Out of the Shadow

The Dean Prentice Prospect of the Month

Sometimes lightning does strike twice as Ranger great Dean Prentice was a hard working left wing who got overshadowed by better known teammates Andy Bathgate, Harry Howell and Lorne "Gump" Worsley.

Ryan Hillier is a hard working left wing who gets overshadowed by better known teammates Jakub Voracek, Logan MacMillian, and Brad Marchand.

Both are very soft spoken, quick to credit others for their success on the ice. Both earned the respect of others because of their hard work and desire to improve themselves.

That being said Ryan Hillier was chosen by Ranger fans as the Dean Prentice Prospect of the Month for January based thanks in part to his 6 goals, 5 assist performance for the Halifax Mooseheads of the QMJHL.

The Ranger 2006 3rd round pick is having a career year for the Mooseheads going 28-30-58 +11 with 12 power play goals, 4 shorthanded goals and 4 game winning goals and just 43 PIMs. Did we also mention that Hillier also is leading the Ranger prospects in both goals and scoring.

One thing is for certain while Ryan Hillier is our Dean Prentice Prospect of the Month for January, we have this feeling we will be back here talking about Hillier.

In action

One night after scoring 2 goals in the OHL All-Star Classic, Bobby Sanguinetti returned to the Brampton Battalion as they hosted the Mississauga St. Michael's Majors. Sanguinetti did not score but his Battalion did 6 times in their 6-1 win over the Majors.

Antoine Lafleur and his Prince Edward Island Rocket traveled to play the Acadie-Bathurst Titan looking to redeem themselves after losing the first game of their key home and home series with the Titan. The 7th seed Rocket dropped game 2 of the series 7-5 as Lafleur was the backup for this match up.

The Rocket have gone from looking at a chance to move into the 6th seed to now having to fight off the Moncton Wildcats for a playoff spot. The Rocket are clinging to a 2 point lead for the last place spot in the QMJHL's Eastern division.

THE GAME (s)

Friday night will be game 1 of a weekend series that has so many different implications depending on the results as the top ranked Miami of Ohio Red-Hawks take on Carl Hagelin an his 2nd ranked Michigan Wolverines in a home and home series.

Pick something to be at stake from the top spot in the Men's College Hockey Polls, to first place in the CCHA standings, the first seed in the conference playoffs and very possibly a number 1 seed in the NCAA tournament. With just 1 point separating the 2 teams this series will go a long way in deciding so much.

Miami will host game 1 on Friday evening as it will be televised on CSTV starting at 8 PM EDT/5 PM PDT with the teams switching sites on Saturday for a game televised on Fox Sports Detroit also starting at 8/5.

We will of course have all the reports not only from this game but also from the entire prospect scene as well.

(Ryan Hillier's picture courtesy of the Halifax Mooseheads)