Advertisement

MacKinnon, Jones have Mile High matchup; Connor Carrick counts in NHL debut: the coast-to-coast

Neate Sager

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

WHL

The pecking order in the Western Conference could be altered by this weekend's Portland-Kelowna two-game series. (Kelowna Capital News, The Oregonian)

Hey, Grantland wrote about Seth Jones, who faces off vs. Nathan MacKinnon in the NHL on Friday. (ESPN)

The Edmonton Oil Kings, as evidenced by this week's deal for veteran Reid Petryk, plan on staying in the thick of the East. (The Pipeline Show)

Regina Pats players such as Calgary Flames first-rounder Morgan Klimchuk have embraced new coach Malcolm Cameron's more open style of play ... but with a 1-4-0-0 start, how long do they stick with it? (Regina Leader-Post)

OHL

Erstwhile Plymouth Whaler Connor Carrick was more focused on being outmuscled on a goal against in his Washington Capitals debut than the fact he scored in his first NHL game. (Washington Post)

Sean Monahan notched an assist while playing 11 minutes 40 seconds in his Calgary Flames debut. (NHL.com)

This is what happens when North Bay's Blake Clarke and Niagara's Brendan Perlini are playing simultaneously: the IceDogs ran out of stat packs to hand to NHL scouts on Thursday. (St. Catharines Standard)

Has first-rounder Mitch Marner made himself indispensable to the London Knights or is this all a showcase for a January trade? (London Free Press)

Former Michigan Wolverines recruit Bryson Cianfrone and Jared Walsh are getting good early notices with the Mississauga Steelheads. (Mississauga News)

Draft-eligible defenceman Phil Baltisberger of the Guelph Storm likely still has to wear a cage to protect his fractured jaw for two more weeks. (Guelph Mercury)

Please remember that Oshawa's Scott Laughton lasted longer with the Philadelphia Flyers than a certain Claude Giroux did at the same age. (Philadelphia Daily News, Wilmington News-Journal)

Pittsburgh Penguins signing Matt Murray had an efficient 31-of-32 night in Sault Ste. Marie's net on Thursday. (Soo Today)

Laughton's Generals went 7-1 vs. rival Peterborough last season, which was the same score as their game on Thursday. Ouch. (Peterborough Examiner)

Windsor's 5-1 win over Plymouth, paced by a Ben Johnson hat trick, was its largest over the Whalers since their Memorial Cup days. (Windsor Star)

So what if Sarnia's Craig Duininck is the only active OHLer with a Memorial Cup ring? You mean the league's last win came four seasons ago and those 2010 Windsor Spitfires weren't reliant on 16-year-olds? (The Canadian Press)

QMJHL

Willy Palov likens Jonathan Drouin's return to the Halifax Mooseheads to Sidney Crosby's impact in Rimouski nine years ago. That 2004-05 Rimouski team wasn't exactly laden with future NHLers, yet it went to the Memorial Cup final. (Halifax Chronicle-Herald)

Unbeaten in regulation, Charlottetown has a big test Friday vs. Anthony Mantha and Val-d'Or. (Charlottetown Guardian)

Seventeen-year-old Chicoutimi goalie Julio Billia had a great night, but Baie-Comeau took the front end of a home-and-home between Telus East Division contenders. (Le Soleil)

Is there a word in French for schadenfreude? The Quebec Remparts are running second-last in the Q, with no "quick fixes" on the horizon. (Le Soleil)

The Remparts are ahead of only Shawinigan, whose 0-6-1-0 stumble is threatening the club record for worst-ever start. I have Oct. 11 vs. Victoriaville in the When Will The Cataractes Win pool. (Le Nouvelliste)

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.