Wednesday December 23, 2015

By Josh Sweetland/OHL

An exciting first half of the 2015-16 OHL season is in the books, one that featured several outstanding performances throughout the league.

Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Mitchell Marner of the London Knights, who is currently representing Canada at the World Junior Hockey Championship in Helsinki, Finland, enters the new year on a 19-game point streak that dates back to October 17th. The 18 year-old has amassed 19 goals, 32 assists and 51 points in that span as his 19 game trend is tied for the longest in the league this season with Niagara’s Josh Ho-Sang, who had points in consecutive games from October 18th to December 8th.

Standout single-game performances include a pair of five goal efforts from forwards Alex DeBrincat of the Erie Otters and Christian Dvorak of the London Knights.

DeBrincat scored five goals in a 6-1 win over the Niagara IceDogs on October 1st. The draft eligible winger added another four goals a week later in a 7-2 win against the same IceDogs team. An intense competitor, DeBrincat currently leads the league in goals with 33 through 30 games.

Dvorak potted five goals in a 9-2 win over the Guelph Storm on November 6th. The Arizona Coyotes prospect, who is currently representing the United States at the World Junior Hockey Championship, leads OHL scoring with 28 goals, 37 assists and 65 points in 27 contests.

Between the pipes, goaltenders Mackenzie Blackwood of the Barrie Colts and Alex Nedeljkovic of the Niagara IceDogs have put forth a pair of the best single-game goaltending performances of the season.

Blackwood stymied the Ottawa 67’s with a 44-save shutout in a 4-0 victory on September 27th. The New Jersey Devils prospect currently leads the OHL in save percentage (.932) and is 8-2 over his past 10 decisions, being named the OHL’s Goaltender of the Month for November with a 2.00 goals-against average and a .942 save percentage.

Then a member of the Flint Firebirds, Nedeljkovic made 43 saves in a 2-0 shutout victory over the Sudbury Wolves on November 28th. The Carolina Hurricanes prospect is 2-1 with a 1.67 goals-against average and a .946 save percentage since being acquired by the Niagara IceDogs.

Elsewhere in the Central Division, Mississauga Steelheads winger Alexander Nylander leads OHL rookie scoring by a 20-point margin. The 17 year-old draft eligible Swedish flank has 21 goals, 28 assists and 49 points in 33 games this season.

Nylander and several others including Steelheads teammates Michael McLeod and Nathan Bastian have stepped up and established themselves as front line OHL talents in the opening half of the 2015-16 season. One can only wonder what’s in store for the months to come.

Here are a few of the OHL’s prominent leaders through 334 games (approx. 49.1% of the schedule) this season.

The second half of the 2015-16 OHL season begins on Monday December 28 with three games following the Holiday Break.