BSH prospect report: Down the stretch

The News of the Week

The week brought us the end of the regular season for the Flyers, and with it, a whole lot of activity. The Flyers were busy, as they made a pair of signings -- Hunter McDonald\'s play with the Phantoms on his tryout earned him an entry level contract, and Massimo Rizzo, fresh off a national championship win (more on that later) was also signed to an ELC beginning next season as an added reward.

The Phantoms also have more reinforcements on the way, as the Flyers sent down Bobby Brink, Olle Lycksell, Ronnie Attard, and Adam Ginning. They\'re close to clinching a playoff spot already on their own, but more support will certainly be welcome.

What\'s Up With The Phantoms?

Speaking of the Phantoms, they\'ve just wrapped up the penultimate week of their regular season, and the postseason is within reach for them. They collected two out of four available points on the week, thanks to an overtime win on Saturday, and this brought their magic number to one point to clinch a playoff spot, with three games remaining.

There was a smattering of production from the prospects again this week too -- on the scoring front, Ethan Samson picked up a goal, while Samu Tuomaala, Hunter McDonald, and Helge Grans each came away with an assist on the weekend.

But the big happening of the week was Alexei Kolosov making his AHL debut, at long last. It was, on the whole, a fine enough showing for him. He allowed four goals on 28 shots (including one penalty shot goal allowed), which isn\'t a stellar figure, but he did hold steady enough to get the team to overtime, where they ultimately secured the win, which is something. It\'s yet to be seen how much more he\'ll be used down the stretch and into -- hopefully -- the playoffs, but this was a pretty good start for him, all things considered.

The Prospect World Tour

As we alluded to earlier, it was a big week in NCAA action, as a new national champion was crowned. Denver came away with the title, and to get there, they had to go through Boston University first. They held them to just one goal in that semifinal matchup (and that goal, we should note, was assisted on by Devin Kaplan). Massimo Rizzo was held without a point in that semifinal as well at the national championship game, but it was still nice to see him back in action. He held up well in his return to play, as we saw him sort of eased into things with fourth line minutes, but quickly elevated to Denver\'s top line as a reward for his strong play. He was an effective piece in an effort which ultimately saw the Pioneers shut out of high-powered Boston College offense and secure their second title in three years.

And up in the CHL, their playoffs are pressing on, and we have a whole bunch of good news to report. Alexis Gendron is back for Drummondville, and he seems to be back with a vengeance -- he\'s collected two goals and three assists in his last four games played, and has helped lead the Voltigeurs to a 3-1 lead in the series against Sherbrooke, with a chance to close things out tomorrow.

Over in London, the Knights have yet to be beaten, and as we speak, they\'re up three games to none over Kitchener. The pair of Flyers prospects is still rolling too -- Denver Barkey has a cool goal and three assists over that three game span, and Oliver Bonk chipped in one assist.

And out West, Portland, also still unbeaten, has a 3-0 edge in their series against Everett. Even more impressive than that though, is the tear that Carter Sotheran is on. So far this series, he has three goals and two assists, a tidy total indeed.

Talking Points