Three North Bay Battalion players are among the 47 OHL players that have been included on NHL Central Scouting's October 'Players to Watch' List for the 2023 NHL Draft scheduled to take place June 28-29 in Nashville, Tennessee.
The three players are forwards Michael Podolioukh, Nic Sima and goaltender Charlie Robertson.
Adam Dennis, the Battalion general manager, is pleased to see a trio of Troops on the list as the team comes off an impressive 2022 NHL Entry Draft that saw five Battalion players selected.
“As always, with this list, you are happy for the players who have been recognized but also feel like there are a few that have flown under the radar," said Dennis.
"We understand this list will change drastically throughout the year so there is lots of work to be done for both players on the list and those that were left off.”
Forwards Colby Barlow of the Owen Sound Attack and Calum Ritchie of the Oshawa Generals join defenceman Cam Allen of the Guelph Storm in receiving 'A' ratings, indicating a potential first round selection.
An additional 11 players were assigned 'B' ratings indicating a potential second or third round selection while 33, including four goaltenders, received 'C' designations indicating a potential fourth, fifth or sixth round candidate.
Eighteen OHL member teams are represented on the list led by the Flint Firebirds, Kingston Frontenacs, Kitchener Rangers and Sudbury Wolves, each with four players included. The Guelph Storm, London Knights, North Bay Battalion, Ottawa 67's, Peterborough Petes, Saginaw Spirit and Windsor Spitfires trail with three players respectively.
Forwards Colby Barlow of the Owen Sound Attack and Calum Ritchie of the Oshawa Generals join defenceman Cam Allen of the Guelph Storm in receiving 'A' ratings, indicating a potential first round selection.
An additional 11 players were assigned 'B' ratings indicating a potential second or third round selection while 33, including four goaltenders, received 'C' designations indicating a potential fourth, fifth or sixth round candidate.
The list includes 25 OHL forwards, 18 defencemen and four goaltenders.
2023 NHL Central Scouting October Players to Watch List - OHL
Players have been identified using the following criteria:
• A Rating – Indicates a first round candidate
• B Rating – Indicates a second or third round candidate
• C Rating – Indicates a fourth/fifth/sixth round candidate
| RATING | PLAYER | POS. | TEAM |
| A | Cam Allen | D | Guelph Storm |
| A | Colby Barlow | LW | Owen Sound Attack |
| A | Calum Ritchie | C | Oshawa Generals |
| B | Beau Akey | D | Barrie Colts |
| B | Oliver Bonk | D | London Knights |
| B | Hunter Brzustewicz | D | Kitchener Rangers |
| B | Andrew Gibson | D | Soo Greyhounds |
| B | Nick Lardis | LW | Peterborough Petes |
| B | Ethan Miedema | LW | Windsor Spitfires |
| B | Quentin Musty | LW | Sudbury Wolves |
| B | Luca Pinelli | LW | Ottawa 67's |
| B | Coulson Pitre | RW | Flint Firebirds |
| B | Carson Rehkopf | LW | Kitchener Rangers |
| B | Carey Terrance | C | Erie Otters |
| C | Matthew Andonovski | D | Kitchener Rangers |
| C | Denver Barkey | C | London Knights |
| C | Tristan Bertucci | D | Flint Firebirds |
| C | Cole Brown | RW | Hamilton Bulldogs |
| C | Quinton Burns | D | Kingston Frontenacs |
| C | Easton Cowan | RW | London Knights |
| C | Alexis Daviault | D | Sarnia Sting |
| C | P.J. Forgione | D | Saginaw Spirit |
| C | Brad Gardiner | C | Ottawa 67's |
| C | Ethan Hay | C | Flint Firebirds |
| C | Linus Hemstrom | RW | Kingston Frontenacs |
| C | Angus MacDonell | C | Sarnia Sting |
| C | Matthew Mania | D | Sudbury Wolves |
| C | Matthew Mayich | D | Ottawa 67's |
| C | Donovan McCoy | D | Peterborough Petes |
| C | Luke McNamara | C | Saginaw Spirit |
| C | Marco Mignosa | RW | Soo Greyhounds |
| C | Niko Minkkinen | D | Guelph Storm |
| C | Owen Outwater | LW | Kingston Frontenacs |
| C | Alex Pharand | C | Sudbury Wolves |
| C | Michael Podolioukh | C | North Bay Battalion |
| C | Bronson Ride | D | Windsor Spitfires |
| C | Nic Sima | RW | North Bay Battalion |
| C | Blake Smith | D | Oshawa Generals |
| C | Konnor Smith | D | Peterborough Petes |
| C | Matthew Soto | RW | Kingston Frontenacs |
| C | Djibril Toure | D | Sudbury Wolves |
| C | Joey Willis | LW | Saginaw Spirit |
| C | Valentin Zhugin | LW | Guelph Storm |
| RATING | PLAYER | POS. | TEAM |
| C | Joey Costanzo | G | Windsor Spitfires |
| C | Nathan Day | G | Flint Firebirds |
| C | Jackson Parsons | G | Kitchener Rangers |
| C | Charlie Robertson | G | North Bay Battalion |
