The Calgary Flames may not have any representation on the Canadian World Juniors team this year, but their Canadian prospects are having sensational years in their junior leagues. Leading the charge is Ottawa 67s defenceman Henry Mews.
With a three-point effort over the weekend, Mews took the OHL lead in total assists among players at all positions, as well as the overall lead in points by a defenceman.
♨️Henry Mews had an outstanding performance on Sunday, recording three points (1G + 2A) in a 5-4 comeback win against Peterborough—
— Flames Prospects (@BlastyProspects) December 30, 2024
his 14th multipoint effort of the season propelled him to the top of the CHL leaderboard for points by a defender!
4️⃣8️⃣#Flames pic.twitter.com/gHbHFbEB3v
Steal of the draft?
Mews was taken 74th overall in the third round of the 2024 NHL Draft. Many projected Mews to be a potential first-round talent, but he slipped on draft day. Now, Craig Conroy’s decision to select him is looking like an absolute genius level move.
Here is Mews’ stat line for the season:
| Statistic | GP | G | A | P | G/GP | A/GP | P/GP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Raw Total | 34 | 11 | 37 | 48 | 0.324 | 1.088 | 1.412 |
| OHL Defencemen Rank | 4 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 2 |
There are a couple defencemen who are outperforming Mews on a per-game basis, however until those games are played, Mews is at the top of the table. The OHL defenceman leaderboard is a three-horse race between three 2024 draft picks: Sam Dickinson who was taken 11th overall by the San Jose Sharks, Zayne Parekh who was taken ninth overall by the Flames, and Mews, taken multiple rounds later.
By all accounts, Mews is one of the best picks of the 2024 draft and is going to be a very interesting player to follow as he works his way to the NHL.
He might have been snubbed by his own coach in the Canadian World Juniors team selection, but that only seems to have motivated him further to prove his doubters wrong (one of whom appears to be his own OHL coach).
