Halifax duo eyeing draft history

Monday, 11.19.2012 / 9:02 AM | Adam Kimelman  - NHL.com Deputy Managing Editor

It's been almost 30 years since two players from the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League were taken in the first five picks of an NHL draft, but Halifax Mooseheads teammates Nathan MacKinnon and Jonathan Drouin likely will change that.

Barring injury, it's likely the Halifax teammates will repeat the feat last done by Sylvain Turgeon (No. 2) and Pat LaFontaine (No. 3) in 1983. Their play certainly has earned them consideration to be picked early.

MacKinnon and Drouin played just two games over the weekend, but combined for 11 points.

In Friday's 8-3 win against the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies, MacKinnon had a goal and two assists, while Drouin had four assists -- the second time this season he's had as many. On Sunday, Drouin scored a pair of goals in a 4-3 defeat of the Val-d'Or Foreurs, while MacKinnon had a pair of assists.

MacKinnon is tied for seventh in the league with 37 points in 22 games, and his 19 goals are tied for fifth. Drouin, who missed more than two weeks last month with an injury, has 35 points in just 16 games.

They weren't the only 2013 NHL Draft-eligible players to have big weekends. Here are a few others:

* Cape Breton Screaming Eagles left wing William Carrier had a personal-best four assists in his team's 5-2 defeat of the Saint John Sea Dogs on Friday. Teammate Kyle Farrell had a pair of goals in the win.

* MacKinnon and Drouin weren't the only stars for Halifax in their win Friday. Center Matthew Boudreau had a pair of goals in the win.

* Gatineau center Taylor Burke scored two goals, and teammate Emile Poirier had a goal and an assist in the Olympiques' 4-1 win at the Sherbrooke Phoenix. Poirier also had a big game Sunday, scoring twice and adding an assist in a 3-0 win at the Shawinigan Cataractes.

* Blainville-Boisbriand's Marc-Olivier Roy had two goals and an assist in the Armada's 6-3 defeat of the Drummondville Voltigeurs on Friday, while teammates Danick Martel had two goals and Christopher Clapperton had a goal and two assists.

* Baie-Comeau left wing Valentin Zykov scored twice in the Drakkar's 6-2 win against the Rimouski Oceanic on Saturday. Zykov leads all first-year players in the league with 16 goals, and is second with 25 points.

* Val-d'Or left wing Anthony Mantha had his fourth hat trick of the season and added an assist in his team's 6-3 win at the PEI Rocket on Saturday. He then had a goal and an assist Sunday in a 4-3 loss at Halifax.

* Gatineau goalie Michael Nishi picked up his first QMJHL shutout Saturday, stopping all 29 shots he faced in a 3-0 win at Shawinigan.

* Rouyn-Noranda's Maxime St. Cyr had a goal and two assists in a 6-2 win at Cape Breton on Sunday.

* Rimouski left wing Peter Trainor capped his hat trick by scoring the game-winning power-play goal at 3:15 of overtime in a 5-4 win at Baie-Comeau. Teammate Ryan MacKinnon had three assists.

Contact Adam Kimelman at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter: @NHLAdamK

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