NEWARK, N.J. -- New Jersey Devils captain Bryce Salvador was back on the ice Wednesday for his club's morning skate in preparation for a game Wednesday night against the Boston Bruins at Prudential Center (7:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN, TSN2).

Salvador sat out practice Tuesday in an attempt to rest for a team that has beaten the Devils six straight times (0-4-2) over the past two seasons, including a 1-0 Bruins win in Boston on April 4.

TORONTO -- It's a bittersweet day here at the NHL office on the third day of meetings for NHL Central Scouting.

TORONTO -- Is there any question the Halifax Mooseheads of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League had the team to watch if you were a fan of blue-chip prospects eligible for the 2013 NHL Draft?
 
In addition to possessing forwards Nathan MacKinnon and Jonathan Drouin, No. 2 and No. 3, respectively, on NHL Central Scouting's midterm ranking of the top draft-eligible North American skaters, Halifax goalie Zachary Fucale was rated No. 1 at his position.
 
Now, inquiring minds would like to know if the 2014 draft will offer a similar scenario, with one team cornering the market on top-tier draft prospects. NHL Central Scouting's Chris Edwards said he believes there might just be such a team.
 
"In 2013-14, Kingston in the Ontario Hockey League could be this year's Halifax," Edwards told NHL.com.

Once NHL Central Scouting finalizes the rankings for the top draft-eligible North American prospects, the scouting staff will continue to make preparations for the NHL Scouting Combine in Toronto from May 27 through June 1.

While there is no confirmation to the number of North American and European invites at the Combine just yet, the 2012 Combine had the top 104 players from North American and Europe. Head goalie scout Al Jensen has traditionally had the top eight goalies attend.

The fitness testing portion of the Combine will be held May 31 and June 1 at the Toronto International Centre.

11:35 a.m. -- So tough to update when you are completely entrenched in the dialogue taking place. Computer voting and hand votes are taking place with regularity right now as the scouts attempt to nail down the top six players in the final ranking. During those votes, a few scouts will make one last effort to push the player in their area.

High drama at its best!

While I cannot reveal the results of those votes, I can provide you with a peak into some of the round-table commentary:

3:30 pm -- The most robust debate of opening day of the Central Scouting final meetings was the discussion of the prospects in the Ontario Hockey League. The scouts had high praise for several players listed high on the midterm ranking, including Sean Monahan, Darnell Nurse, Bo Horvat, Kerby Rychel, Chris Bigras, Ryan Hartman and Nikita Zadorov.

The scouts have been going at it pretty good today. It's amazing how much each scout can remember on each player, even during their cross-over viewings.

Some comments:

On Monahan: "Never quits; gave it 110 percent and played as well as he could on a bad Ottawa team. Eric Staal-like."

On Nurse: "What a season he had. Can play strong at both ends and plays with a great edge. Is also a great guy off the ice."

Scouts in attendance are director Dan Marr, along with Chris Edwards (OHL), Greg Rajanen (U.S.), Al Jensen (U.S./Canada), B.J. MacDonald (WHL), Peter Sullivan (WHL), Chris Bordeleau (QMJHL) and David Gregory (U.S./Canada). Jensen is also responsible for ranking the top North American goaltenders.

Rajanen was hired this season by NHL Central Scouting to cover the mid-Western region of the United States, including the United States Hockey League, Minnesota high schools and colleges. To learn more about the "New Scout on the block," click here.

NHL Central Scouting goes back to the drawing board this weekend when the top draft-eligible North American skaters will be ranked one final time prior to the 2013 NHL Draft on June 30 at Prudential Center in Newark, N.J.

Headed by Central Scouting director Dan Marr, the 10 full-time scouts in attendance at the Toronto board offices will don their thinking caps for one final time to establish their final list of the top 210 North American skaters and 30 goalies. The five-day selection process begins Friday. From a separate location, the Director of European Scouting, Goran Stubb, will also offer his recommendations to Marr on the top 120-plus European skaters and 10 goalies.

The final rankings release will be made official later this month.

Halifax Mooseheads wing and top 2013 NHL Draft prospect Jonathan Drouin was named most valuable player, top pro prospect, personality of the year, and a first-team all-star Wednesday during the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League's Golden Puck Awards ceremony in Montreal.

Drouin had 41 goals, 105 points and a plus-48 rating in 49 contests for the Mooseheads in 2012-13.

In two seasons, he's produced 48 goals, 134 points and a plus-43 rating in 82 games. The 5-foot-10.75, 185-pound player had a 29-game point streak from Nov. 30, 2012, to March 15, 2013, collecting 26 goals and 65 points over that span.