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Nurse on duty with ‘Hounds, Barzal comes home, Whalers goalie out to be Steady Neddy: the coast-to-coast

Neate Sager

Combing all corners of the country and the blogosphere for your junior hockey headlines ...

WHL

Sixteen-year-old sensation Mathew Barzal and his Seattle Thunderbirds face the Vancouver Giants tonight. It's bigger than a Whitecaps-Sounders game, almost. (Vancouver Sun)

What's up with the Portland Winterhawks getting waxed 6-2 by Tri-City on Tuesday? A slew of NHL training camp absences plus three injured regulars. (Portland Tribune)

It's on Cody Corbett and Ashton Sautner to hold down the Edmonton Oil Kings' blueline in the wake of heavy off-season turnover. (Edmonton Journal)

No Dub team has won a Memorial Cup tournament since the Spokane Chiefs dropped the trophy in 2008. Darren Steinke has a little fun with the notion this might not be coincidental. (Medicine Hat News)

Kelowna's Tyson Baillie was left off the Central Scouting preliminary list, which seems like a wee bit of an oversight. (Regan's Rant)

Victoria Royals rookie defenceman Chaz Redekopp, sidelined during preseason, might not be up to game speed yet. (Victoria Times-Colonist)

Red Deer Rebels standout Haydn Fleury is unique in that his playing weight is lower than it was in his 16-year-old season. (WHL From Above)

St. Louis Blues second-rounder Tommy Vannelli appears headed to the Medicine Hat Tigers. (Tiger Turf)

OHL

Captain Darnell Nurse's return from the Edmonton Oilers to the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds is well-timed, since the 'Hounds need some leadership. (Edmonton Journal, Sault Star)

Top-ranked NHL draft goalie prospect Alex Nedeljkovic isn't sneaking up on anyone as a Plymouth Whalers sophomore: "There is a different mindset going in as the No. 1 guy ... you have to self-motivate." (The Pipeline Show)

Sticking with goaltending, overage Chris Festarini is returning to the Niagara IceDogs after taking a stab at the AHL. (St. Catharines Standard)

Ahead of the Saginaw Spirit's home opener, Cory Butzin ponders how the Spirit will make up for losing 97-point scorer Eric Locke to the AHL's Rochester Americans. (Saginaw News)

Erstwhile Plymouth defenceman Connor Carrick scored in NHL preseason play for the Washington Capitals on Monday, prolonging his stay with the big club. (Russian Machine Never Breaks, MASN)

The Owen Sound Attack are getting overage captain Kurtis Gabriel and No. 1 defenceman Chris Bigras back from the Minnesota Wild and Colorado Avalanche, respectively.

While the London Knights still have teenaged NHL first-rounders Max Domi, Bo Horvat, Olli Maatta and Nikita Zadorov away at NHL camps, it appears they might have seen the last of 20-year-old centre Alex Broadhurst.

Saginaw Spirit selection Tarek Baker has committed to the Big Ten's Minnesota Golden Gophers. (Minneapolis Star-Tribune)

Josh Brown mentions some mullables from the first weekend, including the strong start of Kitchener Rangers sophomore Darby Llewellyn. (Rangers Report)

You might say the Ottawa 67's upsized their overage goalie: 6-foot-6 Philippe Trudeau, late of the Val-d'Or Foreurs, has displaced 6-foot-5 Clint Windsor. (Ottawa Citizen)

The Sudbury Wolves are an on-paper contender, but losing their opener by a converted touchdown is a reminder the ol' group dynamic needs work. (Sudbury Star)

Former Windsor Spitfires forward Emerson Clark isn't venturing too far for a stab at the pro game, since he's signed with the Toledo Walleye. (Toledo Blade)

QMJHL

New Jersey Devils-drafted goalie Anthony Brodeur is savouring his first Quebec League win with Gatineau. (Le Droit)

Sportsnet's Sam Cosentino talks about the Q's NHL draft prospects: "You get juxtaposed against a year like [2012-13], you set the bar high." (The Pipeline Show)

Coach Gordie Dwyer expounds on how the rebranded Charlottetown Islanders have started 4-0-0-0. (The Pipeline Show)

Overage centre Oliver Archambault will not suit up with his new Quebec Remparts teammates for several weeks after contracting mononucleosis. (Le Soleil)

Sherbrooke Phoenix veteran Simon Desbiens will miss four games for his head shot on Samuel Hodhod of rival Blainville-Boisbriand. (TVA Sports)

Neate Sager is a writer for Yahoo! Canada Sports. Follow him on Twitter @neatebuzzthenet. Please address any questions, comments or concerns to btnblog@yahoo.ca.