New Jersey Devils Prospect Update: 2/28/17

This post will recap the 21st week of Devils prospect action for the 2016-17 season. It's highlighted by Michael McLeod's 9 point week, Alexander Kerfoot leading Harvard to some silverware, and Albany split a series with St. John's.

QMJHL

Brandon Gignac had an assist, +3, 2 PIM, 3 shots, and won 56.41% of his faceoffs in 2 games for Shawinigan.

OHL

Blake Speers had 2 assists, +1, 8 shots, and won 63.64% of his faceoffs in 2 games for Sault Ste. Marie. Colton White was a -1 with 5 shots in that stretch.

Michael McLeod had himself quite the week. He had 3 goals, 3 assists, +4, 3 shots, and won 13/22 faceoffs against Peterborough on Friday. The following night he had 2 goals, an assist, +3, 3 shots, and won 9/21 faceoffs. More on him later. Nathan Bastian had a goal, +3, 6 shots, and won 3/6 faceoffs in 2 games for Mississauga last week.

Evan Cormier lost both of his starts last week. He made 24 saves on 27 shots against North Bay on Saturday. The following day he made 40 saves on 44 shots against Flint.

WHL

Colby Sissons had 3 assists, -3, and 2 PIM in 3 games for Swift Current last week.

NCAA

Alexander Kerfoot had 2 goals, 2 assists, +3, 2 PIM, 7 shots, and won 51.61% of his faceoffs across Harvard's final 2 regular season games. He has now helped Harvard clinch a share for the Cleary Cup for the ECAC Regular Season Title. They'll share it with Union College. Harvard has earned a bye through the 1st round of the ECAC Playoffs and will host a Quarterfinal series on the weekend of March 10-12.

JD Dudek was a -1 with 4 PIM, 5 shots, and won 1/2 faceoffs in Boston College's final 2 regular season games. BC will either be the 2nd or 3rd seed in the Hockey East Tournament and will have a bye in the opening round.

Brett Seney had a goal, even rating, 2 PIM, 6 shots, and won a faceoff in Merrimack's final 2 regular season games. They are the 7th seed in the Hockey East Tournament and will host 10th seeded New Hampshire this upcoming weekend.

Joey Anderson was a -1 with 2 PIM and 2 shots in 2 games for Minnesota Duluth last week.

Jeremy Davies had a goal, 2 assists, -2, and 3 shots in Northeastern's final 2 regular season games. Northeastern is the 8th seed in the Hockey East Tournament and will host 9th seeded UConn this upcoming weekend.

Europe

Regular Season

Playoffs

SKA St. Petersburg swept Vityaz in the Quarterfinals of the KHL Playoffs. Yegor Rykov didn't appear until Game 4, for reasons I haven't been able to track down, but posted a +1, 2 shots, and 2 blocks in 13:50.

Mikhail Maltsev has helped SKA-Neva get out to a 2-0 lead in their opening playoff series against HC Ryazan. He had an even rating, 2 PIM, 2 shots, and won 9/11 faceoffs in 10:42 in game 1. He had the game winning goal in overtime along with a +1, 1 shot, and won 6/9 faceoffs in 11:20 in game 2. The series continues tomorrow.

Jesper Bratt had an assist, even rating, 2 shots, and averaged 15:50 in ice time across 3 games for AIK last week.

AHL

Albany went 1-1 last week and currently sit 2nd in the North Division with 64 points after 57 games. Their all situation PDO is currently 99.84%. They currently have a Shots For% of 51.94%. The PP is currently operating at 18.07% which is 13th in the league, while the PK is at 85.31% which is 2nd in the league.

Injury Update: Scott Wedgewood (shoulder), Ben Sexton, and Vojtech Mozik were sidelined. Carter Camper remained behind to be with his wife who is pregnant. Newly acquired defenseman, Viktor Loov also was left behind due to paperwork issues.

Transactions: Blake Coleman was recalled by New Jersey on 2/27.

Friday 2/24: Albany defeated St. John's 3-2 in overtime. Albany fell behind 2-0 in the 1st period, but 3rd period goals by Ryan Kujawinski and Ben Thomson forced overtime. Kevin Rooney, Jan Mandat, and Karl Stollery had an assist each in regulation. Rooney had the game winning goal with Stollery and Blake Coleman earning the assists. Brian Gibbons had 4 shots as Albany was outshot 34-26. Ken Appleby made 32 saves. Albany went 0/2 on the PP and 2/2 on the PK. Here is the gamesheet.

Saturday 2/25: Albany lost to St. John's 5-4. Reece Scarlett, Luke Gazdic, Petr Straka, and Nick Lappin had the goals. Gazdic, Ben Thomson, Kevin Rooney, Scarlett, and Karl Stollery had an assist each. 4 Devils had 4 shots as both teams finished with 33 shots on goal. Mackenzie Blackwood made 28 saves. Albany went 0/4 on the PP and 2/2 on the PK. Here is the gamesheet.

PK on a Roll: The ADevils penalty kill has been hot lately, succesfully killing off 33 of the past 35 penalties (94.28%) over the past 9 games.

Coming Up: Albany plays Providence on Friday and Utica on Saturday.

ECHL

Brandon Baddock returned from injury to appear in Adirondack's game against Brampton on Saturday.

Prospect of the Week

With 5 goals, 4 assists, +7, 6 shots, and 51.16 FO% in 2 games, Michael McLeod is clearly the prospect of the week. While those totals alone stand out, I really am encouraged to see that all 9 of those points were primary and that they came across even strength (3 goals, 2 assists), power play (1 goal, 1 assist), and short handed (1 goal, 1 assist). Not to mention that his electric speed and playmaking abilities make him an exciting player to watch.

ADevil of the Week

Kevin Rooney earns this week's honors after posting a game winning goal, 2 assists, and 4 shots in 2 games for Albany last week. The unheralded forward isn't known for his offensive abilities but has become a solid regular in the line up as a rookie for Albany this season. The big club has taken notice and yesterday they inked Rooney to a NHL deal for the remainder of the season.

Your Take

What are your thoughts on McLeod's week and overall season? What about the college prospects as they get towards the end of their seasons? Leave your comments below and thank you for reading!