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Taking a look at how the Habs prospects in the CHL, NCAA, and the European leagues are doing so far, excluding the goalies who will be in a separate article. The only prospect that has yet to play is Ryan O’Byrne, who will start his season this Friday. But for the rest of the prospects, things are going very well so far. Three players are the top scorers on their team, with five players either leading or 2nd on the team in scoring. I’ll break it down by each league our prospects play in, and all their stats are at the bottom of the article.




QMJHL


Michael Lambert– So far Lambert is off to a great start this year. He is the leading scorer of the PEI Rocket, and he’s currently 4th in the QMJHL in scoring. Lambert is playing for a contract, as he must be signed by June 1st or he will reenter the draft. Perhaps this has fact and a new coach in Alain Vigneault has gotten Michael to produce at such a high level. After scoring 60 pts last year, Lambert is well on his way to surpass those numbers as long as he continues to get on the scoresheet, playing on the top line. Was named CHL player of the week for the week ending Sunday October 19, 2003. Lambert scored 4 goals and added 5 assists for 9 points in 3 games.



Cory Urquhart– Picking up from last seasons playoffs, Urquhart is 2nd on the PEI Rocket in scoring, and 7th in the Q in scoring, while playing on the top line. He has had some difficulties in the face-off circle so far this season.



Maxim Lapierre– Playing on the 3rd line, Lapierre is playing in a defensive role, and has look good on the PK. A gritty, hard working player, Lapierre won’t rack up the points, as at times he has tough guy Jimmy Bonneau on his wing.



Jimmy Bonneau– Not drafted for his scoring touch, Bonneau is one of the top fighters in the QMJHL in just his 2nd season. Not afraid to drop the gloves with anyone, Bonneau is no stranger to the penalty box. He must work hard to improve on every area of the game outside of fighting, if he wants to make it to the next level. He’s got a few years to see if he can do more then just fight, which remains to be seen.



Danny Stewart– Yes his linemate is the much hyped Sidney Crosby, but Stewart is producing, and that’s got to make management happy. Currently, he’s 7th in the Q in scoring, with two teammates in front of him. What is impressive about this season, is that he has shown improvement in his own end, plus a willingness to pass the puck. He must cut back on unnecessary penalties, and add some size, but playing with the top scorer in the QMJHL hopefully shows him a few things.



OHL


Corey Locke– Is currently 3rd in the OHL in scoring, and 1st in scoring on his team. Things have not been easy in Ottawa, as Locke has had a few different linemates so far this season, after having the same wingers game after game last year.



Andre Deveaux– Deveaux who is also playing for a contract, or he will reenter the draft. This may be a factor as to his recent success, but so far Deveaux is tied for 2nd in team scoring. Where he really needed to show improvement was in his defensive zone play, and he’s done a complete turnaround so far. After being a team low -22 last year (mostly while playing on Belleville), he has shown a better effort on the ice, and is a team high +11.



Mark Flood– Not only is Flood the top scoring defensemen on his team, he is the top scorer on his team. So far Flood has been effective as the teams PP specialist, as he moves the puck well, and has been producing on a nightly basis.



NCAA


Ryan Glenn– Is playing his final season in the NCAA, and so far his team is playing better, but Glenn will need to step up his game offensively. A team leader that sees a lot of ice time, Glenn will hope to land a spot with Hamilton or Columbus (ECHL) next season, has his work cut out for him.



Scott Selig– Is also playing in his final season in the NCAA. Selig has not found the success he had in prep school, and continues to struggle to produce. This does not bode well for him if he is to earn a contract this summer.



Ryan O’Byrne– Has yet to play a game this season, but Cornell will open their season this Friday night. His team did play an exhibition game against the U-18 Team USA, where they won 7-2, but no points for O’Byrne.



Sweden


Johan Eneqvist– Is off to a good start playing in the tier-2 league. The center/left wing, has been getting time playing on the right wing so far, but he has played some center. Eneqvist already has as many points this year, as he had all of last year playing on the 4th line for Leksand.



Finland


Oskari Korpikari– Is doing a good job staying in the lineup. Playing on the 3rd pairing in the SM-Liiga is a great experience for the young defensemen, which should hopefully pay dividends in a few years.



Russia


Konstantin Korneev– Is not getting the ice time he had last year, as he is playing on the 4th pairing for AK Bars, a team that uses 4 pairings of defensemen. Korneev numbers have taken a hit, but this is to be expected with less ice time.



Andrei Kastsitsyn– Has been up, down, and is now back up but has yet to dress for CSKA in his 2nd stint. Hopefully Kastsitsyn can get a few games in with the big club, or be sent back down to the junior club, as he needs to play and play often, no matter what league it may be.



Alex Buturlin– Playing on the top line for Lada, Buturlin has returned from injury, and is playing well. Hopefully he keeps producing, which may force management to consider brining him over to North America at some point in the future.

Czech

Tomas Linhart– Somewhat like Kastsitsyn, Linhart has been on a yo-yo, playing in the mens league, Division 1, and also getting some games in with the junior club as well. He has just recently played for another Division 1 team, but I have not been able to get the details as to why this has happened.











































































































































































Name

Games

Goals

Assists

Points

+/-

Pims


Michael Lambert

15

12

17

29

+8

18


Cory Urquhart

15

10

15

25

+6

10


Maxim Lapierre

14

3

5

8

-4

23


Jimmy Bonneau

17

1

1

2

-3

69


Danny Stewart

17

11

14

25

+10

27


Corey Locke

12

11

11

22

-2

18


Andre Deveaux

13

6

9

15

+8

29


Mark Flood

9

4

5

9

-2

2


Ryan Glenn

6

0

2

2

-2

10


Scott Selig

4

0

0

0

-2

2


Johan Eneqvist

15

6

4

10

+11

12


Oskari Korpikari

16

0

1

1

+1

6


Konstantin Korneev

17

0

1

1

 

2


Alex Buturlin

12

1

5

6

 

22


Andrei Kastsitsyn (CSKA)

4

0

1

1

 

0


Andrei Kastsitsyn (CSKA-2)

8

8

5

13

 

4


Tomas Linhart (Div 1)

12

0

1

1

+2

10


Tomas Linhart (Div 1)

1

0

0

0

-1

0


Tomas Linhart (juniors)

6

1

1

2

+5

2