This past week was pretty busy when it comes to news and updates for Toronto’s prospects, plus some small notes I didn’t get from the previous week. So let’s just get into it!
Miroslav Holinka (C, 5th rounder 2024)
Last week: 2 goals, 5 assists (7 points) in 2 games
Season to date: 14 goals, 24 assists (38 points) in 25 games
Holinka continues to have a strong season. He still leads the 2nd best team in the entire WHL in both goals and points while playing as their top center in all situations. There isn’t really much else to update on him. His usage has not changed, and he’s still chugging along in a tie for 3rd in the WHL in total points. He’s inarguably a big reason – maybe even the biggest reason – why they have emerged as one of the top contenders in the league.
What’s really taken off for Holinka this season is his playmaking. His goal scoring pace is a bit ahead of last year, but he’s only two assists back from what he had in 47 games all of last season. Some of that is having better linemates on the top line, and getting top powerplay time. But he’s finding a way to chip in more offensively without sacrificing his usual two-way defensive center play.
Tinus Luc Koblar (C/LW, 2nd rounder 2025)
Last week: 1 goals, 1 assists (2 points) in 3 games
Season to date: 3 goals, s assists (5 points) in 21 games
Koblar has been both good and lucky this season. The luck comes from Leksands financial situation leading them to having a relatively poor roster, which is half the reason he got his first look in the SHL so quick this season. Then poor play and injuries gave him more of an opportunity to play in a bigger role. But the other half has been how well he’s been playing to be the one his coaches have chosen to give more of a role, bit by bit, all season so far. He’s gone from being a depth winger, to a depth center, to now being their second line center getting powerplay and penalty kill time. In his most recent game, his ice time (17:54) led all the team’s centers.
To put his season into context, he’s 6th in the entire SHL among all U19 players. That doesn’t necessarily seem all that special, but it is moreso when you consider his strength right now isn’t his offense – it’s his two way play. If his team wasn’t a black hole of offense with the lowest goals for in the entire league by 11 goals, he’d likely have some more assists considering his playmaking is his best offensive skill.
Victor Johansson (LD/RD, 4th rounder 2024)
Last week: 1 goal in 2 games
Season to date: 1 goal, 4 points in 10 games (Allsvenskan)
After missing the first couple of weeks from an injury he suffered in the final game of the Five Nations mini-tournament, Johansson returned to his loan in the Allsvenskan late the previous week. His work load has been a bit light, and he’s been wearing a full cage/visor thing as recently as Friday, so he’s not fully back to 100%. He did score his first professional hockey goal in his last game, jumping off the point and showing some nifty mittens before sneaking a shot through. Leksands has been struggling and plagued by injuries so much that, once he’s fully recovered, I’ll be curious to see if they recall him back to the SHL.
News & Notes
Ben Danford (RD, 1st rounder in 2024) – Brantford finally suffered their first regulation defeat, and Danford’s offensive pace from when he joined the team has predictably slowed. But it has kept up at a higher pace than his previous seasons. He had two assists last week, one each in back to back games, and is well on pace for his best offensive season in his OHL career. His raw totals could potentially take a hit if he makes the final cut for Canada’s World Juniors roster.
Alexander Plesovskikh (RW, 5th rounder in 2024) – After his little two game stint in the VHL two weeks ago, he’s returned to the MHL, He’s had 1 goal and 2 assists in those two games since then. I hope to see more of him in the VHL this year, if only because he looked to play differently and in a way that I’m more interested in when it comes to projecting him to North America.
Timofei Obvintsev (G, 5th rounder in 2024) – He’s still not played very much at all this year, but did finally get a start on November 13th that I missed. He stopped 29 of 31 shots in a 2-1 overtime loss. Still wish they’d start him more, since it’s not like he’s been bad in the two-and-a-bit games he’s played all season. His team is in a three way tie for 4th in the league, and their main goalie has started 25 of 30 games with the 7th best sv% among all goalies.
Harry Nansi (C/RW, 5th rounder in 2025) – The Nansi at center experiment is already over. He got shifted back to the top line RW after only a few games up the middle. It might be a better position for him in the long term anyway but man I wanted to see an extended run there to see if he could stick at least in junior.
Thanks for reading!
I put a lot of work into my prospect articles here, both for the draft and Toronto’s prospects. I do it as a fun hobby for me, and I’d probably do it in some capacity even if PPP completely ceased to exist. But if you like reading my work, some support would go a long way! I pay for a few streaming services (CHL, NCAA, USHL, the occasional TSN options for international tournaments that are broadcast) to be able to reliably watch these prospects in good quality streams. I also pay for some prospect-specific resources, such as tracking data and scouting reports from outlets like Elite Prospects, Future Considerations, McKeen’s Hockey, The Athletic, and more.
Being able to get paid for this helps me dedicate more time and resources to it, rather than to second/third jobs. And whatever money I make here, a lot of I reinvest back into my prospect work through in those streaming and scouting services. Like I said, I’d be doing whatever I can afford for this anyway, so any financial help I get through this is greatly appreciated!
