Prospect Report: Colton Point notches shutout in 1st game back from WJC

On Friday, Stars goaltending prospect Colton Point won a gold medal with Canada at the 2018 World Junior Championship in Buffalo. On Saturday, he was back at Colgate University in Hamilton, New York notching his third shutout of the season as the Raiders topped Princeton, 4-0.

Point stopped 37 shots as he improved to 9-4-4 on the season at Colgate. He ranks third in the nation with a 1.79 goals against average and fourth with a .942 save percentage.
"I'm still just trying to play the game I've been playing the whole year and stay consistent," Point told media after the game. "Obviously, it's nice to come back to a shutout, but the guys really helped me out. It's a team effort every time there's a shutout, and I'll continue to say that."
The 19-year-old Point, a fifth-round pick in the 2016 NHL Draft, was the No. 2 goaltender for Canada at the World Juniors. He played one game, stopping 20 shots in a 6-0 win over Slovakia in the preliminary round. Canada won the gold medal Friday, topping Sweden, 3-1, in the championship game.
"World Juniors was an amazing experience, I learned a lot, and I just tried to soak it all in and gather as much information from everyone there as I could," Point said. "It feels awesome to be back. I love being at Colgate. It's been almost a month that I've been gone, so it's nice to get back and settle into the routine of school and hockey."
And he got back into his routine of excellent goaltending quickly with the 37-save shutout of Princeton.
"Colton's pretty special, he really is. Obviously, he's a great goaltender, but it's way more than that. He's just a great young man," Colgate coach Don Vaughan told media after Saturday's game. "It was so fun in the locker room when he came in today. He got there right before our meeting, so the timing was great. The guys were really excited for him, and he was showing off a lot of the stuff he got.
"He's been very humble about it, and it was just a wonderful thing for him, the program, and his family who was here tonight. To go out and get a shutout tonight was just icing on the cake."
Point Stats: Colgate (ECAC) | 9-4-4 | 1.79 | .942
Here's a look at how other Dallas prospects playing in Europe, college and juniors fared over the past week.
North American Juniors
LW Jason Robertson (2nd round/2017) had a big weekend in the Ontario Hockey League, racking up nine points (three goals and six assists) in two games for Kingston. Robertson had five assists in a 6-4 win over Barrie on Saturday and then three goals and one assist in an 8-3 victory over Niagara on Sunday. Robertson has 54 points (24 goals, 30 assists) in 39 games. He is tied for fourth in the OHL in points and tied for sixth in goals.
Robertson Stats: Kingston (OHL) | 39 GP | 24 G | 30 A | 54 PTS | +13 | 30 PIM
RW Nick Caamano (5th round/2016) had four points (two goals, two assists) in three games for Hamilton over the past week extending his points streak to 12 games (six goals, ten assists). Caamano has 39 points (19 goals, 20 assists) in 37 games this season.
Caamano Stats: Hamilton/Flint (OHL) | 37 GP | 19 G | 20 A | 39 PTS | +1 | 58 PIM
C Liam Hawel (4th round/2017) picked up five points (one goal, four assists) in three games for Guelph in the OHL over the past week giving him 21 points (five goals, 16 assists) in 33 games.
Hawel Stats: Guelph (OHL) | 33 GP | 5 G | 16 A | 21 PTS | -4 | 15 PIM
D Ondrej Vala (Free agent/2016) returned to the Western Hockey League from the World Juniors this weekend and now has a new team. He was traded Sunday within the WHL going from Kamloops to Everett in a blockbuster deal that involved six players and two draft picks. Vala will be joining an Everett team that is among the best in the WHL's Eastern Conference. Vala, who had one assist in seven games for Czech Republic at the World Juniors, has 20 points (seven goals, 13 assists) in 31 WHL games this season.
Vala Stats: Kamloops (WHL) | 31 GP | 7 G | 13 A | 20 PTS | +3 | 30 PIM
C Brett Davis (6th round/2017) tallied four points (two goals, two assists) in five games for Kootenay of the WHL over the past week. Davis has 25 points (11 goals, 14 assists) in 42 games.
Davis Stats: Kootenay | 42 GP | 11 G | 14 A | 25 PTS | -7 | 13 PIM
Europe
G Markus Ruusu (6th round/2015) tossed back-to-back shutouts for TUTO Hockey in Finland's second league over the past week, stopping 41 shots in the two games. Ruusu is 5-0-2 in the second league with a 2.26 goals against average and .909 save percentage.
Ruusu Stats: Ilves (Liiga) | 5-6-0 | 3.75 | .851Ilves (Finland, Jr.) | 0-2-0 | 2.57 | .924TUTO (Mestis) | 5-0-2 | 2.26 | .909
C Jacob Peterson (5th round/2017) recorded three assists in two games for Frolunda in Swedish junior hockey. Peterson has 26 points (11 goals, 15 assists) in 24 games
Peterson Stats: Frolunda (Sweden, Jr.) | 24 GP | 11 G | 15 A | 26 PTS | -4 | 14 PIMFrolunda (SHL) | 5 GP | 0 G | 0 A | 0 PTS | -1 | 0 PIM
D John Nyberg (6th round/2014) had no points in three games for Frolunda in the Swedish Hockey League over the past week. Nyberg has 11 points (two goals, nine assists) in 34 games.
Nyberg Stats: Frolunda (SHL) | 34 GP | 2 G | 9 A | 11 PTS | -2 | 36 PIM
D Jakob Stenqvist (6th round/2016) had no points in three games for Bjorkloven in Sweden's second league. Stenqvist has 15 points (two goals, 13 assists) in 30 games. He played two games for Frolunda in the SHL recently, registering no points.
Stenqvist Stats: Bjorkloven (Allsvenskan) | 30 GP | 2 G | 13 A | 15 PTS | -1 | 10 PIMFrolunda (SHL) | 2 GP | 0 G | 0 A | 0 PTS | E | 2 PIM
D Miro Karjalainen(5th round/2014) had no points in two games for HPK in Finland's top league. Karjalainen has three assists in 22 games.
Karjalainen Stats: HPK (Liiga) | 22 GP | 0 G |3 A | 3 PTS | -5 | 108 PIM
D Miro Heiskanen (1st round/2017) has yet to play for his team in Finland's top league since the World Juniors where he had two assists in five games. Heiskanen has 14 points (nine goals, five assists) in 20 games in the Finnish league.
Heiskanen Stats: HIFK (Liiga) | 20 GP | 9 G | 5 A | 14 PTS | +9 | 6 PIM
LW/C Fredrik Karlstrom (3rd round/2016) has yet to play for his team in the SHL since the World Juniors where he had three assists in seven games as Sweden took home a silver medal. Karlstrom has three points (one goal, two assists) in 26 games with Linkoping.
Karlstrom Stats: Linkoping (SHL) | 26 GP | 1 G | 2 A | 3 PTS | -1 | 6 PIMLinkoping (Sweden, Jr.) | 3 GP | 2 G | 0 A | 2 PTS | -3 | 4 PIM
LW Valeri Nichushkin(1st round/2013)had three points (one goal, two assists) in three games with CSKA in Russia's KHL over the past week giving him 23 points (13 goals, 10 assists) in 42 games.
Nichushkin Stats: CSKA (KHL) | 42 GP | 13 G | 10 A | 23 PTS | +10 | 12 PIM
NCAA
G Jake Oettinger (1st round/2017) was back in goal for Boston University Saturday after backstopping the USA to a bronze medal at the World Juniors on Friday. Oettinger stopped 34 of 37 shots in a 3-0 loss to the University of Maine. Oettinger is 7-10-1 at BU with a 2.91 goals against average and .903 save percentage. He was 2-0 at the World Juniors with a 2.77 GAA and .889 SV%.
Oettinger Stats: Boston University (Hockey East) | 7-10-1 | 2.91 | .903
C/LW Rhett Gardner (4th round/2016) picked up three points (one goal, two assists) in two games for North Dakota over the weekend giving him 14 points (five goals, nine assists) in 22 games.
Gardner Stats: North Dakota (NCHC) | 22 GP | 5 G | 9 A | 14 PTS | +7 |14 PIM
D Joe Cecconi (5th round/2015) had no points in two games for the University of Michigan over the past week. Cecconi has 12 points (three goals, nine assists) in 20 games.
Cecconi Stats: Michigan (Big Ten) | 20 GP | 3 G | 9 A | 12 PTS | -9 | 18 PIM
D Michael Prapavessis (4th round/2014) recorded two assists as RPI fell 6-5 in overtime to Dartmouth on Saturday. Prapavessis has 11 assists in 21 games.
Prapavessis Stats: RPI (ECAC) | 21 GP | 0 G | 11 A | 11 PTS | -9 | 8 PIM
LW Riley Tufte (1st round/2016) who played at the World Juniors is back at the University of Minnesota Duluth but did not play this weekend since the Bulldogs were idle. Tufte tallied three assists in seven games as the USA won a bronze medal. Tufte has 11 points (eight goals, three assists) in 19 games with Minnesota Duluth.
Tufte Stats: Minnesota Duluth (NCHC) | 19 GP | 8 G | 3 A | 11 PTS | +2 | 20 PIM
Photo Credit:Bob Cornell, Colgate Athletics
This story was not subject to approval of the National Hockey League or Dallas Stars Hockey Club. Mark Stepneski is an independent writer whose posts on DallasStars.com reflect his own opinions and do not represent official statements from the Dallas Stars. You can follow Mark on Twitter @StarsInsideEdge.