Prospect Roundup: Jokiharju, Highmore continue strong starts

On Mondays, chicagoblackhawks.com will highlight players who stood out for their minor-league, junior, college or European teams in the previous week's action. All prospect/system stats will be updated weekly throughout the season.
1st Star: D Henri Jokiharju, Portland Winterhawks (WHL)
The Line: 3GP, 1G, 4A
Jokiharju's torrid start to his second Western Hockey League campaign continued last week as the 2017 first-round pick collected five points (1G, 4A) in three outings. He tallied a goal and two assists in a 5-4 overtime victory against Kelowna on Saturday, with one of the helpers coming on the game-winner; the next night, he added a pair of assists in a 8-2 win over the Rockets. Jokiharju ranks third among WHL defensemen with 13 points (4G, 9A) in the first nine games of the season.
2nd Star: C Matthew Highmore, Rockford IceHogs (AHL)
The Line: 2GP, 2G, 1A
Highmore's professional debut has been commendable, with the free-agent signing picking up points in each of his first three games. Last week he contributed two goals and an assist in two outings, including a two-goal performance on Saturday in a 7-4 win over Iowa. Highmore added an assist on Sunday in a 5-3 loss to Milwaukee and now has three goals and two helpers this season.
3rd Star: D Joni Tuulola, Sport (FIN)
The Line: 3GP, 1G, 1A
Tuulola, the Blackhawks' sixth-round pick in the 2015 NHL Draft, has put together a somewhat surprising start to the season, showing off a more developed offensive side to his game. He picked up a goal and an assist in Sport's 3-2 loss to SaiPa and continues to lead team defensemen with 12 points (3G, 9A) in 15 games this season, which ranks second among league blueliners.

Around the system:
- Andrei Altybarmakyan played in four games last week, split between the KHL's SKA St. Petersburg and SKA-Neva of the VHL. The 2017 third-round pick posted a goal and two assists in two VHL games … Defenseman Lucas Carlsson netted his second goal of the season for Brynas in the Swedish Hockey League … Despite playing bottom-six minutes to start the season, Tim Soderlund is having an impact for Skelleftea in the SHL. The 2017 fourth-round pick tallied a pair of goals last Thursday in an 8-2 win over Brynas and now has five points (4G, 1A) in nine games.

• In Hockey East, Dylan Sikura picked up a goal and an assist to help Northeastern tie RIT 3-3 on Saturday in the team's only action of the week. The 2014 sixth-round pick has started his senior campaign with four consecutive multi-point outings and shares the team lead with seven points in three games … Huskies defenseman Ryan Shea logged an assist against RIT … Vermont junior Liam Coughlin tallied his first goal of the season in a 3-2 overtime loss to Quinnipiac on Saturday.

• Fredrik Olofsson began his season account with a goal and an assist in Nebraska-Omaha's two games against UMass-Lowell last weekend … Denver freshman Ian Mitchell recorded his first collegiate point with an assist on Friday in a 2-2 tie at Notre Dame … Union freshman Parker Foo also collected his first NCAA point with a helper in a 3-2 loss to Vermont on Sunday.

• Laurent Dauphin got on the board for the IceHogs last weekend with two goals and an assist in two games, including a two-goal performance in Sunday's 5-3 loss to Milwaukee … Vinnie Hinostroza picked up a goal and an assist in Saturday's win over the Wild and added a helper the next night against Milwaukee … Alexandre Fortin contributed a pair of assists against the Wild … Anthony Louis collected a point in both of Rockford's games last week.

• IceHogs defenseman Erik Gustafsson tallied his first goal of the season against Iowa and added an assist against Milwaukee … J-F Berube made 27 saves on 31 shots in Saturday's win and is now 2-0-0 to begin the season.