Patrick King

It was a good week in the CHL for Sens prospect Jared Cowen, who achieved a few firsts with Spokane.

Ottawa Senators' first-rounder Jared Cowen put his best foot forward ahead of the Canadian world junior selection camp. He showed his offensive flair while achieving a first in last week's play.

Québec Major Junior Hockey League

Hot team: Saint John Sea Dogs

The Sea Dogs are pulling away from the pack in the top-heavy Maritimes Division after another solid week. Saint John is riding a five-game winning-streak and has not lost in regulation in its last 12. The Sea Dogs boast the league's best winning percentage and are tied with the Québec Remparts for first in points with 44.

Cold team: Rouyn-Noranda Huskies

Head coach and general manager André Tourigny must be looking forward to commencing his role as an assistant coach on Canada's world junior team. The rebuilding Huskies are in a league-worst 17-game losing-streak and have just four wins on the season. Rouyn-Noranda is now at the bottom of the league's standings after the Baie-Comeau Drakkar finally broke through with their second win of the season.

Game of the week: Lewiston MAINEiacs vs. Saint John Sea Dogs, Friday

The resurgent MAINEiacs are the league's feel-good story of the year after two rebuilding seasons. Lewiston is one of the hottest teams in the league with nine wins in its last 10 games, but will go up against the hottest team in Saint John. The Sea Dogs are performing up to expectations and advancing through tests relatively unscathed. It will be interesting to see which style wins out as the Sea Dogs can win playing in offensive and defensive situations.

Canadian NHL teams' QMJHL prospects:

Louis Leblanc, Montreal (Montreal) - drafted 18th overall in 2009

Leblanc missed each of Montreal's two games with a shoulder injury that sidelined him at the end of the previous week. The star forward still leads his team in scoring with 12 goals and 16 assists for 28 points in 20 games.

Olivier Roy, Edmonton (Acadie-Bathurst) - drafted 133rd overall in 2009

Consistency continues to plague Roy with Hockey Canada's selection camp fast approaching. Roy was beat on five of 25 shots in a loss to Saint John, but bounced back with a 23-save, two-goal performance against his former team on Sunday. Roy's consistency will need to be sorted out if he's to represent Canada in Buffalo.

Jakub Culek, Ottawa (Rimouski) - drafted 76th overall in 2010

The miserable season for the Czech forward continued. Culek picked up a point in Rimouski's 3-2 loss in Gatineau, his only point in three games. Culek's last goal was scored against Saint John on Oct. 12, an 18-game goal-less drought.

Steven Anthony, Vancouver (Saint John) - drafted 187th overall in 2009

Anthony was held pointless in back-to-back games for the first time all season in Saint John's wins over Acadie-Bathurst and Halifax last week. Anthony is still averaging a point-per-game pace with 22 points in 21 games.

Ontario Hockey League

Hot team: Mississauga St. Michael's Majors

Make it 16 and counting for the Majors. Mississauga has not lost a regulation game in over a month and is looking like the dominant force expected of the MasterCard Memorial Cup host. The Majors won their seventh- and eighth-consecutive wins after steamrolling Barrie and Owen Sound on the weekend. Mississauga boasts the best record in junior at 22-2-0-1 this season.

Cold team: Barrie Colts

One can't help but wonder how different this team would look had they not lost Kyle Clifford and Alexander Burmistrov to the NHL. Barrie is mired in a nine-game losing-streak with losses to Mississauga, Sault Ste. Marie and Brampton last week. The Colts are making a game of it, but points have been hard to come by in a rebuilding season.

Game of the week: Owen Sound Attack vs. Saginaw Spirit, Saturday

The Attack is running out of opportunities for statement games this season. Owen Sound is considered among the league's elite, but has yet to beat Mississauga in two tries and also fell to Saginaw in its only meeting so far. A win over one of the league's top two teams would help legitimize their status as an elite team. The timing couldn't be better as the Spirit is beginning to cool after a hot start. Saginaw leads Owen Sound by four points heading into the week, with the Attack holding two games in hand.

Canadian NHL teams' OHL prospects:

Jarred Tinordi, Montreal (London) - drafted 22nd overall in 2010

Tinordi is proving to be a quick healer. The Habs' first-rounder was reportedly going to miss the past week with a knee injury, but played in two of the Knights' three games. Tinordi was a plus-1 against Guelph on Friday, and then was a minus-1 against Sudbury. He is still searching for his third point of the season.

Greg McKegg, Toronto (Erie) - drafted 62nd overall in 2010

McKegg re-asserted himself as one of the league's top scorers with a big week offensively. He scored four times against Belleville then added another two against Kitchener. McKegg finished the week with six goals and three assists with a plus-5. He is tied for fifth in league scoring with 40 points in 28 games.

Alex Friesen, Vancouver (Niagara) - drafted 172nd overall in 2010

Friesen bounced back from a pointless game against Ottawa to score the insurance goal in a win over Belleville on Sunday. Friesen had a goal and one assist against the Bulls, giving him 10 goals and 17 assists for 27 points in 25 games.

Western Hockey League

Hot team: Medicine Hat Tigers

The Tigers are the league's newest contender after reeling off seven straight victories. Medicine Hat punctuated their busy week with a 3-2 shootout win in Portland on Sunday. The Tigers are fourth in the Eastern Conference standings as they continue their tough U.S. Division road swing this week.

Cold team: Brandon Wheat Kings

If nothing else, the Wheat Kings have been consistent this season. After starting strong, the Wheaties became the league's coldest team, only to break out of the slump. Now Brandon is problematic once again. The Wheat Kings are mired in a seven-game winless-streak with their last win coming on Nov. 15 in a 5-2 decision over the Regina Pats.

Game of the week: Saskatoon Blades vs. Vancouver Giants, Tuesday

The Blades open their B.C. Division road swing in Vancouver in a battle of two of the most consistent franchises over the last few seasons. Saskatoon leads the East Division, but heads into the week trailing Red Deer by two points for top spot in the Eastern Conference. The Giants, meanwhile, were just usurped from the division-lead by the reloaded Prince George Cougars. The Blades will want to start this road swing on a positive while the Giants look to maintain ground on the Cougars.

Canadian NHL teams' WHL prospects:

Jared Cowen, Ottawa (Spokane) - drafted ninth overall in 2009

Cowen achieved a few firsts in Spokane's 10-1 rout of Kamloops on Wednesday. He scored three times for the first time in his career. It was also the first time he had a multi-goal game. He followed it up with another goal, also against Kamloops, in Friday's loss to the Blazers. Cowen's strong play should make him a surefire pick for Canada's world junior team.

Ryan Howse, Calgary (Chilliwack) - drafted 74th overall in 2009

Howse's consistently strong season continued last week. The Flames' third-rounder bounced back from being held pointless against Prince George on Wednesday with a goal and an assist in Chilliwack's huge 7-2 win over Portland on Saturday.

Tyler Pitlick, Edmonton (Medicine Hat) - drafted 31st overall in 2010

Pitlick kept pace with his red-hot performance from a week ago. The 19-year-old rookie forward scored twice and had one assist in Medicine Hat's 7-1 win over Brandon on Tuesday. He followed it up with a goal against Everett, but was pointless in the final game against Portland.

Brad Ross, Toronto (Portland) - drafted 43rd overall in 2010

The third-year forward went ice cold during Portland's busy week. Ross did not pick up a point in any of the Winterhawks' four games and was a minus-1. The Winterhawks lost the final three games of the week, the last two in a shootout.

Max Reinhart, Calgary (Kootenay) - drafted 64th overall in 2010

The Kootenay Ice's long road trip got off on the wrong foot with back-to-back shutout losses in Red Deer and Tri-City last week. Reinhart was also held pointless in Kootenay's 6-2 win over Seattle on Saturday. Reinhart was a minus-3 in three games with no points.