The accolades continue to pour in for rising Halifax Mooseheads star Nico Hischier. The high scoring forward has been named Captain for Team Orr at the upcoming CHL/NHL Top Prospects game to be played on Monday, January 30th in Quebec City. “It feels really good because it’s an honour for me and I’m really excited about it,” Hischier said prior to boarding the bus with his Mooseheads teammates on the way to Cape Breton on Tuesday. Hischier is one of 40 players participating in the game filled with the best CHL prospects for the 2017 NHL Entry Draft. The players were chosen by all 30 NHL clubs and divided into teams by NHL Central Scouting. This season’s event marks the 22nd annual showcase of the CHL’s top-40 NHL Draft eligible players featuring talent from the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, Ontario Hockey League, and Western Hockey League competing before hundreds of NHL scouts in attendance. Top ranked prospect Nolan Patrick of the Brandon Wheat Kings will serve as Team Cherry’s Captain.

The Mooseheads’ prized rookie has played center on the top line for most of the season, producing 60 points (30 goals and 30 assists) in 36 games played. That puts him sixth in QMJHL scoring and he is by far and away the top rookie scorer. Hischier is looking forward to getting on the ice with the top skaters in the Canadian Hockey League.

“It’s a good experience and a chance to meet new friends so it should be fun.”

His performance with Switzerland that saw him nearly lead the team to a quarter-final upset of the eventual gold-medal winning Americans made hockey fans from around the world take notice of his skills. However Hischier isn’t putting any pressure on himself as he gets set for the latest showcase of his talents on a big stage.

“I don’t really expect something and I’ll just try to have fun out there.”

The rosters include all 17 CHL players who received ‘A’ ratings by NHL Central Scouting in their November Players to Watch list including Nolan Patrick of the Brandon Wheat Kings, Maxime Comtois of the Victoriaville Tigres, and Gabriel Vilardi of the Windsor Spitfires who will compete for Team Cherry. Team Orr includes ‘A’ rated players such as Nico Hischier of the Halifax Mooseheads, Matthew Strome of the Hamilton Bulldogs, and Kailer Yamamoto of the Spokane Chiefs.

For more information please visit sherwin-williamstopprospects.ca.