2020 NHL Draft: 3 Stars of the Week

1. Quinton Byfield

Sudbury Wolves star Quinton Byfield wasted little time in establishing himself as one of the front-runners for the Ontario Hockey League scoring title. Despite his team falling 6-3 to the Niagara Ice Dogs in the league opener, Byfield found the back of the net twice. He added an assist as well for a three-point performance. Many early 2020 NHL draft rankings have Byfield as the second-ranked player.

The following night versus the Erie Otters, Byfield added another pair of goals in a 5-2 loss. Through two games he has scored four out of the five Sudbury goals and set up the other one.

2. Alexander Holtz

Playing in the Swedish Hockey League as a 17-year-old is not an easy task. However, Alexander Holtz is making it look easy. In just his second game of the season, Holtz scored two goals including the game-winner in a 5-3 win for Djurgardens over the Vaxjo Lakers. In all likelihood, Holtz will be a top five pick in the 2020 NHL draft.

3. Daniil Guschin

Despite only being the preseason, Daniil Guschin has had an incredible week of hockey and would have been higher in my rankings if it were the regular season. The Muskegon Lumberjacks forward is slated to be drafted in the second round of the 2020 NHL draft. Albeit, if his current pace carries on into the regular season he may find his name called even earlier on draft day.

In his first game of the week versus the Chicago Steel, Guschin tallied two goals and one assist.

He followed up that performance by scoring twice and adding two assists for seven points in two games. Those points came in an 11-8 loss the United States National Team Development Program’s U18 squad.

With several outstanding performances already in the books from Saturday, September 21st, be sure to check back next week to see which players make my list.

Rick Warman is a Vancouver Canucks and prospects contributor for Overtime Heroics. Follow him @statman1956 on Twitter

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