It is February and there are only seven weeks left in the regular season. This season has certainly flown by and with that, it means the World U18 Championship is just around the corner. Before that gets here though, we’ll look at the trade deadline that just occurred; many teams have sold their older players and are planning for next season, while the contenders spent a boatload to compete for an OHL Championship and a Memorial Cup. 

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TRADE: Generals Acquire Philip Tomasino from the @OHLIceDogs in Exchange for Draft Selections.

DETAILS | https://t.co/YUUgVyOpRI pic.twitter.com/IainblnSdS

— Oshawa Generals (@Oshawa_Generals) January 9, 2020

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He has a balanced 12 goals and 14 assists through 12 games with the Generals, but the team is only 7-4-1 on the ice. 

Tomasino’s teammate and Canadian hero, Akil Thomas, was shipped to the Peterborough Petes for a collection of future assets as well. He only has one goal with his new club, but that is because he has been busy dishing the puck around; he is up to 18 helpers since joining the Petes and has given the organization two dangerous scoring lines. 

When he was traded to Peterborough, the last player to wear #44 for the organization was the late Steve Montador. Thomas made a call to Steve’s brother to ask if he could wear the number and honor Montador. If you have a couple of minutes and have not seen the video yet, check it out below. 

When @AkilThomas2 found out that Steve was the last Pete to wear #44, he wanted to reach out to his family. Hear what Steve’s brother, Chris, had to say when Akil called him after practice today. pic.twitter.com/XJlJSiSGXQ

— Peterborough Petes (@PetesOHLhockey) January 10, 2020

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The Ottawa 67’s are running away with the Eastern Conference. They are 17 points up on the Wolves with three games in hand on the divisional rival. They have only lost seven games all season and are a perfect 9-0 in games that go to overtime or a shootout. They are led by Marco Rossi upfront and Noel Hoefenmayer on the back end. As of this writing, Rossi is tied for the league lead in points and Hoefenmayer has the most points among defensemen. 

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I think we can say Jan Mysak is getting comfortable in North America. He had a big night Saturday with five points, registering a hat trick in the first period. 

🚨 JAN MYSAK HATTY!!!!!!! 🧢🧢🧢

Only 7 games to get to his first OHL hattrick? This kid is preeeeetty good, you guys. pic.twitter.com/0CL8Fzgz0B

— Hamilton Bulldogs (@BulldogsOHL) February 1, 2020

Coming over from Europe, he has seven points in 10 games and has gotten himself acclimated to the smaller ice surface in hopes to increase his stock before the draft this June. 

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As mentioned before, Rossi narrowly owns the league lead in points over Cole Perfetti, registering 88 points,  in eight fewer games. 

Another 2020 draft-eligible prospect, Jack Quinn, leads the league in goals with 41. In fact, he is currently leading the entire OHL in lamp-lighters and is doing it in a variety of ways. He has 10 power play tallies, two shorthanded and six game-winners. 

Right on his tail is Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Nick Robertson. He has 38 goals in only 34 games. He added two goals and five points in five games for Team USA at the World Juniors as well and is proving to be a steal with every game he plays as he fell to the back half of the second round in 2019. 

Most likely second overall pick Quinton Byfield is seventh in the league with 73 points, surpassing all of his offensive rookie numbers in half the amount of games. Much has been said about how good of a skater he is for a player of his size, and this clip from Cam Robinson shows that off. His ability to cut back to the middle and throw all that misdirection on his edges is a thing of beauty. 

Oh, the edgework! Quinton Byfield with the killer cut and finish to end things in OT.

He buried the game-tying goal as well and is now up to 72 points (31+41) in 37 OHL games. #2020NHLDraft pic.twitter.com/LFLbbNpzqo

— /Cam Robinson/ (@Hockey_Robinson) January 31, 2020

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I hope everyone has stuck to their resolutions so far in the new year (I know I haven’t) and have a great February!

Lucas (@LAM1926)