With the OUA’s Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) Bold signing Arizona Coyotes (NHL) prospect Artyom Duda, it’s worth revisiting the professional-level talent hidden across the Canadian U SPORTS rosters.
Duda, a 19-year-old defensive player, was drafted 36th overall in the 2022 NHL Entry Draft by the Arizona Coyotes. He most recently played for Krasnaya Armiya in the MHL, a junior hockey league in Russia.
The highly regarded draft pick made a splash when electing to sign with the Bold. By bringing a massive NHL prospect to U SPORTS, the Bold now has a more competitive pool against the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), which historically sees more NHL draft picks.
While Duda initially hoped to play for Maine’s NCAA D1 hockey program, his participation in professional-level competition in Russia made him ineligible by NCAA standards. He then chose the TMU Bold, a team with a guaranteed championship appearance as hosts of the U SPORTS national championship in March.
Though Duda has struggled to gain the momentum the Bold had hoped he’d bring to the table, putting up only two assists in four games, the challenge of moving across the globe and stepping into a new league shouldn’t be understated, and I’m sure Duda will find his footing soon.
Before playoffs roll around in March, I thought it’d be fun to highlight some of the top talent in U SPORTS hockey today, and take a look at players looking to outshine Duda at the national level.
Among the most prominent U SPORTS players is Simon LaFrance. Having been with the Université du Québec-Trois-Rivières (UQTR) since the 2019-20 season.
LaFrance has been a steady outlet for Trois-Rivières, averaging over one point per game across his four seasons with the team.
Earlier this year, the Quebec native was selected to participate at the Colorado Avalanche’s Rookie Camp. Though simply participating in the camp isn’t a particularly amazing achievement, LaFrance was noted for leaving a positive influence on Avalanche media, and since then, has been on an absolute tear. Putting up 20 goals and 12 assists in just 19 games this season, he’s found himself at the top of the U SPORTS leaderboard.
LaFrance was a vital piece of Canada’s 2023 World University Games team, where he recorded 10 points in seven games on his way to earning a gold medal.
After ending the 2022-23 season as a U SPORTS top talent and being on track to finish this season as the nation’s top scorer, LaFrance is making a compelling argument for himself to crack an American Hockey League (AHL) roster once this season is up.
Should UQTR square off against TMU, the LaFrance-Duda matchup would be fireworks.
As their junior hockey careers officially come to an end with the expiration of their university eligibilities, hockey players are left to either hang up their skates or make the jump to professional hockey.
While rare, U SPORTS athletes have successfully made it into the NHL before.
After putting up sub-par numbers during his time in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) with the Brandon Wheat Kings, goaltender Logan Thompson played for Brock University in the 2018-19 season. During his tenure with the Badgers, the Calgary native recorded a 0.934 save percentage and over 700 saves in 24 games.
This lead to him signing his first professional contract with the Adirondack Thunder of the ECHL the following season. Thompson eventually attracted the Vegas Golden Knights of the NHL in the 2020-21 season, and has maintained his spot in Vegas’s rotation ever since.
Other notable U SPORTS players to make the NHL, including Joel Ward, now Assistant Coach of the Vegas Golden Knights, and Derek Ryan of the Edmonton Oilers, share similar stories to Thompson. Ward played for the University of P.E.I. and Ryan played for the University of Alberta. Though they underperformed in their junior careers and went undrafted to the NHL, they have achieved U SPORTS stardom and caught the eyes of NHL scouts who, now more than ever, will be watching U SPORTS hockey.
Tags
Aidan’s Angle, Artyom Duda, Hockey, NHL, U Sports
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