OHL Sudbury Wolves

Wolves Announce February Player of the Month Award Winners

Published on March 2, 2019 under Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Sudbury Wolves News Release


The Sudbury Wolves continued to build on to their excellent regular season and push for the playoffs with a superb month of February. The pack posted a 9-1-1-1 record for the month of the February, clinching a playoff berth during their surging month in the process. As the Wolves continue their third best season in franchise history, they find themselves in a battle for key playoff positioning in the Eastern Conference with the Oshawa Generals and Niagara IceDogs. With nine games left in the regular season, the Wolves will look to continue their winning ways to carry them into the first round of the OHL playoffs. Contributions from a few members of the pack in the month of February have been recognized with player of the month honours as they played a big part in this past months success and will be counted on along with the rest of the club to continue to find the same success down the stretch.

TESC Hardest Working Forward of the Month Adam Ruzicka is the recipient of the TESC Hardest Working Forward of the Month. The Bratislava, Slovakia product has been lights out since the pack acquired him at the OHL trade deadline in early January from the Sarnia Sting. Ruzicka has twenty-six points in twenty-one games since being acquired by the Wolves, with sixteen of those points being registered in twelve games over the month of February. Along with his production, Adam is a prototypical power forward who brings excellent vision and playmaking abilities to the Wolves on a nightly basis and is a force in the faceoff circle and defensive zone. The Calgary Flames 2017 fourth round pick had an outstanding month and the Sudbury Wolves would like to congratulate him on his hard work, determination, and leadership that he has brought to the rink every day since being acquired and that he continues to have the same drive for success for the remainder of the regular season and upcoming playoffs.

TESC Hardest Working Defenceman of the Month Cole Candella is the TESC Hardest Working Defenceman of the Month for February. The 21-year old defenceman has been a crucial part to the team's success throughout the season and continued his strong play for the club in February. His seven assists in twelve games over the month proved to be a big reason the club was able to win some close games. Candella's strong leadership qualities and improved play on the blue line have played an important part in the Wolves defensive game and will continue to be relied on as the end of the regular season and first round of the playoffs rapidly approaches. The Sudbury Wolves would like to congratulate Cole on a great month and are confident that he will continue to bring his best as the club heads into March.

Wolves Player of the Month

Wolves rookie Quinton Byfield has been named February player of the month. The rookie sensation did not disappoint scoring eight goals and assisting on eight others to rack up a total of 18 points in 12 games over the month. Prior to the weekend, the Newmarket, ON native sat 3rd in OHL rookie scoring with fifty-five points in fifty-five games and will look to continue his brilliant rookie season as the club heads into March. The Sudbury Wolves would like to acknowledge Quinton for his outstanding performance this past month and are excited to see the young star continue to shine. Molson 3-Star Player of the Month Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen is the recipient of the Molson 3-Star player of the month award for February. The Espoo, Finland native was named third star in a 4-1 win over the Windsor Spitfires on February 1st and followed that up with another third star performance in a 4-2 road win over the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds on February 6th. On February 10th Luukkonen picked up first star honours with a 32 save performance in a 3-2 win over Central division rivals, the Niagara Ice Dogs. He continued his stellar play on February 13th , making 34 saves in a 5-2 home win over the North Bay Battalion and also picked up third star honours in a 5-4 road win over the Niagara Ice Dogs where he stopped 47 of 51 shots faced to pick up two more key points against our division rivals on February 17th. Luukkonen would cap off a strong month of play with back to back second star performances coming on February 18th in a 3-2 shootout loss to the Oshawa Generals and on February 22nd in a 1-0 overtime loss to the Barrie Colts. The Sudbury Wolves would like to recognize and congratulate Ukko-Pekka on his strong play during the month of February. Wolves United Community Player of the Month

Roommates Emmett Serensits and Nolan Hutcheson have been named Wolves United Community Players of the Month for February. The two players participated in a number of community events this month including school visits to Adamsdale, Helene Gravelle and Cyril Varney. They also participated in the Pond Hockey on the Rocks in early February where they referred games in support of Camp Quality and met with fans at the New Sudbury Centre at the annual Team Hockey Card signing. The Sudbury Wolves would like to recognize Emmett and Nolan for his contributions in the Greater Sudbury community and are pleased to have them as a member of our organization.

Reg Wilkinson Scholastic Player of the Month

The Reg Wilkinson Scholastic Player of the Month for February is goaltender Jonathan Lemaire. The 16-year-old Gloucester, ON native is currently attending St. Charles College where he is taking Religion and Introduction to Anthropology. Jonathan is doing strong in his courses as he currently holds an average of 80% between his two courses.

The Sudbury Wolves would like to congratulate Jonathan on his strong performance on the ice and in the classroom. Player of the Month presentations will begin tonight when the Wolves host the Oshawa Generals at 7:05pm. Tickets are on-sale now at sudburywolves.com. For more information, contact office@sudburywolves.com.

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