Prince Albert Raiders blueliner Landon Kosior and former forward Justin Nachbaur will get a chance to showcase their talents to NHL teams in the coming weeks.
Kosior will be taking to the ice at the Los Angeles Kings’ development camp starting on Monday in El Segundo, Calif., while Nachbaur will take part in the Florida Panthers rookie camp, which gets underway on Sept. 10 in Wesley Chapel, Fla.
The 19-year-old Kosior, who calls Regina home, has posted 27 points in 85 games over the last two seasons with the Raiders.
He was also ranked by NHL Central Scouting for the last two drafts, but was not selected.
Nachbaur wrapped up his Western Hockey League career this spring with 89 points in 216 regular season games and seven points in 28 playoff contests for the Raiders, in addition to hoisting the Ed Chynoweth Cup in 2019.
The 21-year-old from Cross Lake, Man. is the only member from last year’s Raiders overage class that has not signed with a pro team or committed to a post-secondary program for this season.
Forward Spencer Moe and goaltender Max Paddock will be heading to U Sports as they’ll suit up for the Mount Royal Cougars and the Acadia Axemen respectively.
Raiders forward Ozzy Wiesblatt was back on the ice this week as he took part in the San Jose Sharks prospect camp and recorded an assist on a goal by former Kamloops Blazers blueliner Montana Onyebuchi during a scrimmage on Thursday night.
Blueliners Kaiden Guhle and Nolan Allan are both expected to take part in prospect camps for the Montreal Canadiens and the Chicago Blackhawks next month.
Around the WHL
The Regina Pats added a big piece to their offence on Wednesday as they acquired 18-year-old forward Zack Stringer from the Lethbridge Hurricanes for the 10th overall pick in December’s WHL Prospects Draft.
Stringer, who is from Lethbridge, was the eighth overall pick by his hometown club in 2018 and has recorded 52 points in 79 regular season games.
It wasn’t all good news for the Pats this week, however, as their 2020 second round pick Matthew Wood committed to the NCAA’s UConn Huskies.
The 16-year-old forward from Nanaimo, B.C. spent this past year with the BCHL’s Victoria Grizzlies and recorded 13 points in 18 games as an underage player.
Meanwhile, the Everett Silvertips answered the question of who will replace Dustin Wolf last week when they nabbed 19-year-old netminder Koen MacInnes from the Saskatoon Blades in exchange for 19-year-old forward Brendan Lee.
MacIness, who is from Burnaby, B.C. compiled an 18-7-2 record with a 2.78 goals against average, a .904 save percentage and three shutouts over the last two seasons with the Blades, where he served as the backup to veteran puck stopper Nolan Maier.
Rookies Ethan Chadwick and Austin Elliott are expected to battle it out in training camp to fill the vacancy left by MacIness’ departure.
Lee, who calls Seattle, Wash. home, had 19 points in 71 games during his two seasons in Everett.
Pro Signings
Edmonton Oil Kings netminder Sebastian Cossa and Medicine Hat Tigers forward Cole Sillinger are officially prospects of the Detroit Red Wings and the Columbus Blue Jackets after the pair signed entry-level contracts with the clubs that selected them in the first round of last month’s NHL Draft.
Cossa, who was the first netminder selected in July, had a dazzling sophomore campaign for the Oil Kings this past season as he posted a 17-1-1 record with a 1.57 goals against average, a .941 save percentage and four shutouts.
Sillinger will be returning to the Tigers this fall after being loaned out to the USHL’s Sioux Falls Stampede, where he had 46 points in 31 games and earned the league’s rookie of the year honours.
Former Vancouver Giants Tristan Nielsen and Alex Kannok-Leipert will be staying in B.C. this season as the pair have signed AHL contracts with the Abbotsford Canucks.
Nielsen was second in scoring for the Giants this spring with 32 points in 22 games, while Kannok-Leipert put up 18 points in 22 games in his second season as team captain.
Around the CHL
The Barrie Colts and Guelph Storm added NHL prospects to their lineups this week as they signed forwards Oskar Olausson and Sasha Pastujov respectively.
The 18-year-old Olausson, who is from Stockholm, Sweden, was taken in the second round of June’s CHL Import Draft by the Colts and was picked 28th overall by the Colorado Avalanche in July, who signed him to an entry-level contract earlier this month.
He had 27 points in 16 contests for the HV71 Under-20 program last year and also suited up in four games for his country at the World Juniors in Edmonton.
Pastujov, who was a 14th round pick in the 2019 OHL Draft by the Storm, was selected in the third round of this year’s NHL Draft by the Anaheim Ducks after putting up 26 points in 18 games for the US NTDP in the USHL.
The 18-year-old from Bradenton, Fla. was expected to suit up for the NCAA’s Notre Dame Fighting Irish this fall, but he is no longer eligible to play college hockey after signing an entry-level contract with the Ducks last week.
