NHL Prospect Roundup: Joshua Roy, Nick Robertson among early AHL standouts

Credit: Steven Ellis/Daily Faceoff

Welcome back.

We’re bringing back the NHL Prospect Roundup again this season every Monday throughout the year, looking at some notable names worldwide. Now that every league is in full swing, with some even closing in on the 10-game mark, we’ve started to see some players stand out early in the 2023-24 campaign.

We’ll kick things off with the AHL taking center stage this week. The league began play on Friday, with no shortage of high-quality prospects getting their first proper game action of the year:

AHL

– What a pro regular season debut it was for Joshua Roy. The Montreal Canadiens product had a pair of two-point games for the Laval Rocket against Abbotsford, which was highlighted by a whopping 10-shot effort on Saturday. We’ve come to expect big numbers from the 20-year-old. who led the QMJHL in scoring in 2021-22 and finished his junior career with 297 points in 216 games. Laval’s roster makeup has been a hot topic already with some quality prospects being left in the press box, but Roy won’t be one of them if he keeps this play up. Canadiens fans have to be thrilled with Roy’s development.

– For Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Nick Robertson, the 22-year-old just needed to play again. He was limited to just 17 games last year, including two with the Marlies before getting an early season call-up. After a so-so preseason, Robertson came up huge with the Toronto Marlies on opening weekend, recording five points in battles against Rochester and Utica. There’s not much for Robertson to prove at this point in his AHL career, but he needs to do whatever it takes to make keeping him away from the big club an impossible task.

OHL

– There’s been rumblings the Vancouver Canucks have looked to sign Hunter Brzustewicz at some point early in the season. And with six points in two big wins for Kitchener over the weekend, it’s easy to say why. Since posting a goose egg in the season-opener, Brzustewicz has posted 13 points over his past six games, putting him on pace for obliterate his rookie season total of 57 points from last year. Brzustewicz should factor into USA’s world junior plans after a great summer showcase performance in August.

– Sticking in Kitchener, Carson Rehkopf had eight points in those same two games, also giving him 13 points in seven games. A second-round pick by the Seattle Kraken in 2023, Rehkopf is a lethal shooter, putting up 30 goals in his draft season. This year, 50 feels like a given, and he’s on pace for 69 right now. It’s pickups like Rehkopf that’ll pay off for Seattle one day.

– Expectations are massive for the London Knights this year, a team most expect to fight for the OHL title. Denver Barkey hopes he’s a reason why, and with seven points over three games this past weekend – including a hat-trick against Sarnia – he’s on a roll early. Barkey had 13 points through eight games, putting him on a 111-point projection this year – a big step over his 59-point rookie draft year. Now property of the Philadelphia Flyers, he was a sneaky good pick in the third round.

QMJHL

– Étienne Morin will become an absolute steal at No. 48, won’t he? The Calgary Flames prospect had a pair of goals on Sunday in a 6-2 Moncton win over Acadie-Bathurst, his best single-game performance of the season. He scored on both shots in what was his lowest shot count of the season. On Thursday, he had nine successful shots, resulting in the lone goal in an 11-1 loss to Drummondville. Seriously, he’s looking fantastic.

WHL

– Truthfully, there aren’t many Pittsburgh Penguins prospects worth getting too excited about. But Brayden Yager, the team’s first pick in 2023, could change that. After a solid rookie tournament run with Pittsburgh, Yager kicked off the WHL slate of games with seven goals and 13 points in seven games, putting him on pace for a whopping 121 points. While that seems unlikely, Yager’s five points over his past three games were huge for the Moose Jaw Warriors.

NCAA

– The University of Michigan needed Michigan State is bound for big things this year, and Red Savage is a big part of the team’s attack. The Miami University (Ohio) transfer has seven points in just four games, which is half of his output as a sophomore last year in 32 games. The hard-working center plays a strong two-way game, but he showed his offensive stylings at the 2023 world juniors en route to a bronze with USA. Taken 114th overall by the Detroit Red Wings in 2021, Savage’s early season play – with three two-point games to his credit – has made him the team’s top-performing prospect so far.

– It’s Seamus Casey‘s time to shine with the University of Michigan with Luke Hughes in the NHL. Also a New Jersey Devils prospect, Casey is up to six points in four games, including three in a pair of contests against UMass over the weekend. He now has points in every game, continuing a nine-game streak dating back to last March. While Casey’s defensive game can be a bit of a mixed bag, but he can produce, run a power play and lay out just about anyone.

SHL

– Carl Lindbom (Vegas Golden Knights) continues to shine against pros. He’s up to a 5-1-0 record with a .950 save percentage in six starts with Farjestad BK, making him the best SHL goaltender in the league thus far. Granted, he hasn’t been too busy this year and Farjestad is the class of the field, but it’s good to see the 6-foot keeper continuing on after an outstanding year with Djurgardens in the Allsvenskan last season. Lindbom has been a bright spot for the club ever since the Golden Knights selected him with the third-last pick in 2021, just putting up great numbers wherever he has played.

Discover Betano.ca – a premium Sports Betting and Online Casino experience. Offering numerous unique and dynamic betting options along with diverse digital and live casino games, Betano is where The Game Starts Now. 19+. Please play responsibly.

NHL Prospect Roundup: Joshua Roy, Nick Robertson among early AHL standouts

AHL

OHL

QMJHL

WHL

NCAA

SHL

Recently by Steven Ellis