The 2016–17 OHL season was the 37th season of the Ontario Hockey League, in which twenty teams played 68 games each according to the regular season schedule, from September 21, 2016, to March 21, 2017. The playoffs began on March 23, 2017, and ended on May 12. The Erie Otters won the J. Ross Robertson Cup for the second time in franchise history, and the first time since 2002, as they defeated the Mississauga Steelheads in five games to represent the OHL at the 2017 Memorial Cup held at the WFCU Centre in Windsor, Ontario. The Windsor Spitfires also qualified for the tournament as the host team.
Regular season
Final standings Note: DIV = Division; GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; OTL = Overtime losses; SL = Shootout losses; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; PTS = Points; x = clinched playoff berth; y = clinched division title; z = clinched conference title
Eastern conference Rank TeamDIV GP W L OTL SL PTS GF GA 1 z-Peterborough Petes East 68 42 21 2 3 89 239 221 2 y-Mississauga Steelheads Central 68 34 21 6 7 81 240 219 3 x-Oshawa Generals East 68 40 23 3 2 85 228 215 4 x-Kingston Frontenacs East 68 33 26 5 4 75 179 200 5 x-Hamilton Bulldogs East 68 33 27 4 4 74 238 225 6 x-Sudbury Wolves Central 68 27 34 7 0 61 207 263 7 x-Ottawa 67's East 68 26 34 7 1 60 221 271 8 x-Niagara IceDogs Central 68 23 35 6 4 56 207 274 9 North Bay Battalion Central 68 24 38 5 1 54 192 260 10 Barrie Colts Central 68 17 44 6 1 41 192 291
Western conference Rank TeamDIV GP W L OTL SL PTS GF GA 1 z-Erie Otters Midwest 68 50 15 2 1 103 319 182 2 y-Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds West 68 48 16 3 1 100 287 208 3 x-Owen Sound Attack Midwest 68 49 15 2 2 102 297 177 4 x-London Knights Midwest 68 46 15 3 4 99 289 194 5 x-Windsor Spitfires West 68 41 19 5 3 90 232 185 6 x-Kitchener Rangers Midwest 68 36 27 3 2 77 244 251 7 x-Flint Firebirds West 68 32 28 3 5 72 229 242 8 x-Sarnia Sting West 68 31 30 6 1 69 257 277 9 Saginaw Spirit West 68 27 32 7 2 63 204 248 10 Guelph Storm Midwest 68 21 40 5 2 49 202 297
Scoring leaders Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes
Player Team GP G A Pts PIMAlex DeBrincatErie Otters 63 65 62 127 49Taylor RaddyshErie Otters 58 42 67 109 37Adam MascherinKitchener Rangers 65 35 65 100 20Petrus PalmuOwen Sound Attack 62 40 58 98 34Nick SuzukiOwen Sound Attack 64 45 51 96 10Jordan KyrouSarnia Sting 66 30 64 94 36Ryan MooreFlint Firebirds 68 39 51 90 57Cliff PuLondon Knights 63 35 51 86 36Kole SherwoodFlint Firebirds 60 33 52 85 60Kevin HancockOwen Sound Attack 68 30 55 85 14Artur TyanulinOttawa 67's 67 24 61 85 67
Leading goaltenders Note: GP = Games played; Mins = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses: OTL = Overtime losses; SL = Shootout losses; GA = Goals Allowed; SO = Shutouts; GAA = Goals against average
Player Team GP Mins W L OTL SL GA SO Sv% GAAMichael McNivenOwen Sound Attack 54 3184 41 9 2 2 122 6 0.915 2.30Michael DiPietroWindsor Spitfires 51 2935 30 12 4 2 115 6 0.917 2.35Troy TimpanoErie Otters 44 2559 36 8 0 0 101 4 0.901 2.37Tyler ParsonsLondon Knights 34 2000 23 6 2 3 79 4 0.925 2.37Matt VillaltaSault Ste. Marie Greyhounds 33 1795 25 3 0 0 72 1 0.918 2.41
Playoffs
Conference quarterfinals
Eastern conference quarterfinals
(1) Peterborough Petes vs. (8) Niagara IceDogs
(2) Mississauga Steelheads vs. (7) Ottawa 67's
(3) Oshawa Generals vs. (6) Sudbury Wolves
(4) Kingston Frontenacs vs. (5) Hamilton Bulldogs
Western conference quarterfinals
(1) Erie Otters vs. (8) Sarnia Sting
(2) Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds vs. (7) Flint Firebirds
(3) Owen Sound Attack vs. (6) Kitchener Rangers
(4) London Knights vs. (5) Windsor Spitfires
Conference semifinals
Eastern conference semifinals
(1) Peterborough Petes vs. (4) Kingston Frontenacs
(2) Mississauga Steelheads vs. (3) Oshawa Generals
Western conference semifinals
(1) Erie Otters vs. (4) London Knights
(2) Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds vs. (3) Owen Sound Attack
Conference finals
Eastern conference finals
(1) Peterborough Petes vs. (2) Mississauga Steelheads
Western conference finals
(1) Erie Otters vs. (3) Owen Sound Attack
J. Ross Robertson Cup
(W1) Erie Otters vs. (E2) Mississauga Steelheads
J. Ross Robertson Cup champions roster 2016-17 Erie Otters Goaltenders
Defencemen
– A
Wingers
– A
Centres
– A – C
Coach: Kris Knoblauch General Manager: Dave Brown
Playoff scoring leaders Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes
Player Team GP G A Pts PIMAlex DeBrincatErie Otters 22 13 25 38 10Dylan StromeErie Otters 22 14 20 34 14Anthony CirelliErie Otters 22 15 16 31 4Taylor RaddyshErie Otters 22 12 19 31 18Michael McLeodMississauga Steelheads 20 11 16 27 19Warren FoegeleErie Otters 22 13 13 26 25Spencer WatsonMississauga Steelheads 20 15 10 25 14Nick SuzukiOwen Sound Attack 17 8 15 23 10Darren RaddyshErie Otters 22 8 14 22 14Petrus PalmuOwen Sound Attack 17 13 8 21 6
Playoff leading goaltenders
Note: GP = Games played; Mins = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses: OTL = Overtime losses; SL = Shootout losses; GA = Goals Allowed; SO = Shutouts; GAA = Goals against average
Player Team GP Mins W L GA SO Sv% GAAJoseph RaaymakersSault Ste. Marie Greyhounds 10 554 5 4 18 0 0.942 1.95Matthew MancinaMississauga Steelheads 14 867 9 5 33 2 0.918 2.28Michael DiPietroWindsor Spitfires 7 436 3 4 18 0 0.917 2.48Dylan WellsPeterborough Petes 12 764 8 4 32 0 0.930 2.51Jacob InghamMississauga Steelheads 6 358 4 2 16 0 0.876 2.68
Awards J. Ross Robertson Cup: Erie OttersHamilton Spectator Trophy: Erie OttersBobby Orr Trophy: Mississauga SteelheadsWayne Gretzky Trophy: Erie OttersEmms Trophy: Mississauga SteelheadsLeyden Trophy: Peterborough PetesHolody Trophy: Erie OttersBumbacco Trophy: Sault Ste. Marie GreyhoundsRed Tilson Trophy: Alex DeBrincat, Erie OttersEddie Powers Memorial Trophy: Alex DeBrincat, Erie OttersMatt Leyden Trophy: Ryan McGill, Owen Sound AttackJim Mahon Memorial Trophy: Alex DeBrincat, Erie OttersMax Kaminsky Trophy: Darren Raddysh, Erie OttersOHL Goaltender of the Year: Michael McNiven, Owen Sound AttackJack Ferguson Award: Ryan Suzuki, Barrie ColtsDave Pinkney Trophy: Michael McNiven & Emanuel Vella, Owen Sound AttackEmms Family Award: Ryan Merkley, Guelph StormF. W. "Dinty" Moore Trophy: Matt Villalta, Sault Ste. Marie GreyhoundsDan Snyder Memorial Trophy: Garrett McFadden, Guelph StormWilliam Hanley Trophy: Nick Suzuki, Owen Sound AttackLeo Lalonde Memorial Trophy: Darren Raddysh, Erie OttersBobby Smith Trophy: Sasha Chmelevski, Ottawa 67'sRoger Neilson Memorial Award: Stephen Gibson, Mississauga SteelheadsIvan Tennant Memorial Award: Quinn Hanna, Guelph StormMickey Renaud Captain's Trophy: Alex Peters, Flint FirebirdsTim Adams Memorial Trophy: Mike Petizian, Mississauga RepsWayne Gretzky 99 Award: Warren Foegele, Erie Otters
All-Star teams The OHL All-Star Teams were selected by the OHL's General Managers.
First team Dylan Strome, Centre, Erie Otters Adam Mascherin, Left Wing, Kitchener Rangers Alex DeBrincat, Right Wing, Erie Otters Santino Centorame, Defence, Owen Sound Attack Darren Raddysh, Defence, Erie Otters Michael McNiven, Goaltender, Owen Sound Attack Ryan McGill, Coach, Owen Sound Attack
Second team Nick Suzuki, Centre, Owen Sound Attack Petrus Palmu, Right Wing, Owen Sound Attack Ryan Mantha, Defence, Niagara IceDogs Mikhail Sergachev, Defence, Windsor Spitfires Tyler Parsons, Goaltender, London Knights Kris Knoblauch, Coach, Erie Otters
Third team Cliff Pu, Centre, London Knights Kevin Hancock, Left Wing, Owen Sound Attack Taylor Raddysh, Right Wing, Erie Otters Filip Hronek, Defence, Saginaw Spirit Olli Juolevi, Defence, London Knights Michael DiPietro, Goaltender, Windsor Spitfires Drew Bannister, Coach, Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds
2017 OHL Priority Selection On April 8, 2017, the OHL conducted the 2017 Ontario Hockey League Priority Selection. The Barrie Colts held the first overall pick in the draft, and selected Ryan Suzuki from the London Jr. Knights of the MHAO. Suzuki was awarded the Jack Ferguson Award, awarded to the top pick in the draft.
Below are the players who were selected in the first round of the 2017 Ontario Hockey League Priority Selection.
# Player Nationality OHL team Hometown Minor team 1 Ryan Suzuki (C) Canada Barrie Colts London, Ontario London Jr. Knights (MHAO) 2 Tag Bertuzzi (C) Canada Guelph Storm Birmingham, Michigan Oakland Jr. Grizzlies 16U (HPHL) 3 Brandon Coe (RW) Canada North Bay Battalion Ajax, Ontario Toronto Nationals (GTHL) 4 Nicholas Porco (LW) Canada Saginaw Spirit Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario Vaughan Kings (GTHL) 5 Philip Tomasino (C) Canada Niagara IceDogs Mississauga, Ontario Mississauga Rebels (GTHL) 6 Graeme Clarke (RW) Canada Ottawa 67's Ottawa, Ontario Toronto Marlboros (GTHL) 7 Blake Murray (C) Canada Sudbury Wolves Uxbridge, Ontario Whitby Wildcats (OMHA-EHL) 8 Jack Hughes (C) United States Mississauga Steelheads Orlando, Florida Toronto Marlboros (GTHL) 9 Jamieson Rees (C) Canada Sarnia Sting Vaughan, Ontario Mississauga Reps (GTHL) 10 Ethan Keppen (LW) Canada Flint Firebirds Whitby, Ontario Toronto Nationals (GTHL) 11 Connor McMichael (C) Canada Hamilton Bulldogs Ajax, Ontario Ajax-Pickering Raiders (OMHA-EHL) 12 Cody Morgan (C) Canada Kingston Frontenacs Richmond Hill, Ontario Toronto Jr. Canadiens (GTHL) 13 Grayson Ladd (D) Canada Kitchener Rangers Dresden, Ontario Chatham-Kent Cyclones (MHAO) 14 Thomas Harley (D) United States Mississauga Steelheads Syracuse, New York Vaughan Kings (GTHL) 15 Mitchell Brewer (D) Canada Oshawa Generals Waterdown, Ontario Halton Hills Hurricanes (OMHA-SCTA) 16 Nick Robertson (C) United States Peterborough Petes Northville, Michigan Toronto Red Wings (GTHL) 17 Nathan Staios (RW) / Canada/USA Windsor Spitfires Oakville, Ontario Vaughan Kings (GTHL) 18 Lucas Rowe (C) Canada London Knights Toronto, Ontario Mississauga Reps (GTHL) 19 Hayden Fowler (C) Canada Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds Kingston, Ontario Kingston Jr. Frontenacs (OMHA-EHL) 20 Mitchell Russell (C) Canada Owen Sound Attack Barrie, Ontario Barrie Jr. Colts (OMHA-EHL) 21 Emmett Sproule (C) Canada Erie Otters Nottawa, Ontario Grey-Bruce Highlanders (OMHA-SCTA)
2017 NHL entry draft On June 23–24, 2017, the National Hockey League conducted the 2017 NHL entry draft held at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois. In total, 42 players from the OHL were selected in the draft. Owen Tippett of the Mississauga Steelheads was the first player from the OHL to be selected, taken tenth overall by the Florida Panthers.
Below are the players selected from OHL teams at the NHL Entry Draft.