By Brendon Crossman
Photos by Aaron Bell/OHL Images
On Thursday night in St. Louis, former Toronto Marlboros star Connor McDavid will reach yet another checkpoint on his well-documented hockey journey when he takes his place in the Edmonton Oilers lineup.
The child phenom-turned-Calder Trophy favourite is one of 58 former GTHL players to crack an NHL opening-day roster for 2015-16.
McDavid might be the biggest name on the list, but which NHL team will start the campaign with the largest stock-pile of former GTHL talent?
The answer to that burning question is the Calgary Flames, who enter the season with five former GTHL players on its roster.
After heating up the league last season, the Flames look to prove their success was no fluke.
The return of captain Mark Giordano – a former North York Rangers defenseman – and addition of Dougie Hamilton – a Mississauga Reps alumnus – should bolster Calgary’s blueline in a challenging Western Conference. Third-year forward Sean Monahan and rookie Sam Bennett are sure to be sparks offensively on a balanced Flames attack that also features veteran Matt Stajan, a former Mississauga Senators star.
Monahan, 20, will take a larger role with the team this season after being named an alternate captain on Tuesday morning. As the Flames point out, Monahan’s leadership has been a defining characteristic throughout his hockey career:
“As a 15-year-old, he captained the Mississauga Rebels and led his team to an OHL Cup title and was named the tournament’s most valuable player. During part of his tenure with the Ottawa 67’s in the Ontario Hockey League, he served as the team’s captain.”
Monahan captained the Mississauaga Rebels to an OHL Cup title in 2010. The Brampton native has 53 goals and 96 points through his first 156 NHL games, including a team-high 31 goals last season.
SEE THEM IN ACTION
Of course, the Flames aren’t the only club stacked with former GTHL talent. So what’s your best shot of seeing the most alumni on NHL ice in one game?
March 21, 2016.
When the Flames visit the Toronto Maple Leafs – if opening-day rosters are any indication – there will be nine graduates suited up, with Toronto’s Brad Boyes, Shawn Matthias, Daniel Winnik and Frank Corrado facing the Calgary crew.
If you’re a traveller – or just impatient – you also could zip to Dallas on Dec. 17 to see the Flames take on a Stars team that includes Tyler Seguin, Jason Spezza, Brett Ritchie and Jamie Oleksiak.
A shorter trip will take you to Buffalo on March 3 when the Flames visit Ryan O’Reilly, Jamie McGinn, Matt Moulson, Carlo Colaiacovo and the Sabres.
HOMETOWN BOYS
In addition to the four graduates on the Maple Leafs’ opening-day roster, the club leads the league with a whopping 12 GTHL alumni in its system. The others: Connor Brown, Sam Carrick, Rich Clune, Stephen Desrocher, Zach Hyman, Nikita Korostelev, Mitch Marner and Stuart Percy.
The team appears to be listening to hockey icon Don Cherry, who praises GTHL players almost weekly on Coach’s Corner.
BROOKLYN-BOUND
The New York Islanders, who feature John Tavares, Ryan Strome and Casey Cizikas on their opening-day roster, rank second in the NHL with a total of 10 GTHL graduates.
After not making the cut this season, Adam Pelech, Jesse Graham, Alan Quine, Matthew Finn, Joshua Ho-Sang, Michael Dal Colle and Justin Vaive will set their sights on joining the team in Brooklyn sooner rather than later.
Click here to download a list of all GTHL graduates currently with an NHL team.
Click here to visit our alumni page.
