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New Jersey Devils Prospect Update: 2/7/17

Week 18 of the 2016-17 prospect update saw Michael McLeod and Blake Speers produce in OHL play, the Beanpot semifinals take place, and Albany have a busy week.

2015 NHL Draft - Rounds 2-7
Blake Speers has continued to develop nicely in Sault Ste. Marie.
Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images

This post will recap the 18th week of Devils prospect action for the 2016-17 season. It's highlighted by Michael McLeod and Blake Speers producing in the OHL, Alexander Kerfoot lead Harvard to the Beanpot championship game, and Nick Lappin continue to step up for Albany.

QMJHL

Name Pos. Age Team GP G A Pts +/- PIM SH% SH/GP Pts/GP FO%
Brandon Gignac C 19.27 Shawinigan 42 15 32 47 15 22 13.04% 2.74 1.12 56.35%
Height: 5'11 A1 Pts1 EVG EVA EV Pts PPG PPA PP Pts SHG SHA SH Pts NHLe
Weight: 179 18 33 5 22 27 9 10 19 0 0 0 24

Brandon Gignac had an assist, +1, 2 PIM, 5 shots, and won 21/34 faceoffs over the course of 2 games for Shawinigan last week.

OHL

Name Pos. Age Team GP G A Pts +/- PIM SH% SH/GP Pts/GP FO%
Blake Speers RW 20.11 Sault Ste. Marie 13 7 8 15 4 4 14.00% 3.85 1.15 58.38%
Height: 5'11 A1 Pts1 EVG EVA EV Pts PPG PPA PP Pts SHG SHA SH Pts NHLe
Weight: 183 5 12 5 5 10 1 3 4 1 0 1 28
Pos. Age Team GP G A Pts +/- PIM SH% SH/GP Pts/GP
Colton White D 19.78 Sault Ste. Marie 47 4 20 24 16 37 4.60% 1.85 0.51
Height: 6'1 A1 Pts1 EVG EVA EV Pts PPG PPA PP Pts SHG SHA SH Pts NHLe
Weight: 193 10 14 3 17 20 0 2 2 1 0 1 13
Pos. Age Team GP G A Pts +/- PIM SH% SH/GP Pts/GP FO%
Michael McLeod C 19.02 Mississauga 39 14 31 45 13 43 10.94% 3.28 1.15 60.27%
Height: 6'2 A1 Pts1 EVG EVA EV Pts PPG PPA PP Pts SHG SHA SH Pts NHLe
Weight: 195 19 33 10 22 32 3 7 10 1 1 2 28
Pos. Age GP G A Pts +/- PIM SH% SH/GP Pts/GP FO%
Nathan Bastian RW 19.19 Mississauga 43 12 27 39 10 30 10.81% 2.58 0.91 48.93%
Height: 6'4 A1 Pts1 EVG EVA EV Pts PPG PPA PP Pts SHG SHA SH Pts NHLe
Weight: 219 17 29 8 19 27 2 7 9 2 0 2 22
Name Age GP GS W L OTL SOL GAA SV% GA%- GSAA GSAA/60
Evan Cormier 19.27 36 36 17 13 4 2 3.29 0.899 100 -4.78 -0.14
Height: 6'2 Saginaw SO SO% QS QS% RBS RBS% BO BO% EVG% PPG% SHG%
Weight: 215 OHL 2 5.56% 21 58.33% 9 25.00% 2 5.56% 69.30% 29.82% 0.88%

Blake Speers continued to shine for Sault Ste. Marie with 2 goals, 3 assists, +1, 2 PIM, 11 shots, and won 61.11% of his faceoffs across 3 games. Colton White had 2 assists, -2, 4 PIM, and 9 shots in that stretch.

Michael McLeod had a big game against Niagara last Thursday with 2 goals, an assist, +2, 2 PIM, 6 shots, and won 15/29 faceoffs. The next night against North Bay he was held off the board but was a +1 with 2 shots and won 15/20 faceoffs. Nathan Bastian missed both of Mississauga's games last week after suffering a knee on knee hit against Sudbury on 1/29. He's likely out 2 weeks according to Iain Colpitts of The Mississauga News.

Evan Cormier had a mixed week for Saginaw. On Thursday he made 4 saves on 6 shots in 13:24 in a loss to Windsor. He was pulled after giving up a 3rd goal which was ultimately disallowed. On Saturday he earned a win over London by stopping 40 of 41 shots.

WHL

Name Pos. Age Team GP G A Pts +/- PIM Pts/GP NHLe
Colby Sissons D 19.08 Swift Current 48 6 16 22 7 20 0.46 10
Height: 6'2 A1 Pts1 EVG EVA EV Pts PPG PPA PP Pts SHG SHA SH Pts
Weight: 190 12 18 4 10 14 2 6 8 0 0 0

Colby Sissons was a +4 across 2 games for Swift Current last week.

NCAA

Name Pos. Team GP G A Pts +/- PIM SH% SH/GP Pts/GP FO% NHLe
Alex Kerfoot C Harvard 23 10 19 29 9 12 16.13% 2.70 1.26 49.28% 27
Height: 5'10 Age League A1 Pts1 EVG EVA EV Pts PPG PPA PP Pts SHG SHA SH Pts
Weight: 175 22.51 ECAC 14 24 4 9 13 5 4 9 1 4 5
GP G A Pts +/- PIM SH% SH/GP Pts/GP FO% NHLe
JD Dudek LW Boston College 30 11 6 17 9 14 14.47% 2.53 0.57 0.00% 15
Height: 5'11 A1 Pts1 EVG EVA EV Pts PPG PPA PP Pts SHG SHA SH Pts
Weight: 185 21.04 Hockey East 4 15 9 5 14 1 1 2 1 0 1
GP G A Pts +/- PIM SH% SH/GP Pts/GP FO% NHLe
Brett Seney C Merrimack 27 8 14 22 7 24 14.81% 2.00 0.81 44.44% 22
Height: 5'9 A1 Pts1 EVG EVA EV Pts PPG PPA PP Pts SHG SHA SH Pts
Weight: 170 20.96 Hockey East 9 17 7 6 13 1 8 9 0 0 0
GP G A Pts +/- PIM SH% SH/GP Pts/GP FO% NHLe
Joey Anderson RW Minnesota Duluth 25 7 17 24 6 2 11.11% 2.52 0.96 12.50% 24
Height: 6'0 A1 Pts1 EVG EVA EV Pts PPG PPA PP Pts SHG SHA SH Pts
Weight: 195 18.65 Hockey East 10 17 6 12 18 1 5 6 0 0 0
GP G A Pts +/- PIM SH% SH/GP Pts/GP BLK NHLe
Jeremy Davies D Northeastern 28 6 10 16 -5 30 10.17% 2.11 0.57 43 15
Height: 5'11 A1 Pts1 EVG EVA EV Pts PPG PPA PP Pts SHG SHA SH Pts
Weight: 182 20.19 Hockey East 3 9 4 2 6 2 8 10 0 0 0

Alexander Kerfoot had a total of 2 goals, an assist, +2, 4 PIM, 8 shots, and won 23/35 faceoffs across 2 games for Harvard last week, including a win over Northeastern to advance to the Beanpot final. Prior to that game, Jeff Cox of SBN College Hockey had this to say about Kerfoot:

A 2012 NHL Draft selection of the New Jersey Devils, he is undersized, but he has above average speed and exceptional vision. He does a good job of creating time and space for his linemates by using his quickness to separate from defenders.

JD Dudek had a goal, assist, even rating, and 2 shots across 2 games for Boston College last week, including a loss to Boston University in the Beanpot semifinal.

Brett Seney had 2 assists, +2, and 6 shots across 2 games for Merrimack against UConn.

Joey Anderson had a goal, 2 assists, -1, and 10 shots in 2 games for Minnesota Duluth last week against Nebraska Omaha.

Jeremy Davies had a goal, 4 assists, +1, 4 PIM, and 3 shots in 3 games for Northeastern last week. Prior to the Beanpot semifinal, Jeff Cox of SBN College Hockey had this to say on Davies:

Freshman defenseman Jeremy Davies will play a key role in the Huskies’ ability to push the pace, transition effectively, break the puck out of their own zone and enter the attacking.

The Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue, Québec native is an undersized blue liner, but he has terrific mobility. He is able to move the puck by making heady outlet passes or carrying it out of trouble.

Europe

Name Pos. Team GP G A Pts +/- PIM SH SH% SH/GP Pts/GP BLK ATOI
Yegor Rykov D SKA St. Petersburg 44 0 9 9 11 6 35 0.00% 0.80 0.20 36 12:28
Height: 6'2 Age League A1 Pts1 EVG EVA EV Pts PPG PPA PP Pts SHG SHA SH Pts NHLe
Weight: 216 19.83 KHL 5 5 0 9 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 13
Name Pos. Team GP G A Pts +/- PIM SH SH% SH/GP Pts/GP FO% ATOI
Mikhail Maltsev C SKA-Neva 30 0 11 11 8 21 47 0.00% 1.57 0.37 58.55% 11:47
Height: 6'3 Age League A1 Pts1 EVG EVA EV Pts PPG PPA PP Pts SHG SHA SH Pts NHLe
Weight: 205 18.92 VHL 9 9 0 10 10 0 1 1 0 0 0 13
Name Pos. Team GP G A Pts +/- PIM SH SH% SH/GP Pts/GP FO% ATOI
Mikhail Maltsev C SKA-1946 14 5 9 14 11 2 36 13.89% 2.57 1.00 63.29% N/A
Height: 6'3 Age League A1 Pts1 EVG EVA EV Pts PPG PPA PP Pts SHG SHA SH Pts NHLe
Weight: 205 18.92 MHL 4 9 4 7 11 1 1 2 0 1 1 15
Name Pos. Team GP G A Pts +/- PIM SH SH% SH/GP Pts/GP FO% ATOI
Jesper Bratt LW AIK 38 4 13 17 -3 6 50 8.00% 1.32 0.45 0.00% 13:23
Height: 5'10 Age League A1 Pts1 EVG EVA EV Pts PPG PPA PP Pts SHG SHA SH Pts NHLe
Weight: 174 18.54 Allsvenskan 9 13 4 12 16 0 1 1 0 0 0 33

Yegor Rykov had an even rating with 2 PIM and a block across 2 games for SKA last week while averaging 12-13 minutes per game.

Mikhail Maltsev had an even rating with 2 PIM, a shot, and won 22/35 faceoffs across 2 games for SKA-Neva last week while averaging 13:48 per game.

Jesper Bratt had an even rating with a shot, a lost faceoff, and an average ice time of 11:48 across 2 games for AIK last week.

AHL

Name Height Weight Age Pos GP G A PTS A1 Pts1 +/- PIM SH SH% SH/GP Pts/GP GC GC/GP NHLe EVG EVA EV Pts PPG PPA PP Pts SHG SHA SH Pts ENG ENA EN Pts
John Quenneville 6'1 205 20.83 C 40 10 20 30 10 20 -9 42 103 9.71% 2.58 0.75 11.26 0.28 27 5 10 15 5 10 15 0 0 0 0 0 0
Blake Coleman 5'11 200 25.21 C 39 16 12 28 7 23 14 40 84 19.05% 2.15 0.72 12.39 0.32 26 13 11 24 2 1 3 1 0 1 0 0 0
Ben Sexton 5'11 195 25.69 C 45 15 11 26 2 17 3 45 82 18.29% 1.82 0.58 11.55 0.26 21 8 6 14 7 5 12 0 0 0 0 0 0
Blake Pietila 5'11 200 23.98 LW 37 13 12 25 7 20 1 29 82 15.85% 2.22 0.68 10.70 0.29 24 7 10 17 4 2 6 0 0 0 2 0 2
Brian Gibbons 5'8 175 28.97 LW 44 10 14 24 6 16 -2 22 62 16.13% 1.41 0.55 9.57 0.22 20 6 11 17 4 3 7 0 0 0 0 0 0
Joe Blandisi 6'0 200 22.58 C 28 7 16 23 9 16 -2 56 55 12.73% 1.96 0.82 8.45 0.30 30 5 7 12 2 9 11 0 0 0 0 0 0
Carter Camper 5'9 175 28.61 C 22 2 15 17 9 11 4 8 37 5.41% 1.68 0.77 5.35 0.24 28 2 8 10 0 7 7 0 0 0 0 0 0
Reece Scarlett 6'1 185 23.87 D 41 2 14 16 6 8 -8 51 67 2.99% 1.63 0.39 5.07 0.12 14 1 6 7 1 8 9 0 0 0 0 0 0
Vojtech Mozik 6'3 200 24.13 D 41 6 6 12 5 11 13 38 93 6.45% 2.27 0.29 5.07 0.12 11 1 4 5 5 2 7 0 0 0 0 0 0
Rod Pelley 6'0 205 32.46 LW 47 6 5 11 5 11 -4 16 49 12.24% 1.04 0.23 4.79 0.10 8 5 5 10 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1
Jan Mandat 6'0 205 21.24 C 28 4 7 11 6 10 4 19 26 15.38% 0.93 0.39 4.22 0.15 14 4 7 11 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Kevin Rooney 6'2 190 23.73 C 47 8 3 11 3 11 -2 35 69 11.59% 1.47 0.23 5.35 0.11 8 6 1 7 0 0 0 1 1 2 1 1 2
Karl Stollery 5'11 180 29.24 D 33 0 9 9 4 4 11 22 33 0.00% 1.00 0.27 2.53 0.08 10 0 6 6 0 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 0
Max Novak 5'11 180 25.84 C 40 4 5 9 3 7 -9 17 56 7.14% 1.40 0.23 3.66 0.09 8 1 1 2 1 2 3 1 1 2 1 1 2
Nick Lappin 6'1 175 24.28 RW 14 4 5 9 5 9 -2 4 31 12.90% 2.21 0.64 3.66 0.26 23 4 5 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Brandon Gormley 6'2 195 24.99 D 31 2 6 8 3 5 -12 26 45 4.44% 1.45 0.26 2.82 0.09 9 1 2 3 1 4 5 0 0 0 0 0 0
Petr Straka 6'0 185 24.67 LW 18 2 6 8 3 5 -4 10 29 6.90% 1.61 0.44 2.82 0.16 16 2 3 5 0 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 0
Ryan Kujawinski 6'2 200 21.88 C 21 3 4 7 3 6 6 16 25 12.00% 1.19 0.33 2.82 0.13 12 3 2 5 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 1
Seth Helgeson 6'4 215 26.35 D 31 2 4 6 3 5 10 39 31 6.45% 1.00 0.19 2.25 0.07 7 2 4 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Miles Wood 6'2 215 21.42 LW 14 3 3 6 3 6 -2 32 41 7.32% 2.93 0.43 2.53 0.18 15 2 2 4 1 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 0
Jacob MacDonald 6'0 208 23.96 D 12 3 3 6 2 5 -2 0 26 11.54% 2.17 0.50 2.53 0.21 18 1 2 3 1 1 2 1 0 1 0 0 0
Yohann Auvitu 5'11 190 27.55 D 11 2 4 6 2 4 2 0 35 5.71% 3.18 0.55 2.25 0.20 20 2 2 4 0 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0
Josh Jacobs 6'2 200 20.99 D 29 0 5 5 3 3 -5 28 33 0.00% 1.14 0.17 1.41 0.05 6 0 4 4 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
Ben Thomson 6'3 205 24.08 LW 46 3 2 5 2 5 -13 68 68 4.41% 1.48 0.11 2.25 0.05 4 3 2 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Andrew MacWilliam 6'2 230 26.89 D 41 0 2 2 1 1 -12 72 42 0.00% 1.02 0.05 0.56 0.01 2 0 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Luke Gadzic 6'4 225 27.56 LW 15 0 2 2 1 1 -3 23 13 0.00% 0.87 0.13 0.56 0.04 5 0 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Brian Ward 6'1 205 25.00 LW 8 0 1 1 0 0 -2 0 4 0.00% 0.50 0.13 0.28 0.04 5 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Ty Loney 6'3 205 24.96 RW 4 0 1 1 1 1 1 0 5 0.00% 1.25 0.25 0.28 0.07 9 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
Steve Santini 6'2 210 21.94 D 15 0 0 0 0 0 4 25 16 0.00% 1.07 0.00 0.00 0.00 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Justin Agosta 6'3 205 26.35 D 1 0 0 0 0 0 -1 0 1 0.00% 1.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Tylor Spink 5'10 180 24.12 C 4 0 0 0 0 0 -4 4 4 0.00% 1.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Name Age GP GS W L OTL SOL GAA SV% GA%- GSAA GSAA/60
Mackenzie Blackwood 20.18 18 17 8 7 1 1 3.07 0.890 122 -8.77 -0.55
Height: 6'4 MIN SO SO% QS QS% RBS RBS% BO BO% EVG% PPG% SHG%
Weight: 215 959.02 0 0.00% 4 23.53% 3 17.65% 4 23.53% 61.22% 36.73% 2.04%
Age GP GS W L OTL SOL GAA SV% GA%- GSAA GSAA/60
Scott Wedgewood 24.50 10 8 5 3 0 0 2.18 0.912 98 0.43 0.05
Height: 6'2 MIN SO SO% QS QS% RBS RBS% BO BO% EVG% PPG% SHG%
Weight: 190 549.87 0 0.00% 2 25.00% 1 12.50% 3 37.50% 60.00% 30.00% 10.00%
Age GP GS W L OTL SOL GAA SV% GA%- GSAA GSAA/60
Ken Appleby 21.85 21 21 13 8 0 0 2.24 0.912 98 1.24 0.06
Height: 6'4 MIN SO SO% QS QS% RBS RBS% BO BO% EVG% PPG% SHG%
Weight: 210 1258.816667 0 0.00% 12 57.14% 3 14.29% 2 9.52% 80.85% 14.89% 4.26%
Age GP GS W L OTL SOL GAA SV% GA%- GSAA GSAA/60
J.P. Anderson 24.80 1 1 0 1 0 0 4.07 0.857 159 -1.48 -1.51
Height: 5'11 MIN SO SO% QS QS% RBS RBS% BO BO% EVG% PPG% SHG%
Weight: 185 58.95 0 0.00% 0 0.00% 0 0.00% 0 0.00% 75.00% 25.00% 0.00%

Albany went 1-2 last week and currently sit 2nd in the North Division with 54 points after 47 games. Their all situation PDO is currently 99.75%. They currently have a Shots For% of 51.95%. The PP is currently operating at 17.53% which is 16th in the league, while the PK is at 84.54% which is 6th in the league.

Injury Update: Petr Straka (upper body), Blake Pietila (illness), Mackenzie Blackwood (illness), and Scott Wedgewood (shoulder) remain sidelined.

Transactions: Albany added goaltender J.P. Anderson on a PTO on 2/2 after Mackenzie Blackwood became the latest Devil to fall ill with the virus sweeping the team. Luke Gazdic was returned to Albany on 2/3 with Joe Blandisi going the other way to New Jersey. Karl Stollery was sent back down on 2/5 but then recalled by New Jersey on 2/6.

Thursday 2/2: Albany defeated Syracuse 3-2. Nick Lappin, Brian Gibbons, and Ben Sexton had the goals. Josh Jacobs, Jan Mandat, and Blake Coleman had an assist each. Lappin had 5 shots followed by Jacob MacDonald with 4 as the Devils outshot the Crunch 27-24. Ken Appleby made 22 saves. Albany went 0/3 on the PP and 4/5 on the PK. Here is the gamesheet.

Friday 2/3: Albany lost to Lehigh Valley 4-3. Offensive leaders for Albany included Blake Coleman with 2 goals and Brian Gibbons with 2 assists. Nick Lappin had the other goal. Ben Sexton, Carter Camper, John Quenneville, and Vojtech Mozik each had an assist. Lappin had 5 shots followed by Coleman and Quenneville with 4 each as the Devils outshot the Phantoms 31-28. J.P. Anderson, signed to a PTO from Adirondack (ECHL) with Mackenzie Blackwood out sick with the virus sweeping the team, made 24 saves. Phantoms defender T.J. Brennan was assessed a major penalty and game misconduct for elbowing John Quenneville late in the game. Jan Mandat fought Brennan and earned a game misconduct due to the "instigator" rule (video here). Albany went 1/5 on the PP and 3/4 on the PK. Here is the gamesheet.

Saturday 2/4: Albany lost to Binghamton 6-2. Ben Sexton and Jacob MacDonald had the goals while Blake Coleman and Nick Lappin earned an assist each. Lappin had 8 shots as the Devils outshot the Senators 35-22. Ken Appleby made 16 saves. Albany went 0/1 on the PP and 5/5 on the PK. Here is the gamesheet.

Coming Up: Albany takes on Providence tonight, Rochester on Friday, and then Toronto on Saturday and Sunday.

ECHL

Name Height Weight Age Pos GP G A PTS A1 Pts1 +/- PIM SH SH% SH/GP Pts/GP EVG EVA EV Pts PPG PPA PP Pts SHG SHA SH Pts ENG ENA EN Pts
Brandon Baddock 6'4 215 21.88 F 16 0 3 3 2 2 1 11 15 0.00% 0.94 0.19 0 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Josh Jacobs 6'2 200 20.99 D 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 2 0.00% 2.00 0.00 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Name Age GP GS W L OTL SOL GAA SV% GA%- GSAA GSAA/60
Ken Appleby 21.85 6 6 4 1 0 1 1.98 0.915 89 1.49 0.25
Height: 6'4 MIN SO SO% QS QS% RBS RBS% BO BO% EVG% PPG% SHG%
Weight: 205 363.23 1 16.67% 4 66.67% 0 0.00% 1 16.67% 50.00% 41.67% 8.33%

Brandon Baddock had an assist, even rating, 2 PIM, and 5 shots over the course of 3 games for Adirondack last week.

Prospect of the Week

Blake Speers earns this week's honors after posting 2 goals, 3 assists, 11 shots, and won 61.11% of his faceoffs across 3 games. He's now put up at least a point in 11 of the 13 games he's played this season and has provided a nice boost for Sault Ste. Marie. He seems to have recovered well from injury and the future is still very bright for the young forward.

ADevil of the Week

I'm going to give this week's honors to Nick Lappin after he had 2 goals and an assist along with 18 shots over the course of 3 games. In 8 games since being sent back to Albany, Lappin has 3 goals, 3 assists, and 27 shots. He's only been held of the scoresheet in 2 of those games. If he can keep up this consistency, it may not be long until we see him in New Jersey again.

Your Take

Which prospects stood out to you this past week? What are your thoughts on Lappin as a prospect? Leave your comments below and thank you for reading!