By the Numbers: 2025 NHL Draft Stats Update Plus OHL Top Prospects Game
Our prolific prospect profiler Trevor Curtis's keeps a close eye on the statistical production of draft eligible prospects; he also provides a quick review of the OHL Connor McDavid Top Prospects Game
Upside Hockey’s prolific prospect profiler Trevor Curtis thoughts and observations throughout the hockey season on 2025 NHL draft eligible prospects with an emphasis on the stats in this By The Numbers series.
January 16th 2025 Update*
*stats up to date as of January 15th, 2025
-Mike Misa is still atop the OHL scoring race, with 37gp/35g/37a/72pts,+29, 23 PIM, first in goals, and 6th in plus/minus. He has a ppg of 1.95.
-Porter Martone is tied for 6th in scoring, mostly due to his absence while playing in the WJC, with 30gp/22g/40a/62pts,+17, 45 PIM, and a ppg of 2.07 (second highest behind Quentin Musty's 2.08 ppg).
-Only 6 points in his last 6 games, but C Jake O'Brien is tied for 17th in scoring, with 40gp/21g/30a/51pts,-10, 10 PIM. His Brantford Bulldogs are 9th in the OHL. O'Brien was named Team East's Player of the Game in the Connor McDavid OHL Top Prospects Game, with 3 assists- including primaries on the game-tying goal, and the game-winner, in a 5-4 OT victory.
-D+1 draft-eligible American, LW Kristian Epperson, is tied with O'Brien with 35gp/17g/34a/51pts,+32, 64 PIM. He is tied for 3rd in plus/minus. Epperson is a 6'0",185lb winger who plays a well-rounded game, and is a fiery competitor. He'll be drafted this summer.
-LW Malcolm Spence only has 5 points in his last 6, and is tied for 27th in scoring with 36gp/17g/26a/43pts,+11, 24 PIM. Spence plays a solid, all-around game that is easily projectable.
-A favourite of mine, C Ethan Czata, is tied for 31st in scoring, with 41gp/16g/25a/41pts,+6, 48 PIM. He's a 6'1", two-way power forward.
-Another favourite of mine, C Jack Nesbitt, is now tied for 35th in scoring with 41gp/17g/23a/40pts,+14, 41 PIM, and he picked up 2 points (and a fighting major) in the OHL TPG. Nesbitt is a scouts dream- a 6'4" center who moves well for a player his size, and plays with power.
-D Cameron Reid has slipped a bit in the scoring race, with only 2 points in his last 7, to place 9th in scoring by D with 41gp/8g/24a/32pts,+15, 25 PIM, on the 3rd-place Kitchener Rangers (who are 10th in goals-for). He still leads the team's defense by 12 points.
-The 6th-place Barrie Colts have lost 4 in a row, and D Kashawn Aitcheson has been struggling to put up points lately, with only 1 point in his last 5. He is tied for 16th in scoring by D, with 36gp/11g/15a/26pts,+3, 58 PIM. Aitcheson is a hard-nosed, unrelentingly physical two-way D.
-D Henry Brzustewicz is tied for 18th in scoring by D with 38gp/6g/19a/25pts,+13, 55PIM. It's hard for a young defenseman to get much playing time on the London Knights, with Sam Dickinson, Oliver Bonk, and Jared Wooley playing ahead of you (and now Cam Allen)- but between Dec 20th and Jan 3rd, with Dickinson and Bonk away at the WJC, Bru had 7 points in 5 games. He is 6'1", 194 lbs, and plays a sound two-way game.
-RD Carson Cameron has 4 points in the last 7 games, playing on the lowly Peterborough Petes, who are dead-last in the OHL, and have scored the least amount of goals. He sits at 41gp/7g/13a/20pts,-14, 14 PIM. He's better than his stats suggest, and has an NHL frame, at 6'2", 194 lbs. He's also quite young still, with a June 27th, 2007 birthday.
-C Bill Zonnon has been eating the Q alive, with 13 points in his last 7 (he had a 5 point game, and a 6 point game). He is now second in Q scoring, with 39gp/23g/35a/58pts,+4, 22 PIM, on the 5th-place Rouyn-Noranda Huskies. Zonnon is a big (6'2", 190 lbs) power-forward with heavy boots, but a sky-high workrate.
-C Caleb Desnoyers is 3rd in Q for ppg (1.65), which is first in the league for draft-eligibles, and also sits 3rd in the scoring race (1st in plus/minus) with 34gp/23g/33a/56pts,+39, 16 PIM. Desnoyers is a stifling defensive presence, and a top-notch offensive forward all at once. He's one of the best players available in the upcoming draft, and could go in the top-5.
-RW Justin Carbonneau is 6th in Q scoring, with 38gp/27g/26a/53pts,-1, 38 PIM. He had a 5-point game in his last contest, against Victoriaville, but only had 3 points in his previous 7 games. Blainville has gone 4-5-1-0 in their last 10, and sit in 11th-place. JC's center, Mateo Nobert, has put up 7 points in 4 games since the beginning of January, and is tied for 11th in scoring, with 38gp/19g/27a/46pts,-3, 20 PIM. It's my belief that Nobert is being underrated a bit- he's become a dependable two-way C, and despite being a bit slight (6'0", 166 lbs), he plays an active physical style.
-C Zachary Morin has slipped a bit, with only 1 point in January so far, a span of 5 games. 32gp/10g/17a/27pts,+2, 4 PIM. Morin is a 6'2" physical power-forward with playmaking vision and a good shot, but he's still trying to put it all together.
-C Ben Kindel is on fire, moving into 5th-place in WHL scoring, with 38gp/24g/40a/64pts,+18, 20 PIM, after posting 12 points in 6 January contests.
-C Carter Bear has put up 5 points in 5 games in January, and is tied for 11th in scoring (6th in plus/minus), with 34gp/27g/30a/57pts,+31, 36 PIM. Bear is the hardest-working player in the draft, and a dominant defensive player.
Photo courtesy of the WHL: Carter Bear Credit: Caroline Anne - Everett Silvertips
-RW Cameron Schmidt is just getting his feet back after suffering an early December injury, and then struggling upon his return (only 5 points in 7 December games). He has posted 8 points in 6 January contests, and is now 25th in WHL scoring, with 35gp/29g/19a/48pts,-5, 24 PIM, but he is 4th in goals. Schmidt is short in stature (5'7",161lbs), but definitely not short on speed or heart.
-6'2",200lb LW Nathan Behm has 9 points in 5 January games, and is now 27th in scoring, with 38gp/23g/24a/47pts,-2, 12 PIM. Behm is fairly solid in all areas, and is a well-balanced offensive forward.
-Only 5 points in 5 games in January for C Cole Reschny, who is tied for 28th in scoring with 37gp/13a/33a/46pts,+12, 36 PIM. Reschny is short (5'10"), but stocky (185lbs), and is a gritty two-way C who has plenty of fans in the Advanced Stats crowd.
-C Braeden Cootes is a beauty, and is still a ppg player on the lowly Seattle Thunderbirds, who are second-last in the league. He is tied for 57th, with 37gp/17g/20a/37pts,even, 12 PIM. Cootes is a highly intelligent two-way C with some grit and physicality.
-LD Will Sharpe has rebounded from a 4-point December, to post 7 points in 6 January games. He is tied for 15th in scoring by D, with 38gp/4g/27a/31pts,-11, 26 PIM. He was traded from Lethbridge to Kelowna about a week and a half ago, spending 3 games with his new team. Sharpe is a smooth-skating, all-situations D-man who is on pace for 55 points in 68 games.
-RD Radim Mrtka's draft stock has skyrocketed with his dominant performance on one of the worst teams in the WHL, the second-last placed Thunderbirds. The 6'6"200lb righty was already considered to be a quick-moving, rugged, tight defensive player, but he's turning heads with 17gp/2g/14a/16pts,even, 16 PIM.
-LD Jackson Smith is tied for 20th in D scoring, with 39gp/2g/27a/29pts,+3, 34 PIM. He's 6'3", skates very well, and plays a smart two-way game. He'll be one of the first D picked in the Draft.
-C Brady Martin's situation is quite similar to that of Cootes', in that he plays for a poor team (the 16th-place Soo Greyhounds of the OHL), but still manages to hover at a ppg, with 30gp/15g/15a/30pts,+8, 44 PIM. Like Cootes, he's a beauty, playing a tight two-way game, highlighted by his grit and physicality. Martin is meaner, though.
-LW Shamar Moses, a 6'1", 200 lb power-forward, is at 36gp/9g/23a/32pts,-8, 29 PIM, but he has 32 points in 31 games since being traded to North Bay of the OHL from Barrie.
-C Ivan Ryabkin has 3 goals in 2 games for Muskegon of the USHL, and has already served a suspension for slew-footing.
Connor McDavid Top Prospects Game
The OHL held the "Connor McDavid Top Prospects Game" January 15th, 2025 that consisted of the top draft-eligibles in an East vs. West format. Here's some of the results:
The game was won in dramatic fashion by Team East, 5-4 in OT, on a goal by none other than Porter Martone, assisted by Jake O'Brien.
-Team West's Star of the Game was D Cameron Reid, with 3 assists.
-Team East's Star of the Game was C Jake O'Brien, with 3 assists, including primaries on both the game-tying goal, and the game-winner.
-There were a few fights, including D Quinn Beauchesne vs. Martone, D Josh Glavin vs. D Kaleb Dietsch, and C Jack Nesbitt vs. D Evan Passmore.
Also getting points for Team West: D Henry Brzustewicz (1a), RW Adrian Misaljevic (1g), C Brady Martin (1g), C Jack Nesbitt (1g, 1a), C Mike Misa (1a), and C Luca Romano (1g).
Also getting points for Team East: D Xander Velliaris (1g, 1a), RW Shamar Moses (1g), C Aiden Young (2a), RW Lirim Amidovski (1g, 1a), RW Porter Martone (1g, 1a), and C Owen Griffin (1g, 1a).
C Jack Nesbitt is one to watch, as he just keeps building up his draft stock. Ditto for C Jake O'Brien, who had a slow start to the season, but has been excellent for about the last month or so.
