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Winnipeg Jets Prospect Tracker – CHL Opening Week Review

As the lockout rages on, rather than focusing on the definition of HRR, the owner/player split and board meetings that accomplish nothing, we will instead turn our attention to the game itself, by featuring weekly updates on the Winnipeg Jets‘ CHL prospects.

Last weekend all seven prospects played in two games – except for golden boy Mark Scheifele who was given three opportunities to etch his name on the stat sheet. Let’s take a look at how they did and what fans can expect as the season plays out.

The first night of CHL action seemed extraordinarily promising as the aforementioned Scheifele opened his campaign with three assists and an empty net goal to seal a 6-4 win for the Barrie Colts.

Friday’s schedule proved to be busiest of the weekend as all Jets’ prospects were active, save for Zach Yuen. Each of Ryan Olsen, Austen Brassard and Scheifele notched power play goals with Scheifele sweetening the deal by adding a fight to his score-sheet. It is also worth noting that Brassard was awarded first star of the game honours and Scheifele led the OHL in points at day’s end.

Saturday's schedule was a tad lighter with Lukas Sutter, Adam Lowry, Brassard, Olsen, and Yuen each registering games played. Brassard extended his goal scoring streak to two games in a 3-2 SO win over Plymouth. Sutter showed his grit with 7 PIM including a fight, and Lowry displayed his finishing touch with a hat-trick. Lowry registered goals while shorthanded, on the power play and at even strength, and was voted first star of the night by Yahoo! Sports Buzzing the Net blog.

Scoring tailed off on Sunday as the weekend closed with a whimper. Scott Kosmachuk, Scheifele, and Yuen all played, but the trio was held pointless — all in losing efforts.

After our first week of play, here is the statistical breakdown of each prospect:

Season Totals
Name Team GP G A PTS +/- PIM
Mark Scheifele Barrie (OHL) 3 2 3 5 +2 7
Adam Lowry Swift Current (WHL) 2 3 0 3 +2 6
Austen Brassard Belleville (OHL) 2 2 0 2 +1 0
Ryan Olsen Kelowna (WHL) 2 1 0 1 0 4
Scott Kosmachuk Guelph (OHL) 2 0 0 0 -2 6
Zach Yuen Tri-City (WHL) 2 0 0 0 -2 2
Lukas Sutter Saskatoon (WHL) 2 0 0 0 -1 9

Questions to Ponder

  • Can Scheifele maintain his point-per-game average and stay atop the top five scorers in the OHL?
  • Will Lowry be able to distance himself from injury concerns?
  • Will Brassard prove to be a savvy late round pick for Jets’ brass?
  • Can Olsen displace Sutter from his pedestal in the prospect pipeline?
  • Does Kosmachuk have another 30 goal season in him?
  • Will Yuen continue to build on his monster plus/minus numbers from the past two seasons?

What do you think? Give us your opinion in the comment section below!

Option Votes
Austen Brassard 2
Scott Kosmachuk 0
Adam Lowry 22
Ryan Olsen 1
Mark Scheifele 12
Lukas Sutter 1
Zach Yuen 0
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