1G-1A) as the Titan narrowly defeated the Olympiques 3-2. Orr has been held off the scoresheet four times in 15 games since January 1.

Everett’s Ben Hemmerling (VGK) contributed a goal and an assist in No.8-ranked Everett’s key victory over No.6-ranked Portland on Sunday. In nine games in February, Hemmerling has recorded eight multi-point outings and collected 16 points (7G-9A) over that stretch.

Nightly Notes

With a pair of goals on Sunday, Brantford’s Jake O’Brien reached 50 points (11G-39A) on the season, which allowed him to break Los Angeles Kings forward Arthur Kaliyev‘s record (48) for most points by a Bulldogs rookie in a single season. O’Brien’s 50 points this season place him in a tie for the OHL rookie scoring lead with Barrie’s Riley Patterson, while his 39 assists rank first among that same group.

Brantford forward and 2024 NHL Draft prospect Marek Vanacker tallied a pair of helpers as he has collected 29 points (12G-17A) in 20 games since January 1.

Brantford goalie Matteo Drobac gave up just one goal while making 31 saves in the Bulldogs’ victory over the IceDogs on Sunday. Drobac has won three straight starts and given up just one goal over his last two games.

Windsor forward and 2024 NHL Draft prospect Liam Greentree collected a goal and an assist in the Spitfires’ 6-4 win over the Greyhounds. Since his participation at the 2024 Kubota CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game on January 24, Greentree has five goals and 11 assists in his last 10 games.

Kitchener’s Matthew Sop (1G-2A vs. Sudbury), Val-d’Or’s Xavier Sarrasin (1G-2A vs. Québec), and Sherbrooke’s Andrew Belchamber (1G-2A vs. Rimouski) were among some of the scoring leaders across the CHL on Sunday.

Reigning CHL Goaltender of the Year and Victoriaville netminder Nathan Darveau made 24 saves in a key 2-1 victory for the Tigres over the No. 3-ranked Drakkar. Over his last three games, Darveau has stopped 76-of-78 shots and recorded one shutout over that time.

Montana’s Saucy Stat Line of the Week

OHL Results (Feb. 18, 2024)

Kitchener 6 – 1 Sudbury

Brantford 5 – 1 Niagara

Saginaw 5 – North Bay 3

Windsor 6 – 4 Soo

QMJHL Results (Feb. 18, 2024)

Acadie-Bathurst 3 – 2 Gatineau

Moncton 8 – 2 Halifax

Rimouski 4 – 3 Sherbrooke (SO)

Val-d’Or 5 – 1 Québec

Drummondville 3 – 2 Shawinigan

Victoriaville 2 – Baie-Comeau 1 (SO)

WHL Results (Feb. 18, 2024) 

Everett 4 – 0 Portland

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