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Bjorkstrand off to worlds; Portland leaves a legacy: the coast-to-coast

Portland's loss brought an end to Nic Petan's junior days (Photo by Marissa Baecker/Getty Images)
Portland's loss brought an end to Nic Petan's junior days (Photo by Marissa Baecker/Getty Images)

 

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

WHL

With Portland vanquished, Columbus Blue Jackets prospect Oliver Bjorkstrand is joining Denmark at the world championship. (Pro Hockey Talk)

Kelowna eliminating Portland is a ding-dong-the-witch-is-dead moment. (The Columbian, Kelowna Daily Courier, The Oregonian, Regan's Rant)

Lucas Punkari pores over the Winterhawks' nearly matchless run across the last five years: "This is something we won’t see the likes of again for quite some time." (Sort Of A Protest Blog)

Top 2016 NHL draft prospect Auston Matthews was a player "possessed" during the world under-18 championship. Will he take that focus to the Everett Silvertips? (NHL.com)

The Calgary Hitmen are bidding adieu to overages Adam Tambellini, Kenton Helgesen and Connor Rankin. (Calgary Herald)

OHL

Connor McDavid is dominating much stiffer competion than Sidney Crosby had 10 years ago in the Quebec League. (Vancouver Province)

Oshawa goalie Ken Appleby, on facing a certain superstar in the final: "I'll do anything I can to stop him ... while being aware of who he can pass to." (North Bay Nugget)

Erie's Jake Marchment explains what makes coach Kris Knoblauch a steady hand behind the bench: "He makes adjustments when he needs to and he doesn't panic on the bench. He has great composure and we feed off that." (Belleville Intelligencer)

Let's just review why NHL teams are not hung up on London's Mitchell Marner being on the small side. (In Lou We Trust)

Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds coach Sheldon Keefe had exit meetings on Sunday and was his own toughest critic: "“It's my job to make things work and they didn't work. There's a level of failure I'm responsible for. It's my responsibility for us not to fall short.” The 'Hounds not making the final with a roster that included seven NHL first- or second-rounders has to be seen as a fail. (Sault Star)

Buffalo Sabres signee Jean Dupuy found parting from Sault Ste. Marie to be so much sweet sorrow: "Coming here turned everything around for me." (Sault Star)

Barrie Colts first-rounder Jacob Tortora signed with the USHL's Youngstown Phantoms, perhaps indicating he's set on the college route. (SBN College Hockey)

QMJHL

There's a few reasons to believe that Quebec and Rimouski won't save their energy for the Memorial Cup, writes Felicia Fournier. (Parlons Junior)

Remparts winger Guillaume Gauthier, who was a high choice out of minor hockey in 2011, is hopeful the final and Memorial Cup will be a forum for him to show he's worthy of a NHL shot. (Le Soleil)

Remember, the Buffalo Sabres have two more high picks in the draft. How would Charlottetown's Daniel Sprong look in blue and gold?

Charlottetown's coaching shakeup came as a shock in some quarters. (Charlottetown GuardianSummerside Journal Pioneer)

Neate Sager is a writer for Yahoo! Sports Canada. Contact him at neatesager@yahoo.ca and follow him on Twitter @neatebuzzthenet.