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Mississauga Steelheads

NHL Entry Draft Preview: Stefan LeBlanc

June 26, 2014 - Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Mississauga Steelheads News Release


With only one full season under his belt so far, Stefan LeBlanc is already making his mark on the Mississauga Steelheads as well as the OHL.

After being drafted by the Sudbury Wolves in the 7th round (136th Overall) at the 2012 OHL Priority selection, the 6'0 183 lb. defenceman from Oakville, Ontario had to wait a year in order to make his OHL debut. But once he got the opportunity in the 2013-2014 season he did not disappoint.

In 38 games with Sudbury, LeBlanc became a regular on the Wolves blue line recording 3 goals and 13 assists, as well as a solid plus/minus rating of 9. His solid two way ability as a defenceman caught the attention of Steelheads General Manager and Head Coach, James Boyd as he traded for LeBlanc on OHL trade deadline day. The price for LeBlanc's services did not come cheap. In exchange for LeBlanc, Sudbury's second round picks in 2016, 2017, 2018, and a conditional third round pick in 2015, the Steelheads traded veteran defenceman Trevor Carrick, the rights to Bradley Bell and a fifth round pick in 2016.

When the Steelheads acquired LeBlanc, Boyd commented that "Stefan is a quality young defenceman in our leaguethat we are excited to add to our hockey club."

At the time of the trade Carrick lead the team in scoring with 31 points (16 goals, 15 assists) and had been with the Steelheads since the team drafted him in the fifth round (85th Overall) at the 2010 OHL priority selection. Trading Carrick was a major move for a young team to make on trade deadline day, but the potential was there for LeBlanc to develop, improve, and make an impact with the Steelheads.

Despite having some big shoes to fill, LeBlanc continued his impressive rookie season and showed why the Steelheads valued him so much and ultimately made the trade for him.

Upon arrival, LeBlanc was immediately placed in the Steelheads lineup. In 26 games LeBlanc recorded 2 goals and 10 assists, improving his points per game from 0.42 points/game with Sudbury to 0.46 points/game. His combined total of 28 points (5 goals, 23 assists) ranked him fourth in team scoring.

His efforts helped the Steelheads secure the eighth seed in the OHL Eastern Conference playoffs along with a first round meeting against the top seeded Oshawa Generals. In a hard fought series with the Generals that saw 3 nail biting overtime games, LeBlanc continued to produce on the blue line for the Steelheadstallying3 assists in 4 games, tying him for second in team playoff scoring.

After a successful rookie season, LeBlanc's strong performance did not go unnoticed by the outside hockey community. LeBlanc, along with fellow Steelheads defenceman Sean Day were named to the OHL's All-Rookie second team. LeBlanc and Day received 45 and 43 votes respectively.

When NHL Central Scouting released its final player rankings for the 2014 NHL Entry Draft, LeBlanc once again found his name on another important list; he was slotted in at #123 amongst 2014 North American Skaters. All of this is promising for the 18 year old defenceman as he is eligible to be drafted by one of the 30 NHL teams at the draft this weekend.

LeBlanc is another rising young talent in the Steelheads system that will help guide the team to more success with the 2014-15 season approaching. The future looks bright for LeBlanc and we'd like to wish him the best of luck this weekend in Philadelphia!

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