Daily 2018 Draft Prospect Updates

Dec. 19, 2017

PROSPECT-UPDATE ARCHIVE

There were only a handful of games involving draft prospects on Tuesday. The U.S. NTDP Under-18 team played an early-morning game in front of a crowd of local schoolchildren, and that turned out to be the day's most interesting matchup.

The next few days are filled with World Junior Championship pre-tournament games. Wednesday's key matchup is Canada vs. Czech Republic. These teams won't see each other in the World Junior preliminary round, so this could be their only meeting.

Although there are no draft prospects on the Canadian roster, there are many Czechs in the mix. This tournament will be huge for the top Czech prospect, Filip Zadina. He'll be on a stage where he can show that his QMJHL numbers are no fluke. It should be interesting. Until then, take a look at Tuesday's top performances:

Stars of the Night

JACOB BERNARD-DOCKER -- Bernard-Docker, a defenseman who will play his college hockey at the University of North Dakota, is having a dream season. After winning gold with Canada West at the recent World Junior A Challenge, Bernard-Docker returned to the AJHL's Okotoks Oilers on Tuesday and wasted no time making his presence felt. He scored the opening goal in Okotoks' 3-1 victory over Camrose and was named the home team's Player of the Game. The goal came at 9:06 of the opening period. Bernard-Docker now has 10 goals and 22 points in 27 games this season. That matches his 2016-17 point total from twice as many games. Bernard-Docker, who posted a goal and two assists at the World Junior A, has goals in three of his past four AJHL appearances. (Note: Third appearance on this list in 2017-18)

KEEGAN KARKI -- It was a memorable morning for Karki, who returned to the U.S. NTDP rink with his Muskegon Lumberjacks team. Last season, Karki was a goaltender in the NTDP program, but off-ice issues led to his dismissal. This season, he has rediscovered his game in the USHL, and has been red-hot for Muskegon. On Tuesday, he stopped 27 shots in the Lumberjacks' 6-3 win. He was perfect in the first period, stopping all 10 Team USA shots while his teammates ran up a 4-0 lead. It was Karki's fourth straight victory, and he has won six of his last eight starts. (Note: Third appearance on this list in 2017-18)

EMILIO PETTERSEN -- Pettersen, the top-rated Norwegian prospect in the 2018 draft pool, stands only 5-foot-9, but if he's anything like countryman Mats Zuccarello, that might not be a problem for him in the NHL. On Tuesday, the Muskegon center had a goal and two assists in the Lumberjacks' 6-3 win over the U.S. Under-18 team. Pettersen got the ball rolling with the game's first goal just 75 seconds after the opening faceoff. He later had the lone assist on a shorthanded goal at 12:11 of the second period to make it 5-0, and he had the primary assist on the 6-1 goal at 11:26 of the third. Riding a three-game scoring streak, Pettersen has four goals and 15 points in 23 USHL games. He will play college hockey at Denver. (Note: Second appearance on this list in 2017-18)