Shaved Ice – September 21

The OHL season is here.

Quick hits

The Plymouth Whalers and the Saginaw Spirit kick off their 2012-13 seasons tonight. Click on the names in the previous sentences to see our season previews for both of Michigan’s OHL squads.

The USHL Fall Classic is underway in Sioux City, Iowa. Both the Muskegon Lumberjacks and Team USA (the NTDP U18 team out of Ann Arbor) started their tournament runs yesterday; with Muskegon falling to Waterloo, and Team USA losing to Dubuque, both by scores of 4-2.

Our latest team previews features the defending Mason Cup champion Western Michigan Broncos. Can they repeat in the final CCHA season? We’ve also got the season preview for the Northern Michigan Wildcats up, as well. Check ’em out!

Highlight reel

A lot of eyeballs will be on Whalers forward Tom Wilson this season, and rightfully so. Here’s the video from when he heard his name called at the NHL Draft in Pittsburgh, by Washington at No. 16 overall.

Outside the Mitten

The OHL has lessened the punishment for the Spitfires, read more about it in our article right here.

Connor McDavid, the first overall pick in last year’s OHL Draft after granted exceptional status to enter the league a year early, was held scoreless in his debut with the Erie Otters. If what people say about him is true, however, he won’t be held off the scoresheet very often.

TSN’s pre-season Top 10 for the upcoming NHL Draft has Nathan MacKinnon, the kid from the same town as Sidney Crosby, at No. 1.  USA U18 forward J.T. Compher, a Michigan commit, received a mention on the list.

Check it out

Hockey legend Bobby Orr shared his thoughts on the lockout, asking the fans to keep patience while the two sides work out their differences.

Next up

Enjoy the weekend everybody. After all, there’s hockey to watch.