HW 3 Stars: February’s Top Prospects

As it was for the Habs, February was a month of ups and downs for many of its prospects and even in Laval.  Nonetheless, several players stood out amongst the crowd, earning a spot in our three stars.

Laval

1st Star: Sean Farrell – At the beginning of the season, Farrell struggled mightily to the point where he was a healthy scratch.  But when injuries struck, he moved into the top six and that got him going again.  From there, he went to the top line and he took off offensively last month, being among the AHL’s top scorers.  It’s quite the turn of fortunes for Farrell who has now established himself as a go-to threat for the Rocket which is exactly what was expected of him heading into the season.

Stats: 10 GP, 8 goals, 7 assists, 15 points, +6 rating, 0 PIMS, 27 shots

2nd Star: Alex Barre-Boulet – Another fixture of the top line, Barre-Boulet didn’t quite take over games as consistently as Farrell did but he did have four multi-point efforts in the month to make him their second-leading scorer.  Considering he has been among the league’s top scorers before, I still think he has another gear he can get to but a point-per-game month is nothing to be too upset about.

Stats: 10 GP, 4 goals, 6 assists, 10 points, even rating, 10 PIMS, 31 shots

3rd Star: Florian Xhekaj – I still find that Xhekaj struggles at times to keep up but he has shown considerable improvement and was rewarded for his efforts with a bit of a breakout offensive month.  As was the case in junior last year, a high shooting percentage helped on that front so I’m a bit skeptical this is going to become the new normal for Xhekaj.  That said, he’s earning himself a lot more rope with the coaches which is always a good sign for a rookie.

Stats: 10 GP, 6 goals, 3 assists, 9 points, +4 rating, 44 PIMS, 20 shots

Honourable Mention: Jared Davidson – There were a few players around the same level of point production but I’m going with Davidson here as he finds a way to be a lot more noticeable on a shift-to-shift basis.  The hustle and energy are always there while he’s still spending a lot of time in Laval’s bottom six despite being among the team’s leaders in goals.  This wasn’t his best month but it was still a solid one.

Stats: 10 GP, 3 goals, 2 assists, 5 points, -2 rating, 7 PIMS, 16 shots

Other Prospects

1st Star: Jacob Fowler (Boston College, NCAA) – Generally speaking, teams like to let their college goalies stay a little longer than skaters so they can get their game reps in and have a more gradual transition to the pros.  Montreal and Fowler are going to have to seriously consider bucking the trend.  He continued to dominate in another case of same old, same old.  It’s hard not to be excited about his future.

Stats: 8 GP, 6-2-0 record, 1.89 GAA, .936 SV%

2nd Star: Oliver Kapanen (Timra) – Oddly enough, Kapanen was a bit quieter playing a few games against his own age group compared to his SHL outings where he once again was quite impressive.  He’s getting big minutes in all situations on the top line and has been among the league leaders in points per game for most of the second half of the season.  GM Kent Hughes acknowledged the possibility of Kapanen seeing some time in Laval once his SHL campaign comes to an end and with their lack of centre depth, that could be a big addition for them in April.

Stats: 8 GP, 4 goals, 4 assists, 8 points, +7 rating, 0 PIMS

3rd Star: Tyler Thorpe (Vancouver, WHL) – From a pure point standpoint, I’m sure the Habs would like to see him being a bit more impactful for someone who is in his second post-draft year (based on age).  But he’s an effective board battler and strong penalty killer, elements that helped lead to some of his points last month and provide a bit of cause for optimism that Thorpe could be like Xhekaj in Laval next season in terms of filling that type of role and developing slowly but steadily.

Stats: 12 GP, 6 goals, 4 assists, 10 points, -1 rating, 21 PIMS, 43 shots

Honourable Mention: Michael Hage (Michigan, NCAA) – One of the elements of Hage’s season that has impressed me is the relative consistency he has shown.  Some freshmen have parts where they dominate and others where they’re really quiet.  Hage has had some flashy moments, sure, but not a lot of games where he has been invisible offensively.  February was more of the same as he continues to hover around the point-per-game mark, a very impressive showing for a rookie.

Stats: 7 GP, 2 goals, 6 assists, 8 points, -1 rating, 17 PIMS