• PROSPECT-UPDATE ARCHIVE
Get ready for a busy, busy weekend for the 2018 NHL draft prospects. Just about everyone will be in action, as opposed to Thursday, when there were fewer games and just enough players to fill out a five-prospect top performances list.
Now that it's February, we can start to see the finish line for a number of leagues. In a month from now, most European leagues, the NCAA, high schools, and more will be starting their playoffs. That means the season will be over for players on the weaker teams, and those guys have only a month to improve their draft positions.
Thurday's list includes one European, one major-junior player, one from Canadian Tier II, one from the NAHL, and one from the high school ranks. Another day of diversity. Review it here:
DOMINIK ARNOST -- Arnost has split the season between the Czech U18 and U20 leagues as a member of the Prague Sparta club. Playing at the U18 level on Thursday, he scored two goals and added an assist to lead Sparta to an 8-4 win at archrival Prague Slavia. Arnost scored his first goal on a power play at 9:39 of the opening period to pull Sparta into a 1-1 tie. In the second period, he tallied an unassisted goal at 2:10 for a 3-3 tie before assisting on the eventual game-winner for a 5-3 lead at 13:23. This was Arnost's first two-goal game at the U18 level, where he averages better than a point per game with 11 goals and 12 assists in 21 outings. (Note: Second appearance on this list in 2017-18)
MATTHEW CAMERON -- The RPI recruit scored twice in the New Jersey Titans' 7-2 win at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on Thursday, helping his team to a 7-2 rout. The first goal came at 11:40 of the opening period for a 2-0 lead, and the second closed the scoring into an empty net at 17:53 of the third. It marked Cameron's first two-goal game in the NAHL, also snapping a four-game points drought. He now has 11 goals and 16 points in 31 games this season.
CAM HILLIS -- The OHL's highest-scoring rookie picked up another goal and assist in Guelph's 6-5 loss at Mississauga on Thursday. The game's No. 3 star scored on a power play at 7:20 of the third period for a short-lived 3-2 lead and had the lone assist on the game's final goal at 10:42. With 18 goals and 48 points in 48 games, Hillis is 10 points ahead of the next highest-scoring rookie. His four-game point streak includes two goals and six assists. (Note: Fifth appearance on this list in 2017-18)
MATTHEW KELLENBERGER -- It has been a big season for Kellenberger, a defenseman who represented Canada at the World Jr. A Challenge and is headed for the Ivy League with Princeton University in the fall. On Thursday, he picked up three assists -- one per period -- in Oakville's 8-5 OJHL victory over Aurora. In the first period, he had the primary assist on a power-play goal to make it 2-0 at 14:38. In the second, he assisted on another power-play goal to make it 3-1 at 1:03. In the third, he assisted on Oakville's final goal for an 8-4 lead at 15:27. Although Kellenberger was passed over in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft, he won't have to worry about that happening again, as he has 41 points this season -- good for a point-per-game average. (Note: Fifth appearance on this list in 2017-18)
JACK PERBIX -- One of the hottest players in Minnesota high-school hockey, Perbix assisted on three goals on Thursday in Elk River's 5-1 win over Blaine. All three assists were primary, and all came on consecutive third-period goals. The Notre Dame recruit started set up the 3-0 goal at 5:10 and followed with an assist on a power-play goal at 8:02 to go up 4-1 and the lone assist on the game's final goal at 9:29. With back-to-back three-point games, as well as points in nine of his last 10, Perbix now has 15 goals and 46 points in 20 games. He is tied for second in the state with 31 assists and ranks 13th in the overall points race. That's all good news for the 2018 draft, which Perbix barely qualifies for in terms of age since makes the birthdate cut-off by only two days. (Note: Sixth appearance on this list in 2017-18)