This week’s edition of Ducks prospects follows the hot streak of Sasha Pastujov along with an update on Mason McTavish and a couple of big nights from a pair of San Diego Gulls in the American Hockey League (AHL).
Pastujov Gets Second Hat Trick, Continues Point Streak
Pastujov has been on a roll since joining the Guelph Storm. He’s currently on an eight-game point streak and has collected five goals and three assists so far this week. His second hat trick of the season last night against the Owen Sound Attack helped propel the Storm to a 9-4 win. The Storm will be back in action tonight against the Soo Greyhounds, with Pastujov hoping to extend his point streak to nine games.
Limoges, Kindopp Have Big Nights for Gulls Versus Tucson
Alex Limoges and Bryce Kindopp had multi-point nights in the Gulls’ big 5-1 win over the Tucson Roadrunners. Limoges scored two goals, while Kindopp had the secondary assists on Limoges’ second goal and captain Sam Carrick’s goal. Jacob Perreault and Jack Badini (first AHL goal) were the other goalscorers. Goaltender Lukas Dostal stopped 24 of 25 shots. The Gulls will face the Roadrunners again tonight in Tucson at 7 PM PST. Olle Eriksson Ek will likely be in net for the Gulls.
Hinds Scores First Goal of the Season
Returning from injury on Oct. 23, Tyson Hinds finished scoreless with two shots for Rimouski Océanic, but he did manage to score a goal the following day in Rimouski’s game against the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada.
It’s good to see Hinds back in the lineup after an injury halted his season early on. He was drafted this summer by the Ducks in the third round and has a long way to go in his development before he becomes an NHL-caliber defenseman, but he has a long reach and skates well.
McTavish Begins Conditioning Stint with San Diego
On Thursday, McTavish was loaned to the Gulls, signaling that a return from the lower-body injury he suffered against the Flames last week is near. He made his AHL debut last night, grabbing an assist on Perreault’s goal.
He’ll play 2-3 games (unless an extension is requested) with the Gulls during his conditioning loan before the Ducks have to decide whether to keep him on the roster or send him back to juniors with the Peterborough Petes. If the Ducks decide to keep him around, they will burn the first year of his entry-level deal. The Ducks haven’t been shy about doing this in the past, though, as they demonstrated previously with Max Comtois.
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Alexander Shining for Winnipeg
The Winnipeg ICE has gotten off to an 11-1-0 start, and goaltender Gage Alexander has been a big part of that. Alexander went 2-1-0 this week for the ICE and had a 1.60 goals-against average (GAA) of 1.60 and a save percentage (SV%) of .930 with one shutout before last night’s game against the Edmonton Oil Kings, which the ICE lost 3-1.
Like Hinds, Alexander was also part of this summer’s draft class. A sixth-round pick, Alexander is off to the best start of his Winnipeg ICE career, this being his third season with the team. The Ducks have been well known for developing promising goaltenders, and Alexander might just be the next one.
Many of the Ducks’ prospects have gotten off to great starts here in the early going of the hockey season. Trevor Zegras and Jamie Drysdale have also found early success in their first full NHL seasons with the Ducks. Though the next group of prospects probably isn’t as NHL-ready as Zegras and Drysdale just yet, the future continues to look bright for the Ducks organization.