Buds Board Keepers League

Not a lot can slow down Dougie Hamilton at this point. OK, there was that 10-game suspension for a hit to the head on Sudbury’s Michael MacDonald, but on the ice Hamilton has had few peers this season. The Niagara IceDogs star was cruising to the defensemen scoring title in the Ontario League and already has a bronze medal from the world juniors to show for a campaign that also has Memorial Cup potential. Even though Canada always shoots for gold at the WJC, Hamilton took away some great memories from Alberta, especially since brother and IceDogs teammate Freddie was along for the ride.

“Probably my favorite hockey moment so far,” Dougie said. “To do it with my brother was pretty special.”

Though the 6-foot-4, 193-pound powerhouse appeared to be a shoo-in for duty, the 18-year-old took nothing for granted and noted that during the final tryout camp, nervousness was inevitable.

“You don’t know if you’re going home in a couple days or leaving for a month,” he said.

Hamilton ended up leaving for a month and having a big impact for Canada. In particular, the offensively gifted blueliner kick-started the Canucks’ near-comeback against Russia in the exhilarating semifinal eventually won 6-5 by the visitors. With Canada down 6-1, but on the power play, Hamilton snuck in from the point and banged home a puck past netminder Andrei Vasilevski. It was a pretty good signal the Boston Bruins first-rounder wasn’t going to roll over.

“Definitely one of the craziest games I’ve been in,” Hamilton said. “We saw our gold medal dream slipping away. We got frustrated, but then the goals started coming our way and it felt like we were winning.”

Though the effort was for naught, Hamilton impressed with his determination.

“The Russian game, I thought that was his best game,” said Jim Benning, an assistant GM with the Bruins. “He got a lot of good experience there and a lot of ice time.”

Before the season even started Hamilton had another career eye-opener when he attended his first NHL training camp. The ninth overall pick actually had to look up for once when his defense partner was revealed to be 6-foot-9 Norris Trophy winner and team captain Zdeno Chara. The pair practised together for a week and the rookie soaked up the lessons like a sponge.

“He’s one of the smartest guys on the ice,” Hamilton said. “Really vocal. You could tell he was one of the leaders. A lot of attention to detail; you have to put the puck right on the tape.”

Benning, who noted Boston was able to get Hamilton so low in the draft because teams ahead of the B’s were looking for goal-scoring, saw the Chara matchup as a way for the kid to gain confidence right away. Not that Hamilton is without skill himself.

“Every day at camp he got better,” Benning said. “He’s a great skater for his size and he can handle the puck, but he also plays physical.”

Between Chara, Adam McQuaid and Johnny Boychuk, there’s a lot of beef on the Bruins’ back end already, so Hamilton really adds to the spoils.

But before he gets to his next NHL training camp, Hamilton has a chance to do some major damage in the OHL playoffs. Niagara was tabbed as a contender before the season even began and despite a choppy start, is well-positioned for the post-season. Adding 6-foot-7, 252-pound Dallas first-rounder Jamie Oleksiak from Saginaw made the IceDogs that much more formidable, with Ryan Strome (New York Islanders, fifth overall in 2011) and Mark Visentin (Phoenix, 27th overall in ’10) piling on the talent. Hamilton may have a bronze already, but he’s got the tools to take Niagara all the way.

The American Hockey League announced today that Norfolk Admirals center Tyler Johnson has been selected as the Reebok/AHL Player of the Week for the period ending Mar. 11, 2012.

Johnson totaled four goals and four assists for eight points as Norfolk swept its three-game road weekend and extended its winning streak to 15 games, two shy of the AHL record.

Opening the weekend in Glens Falls, N.Y., Johnson scored twice in the first period of Norfolk’s 3-1 victory over Adirondack on Friday evening, his second consecutive two-goal game. In Hartford the next night, Johnson assisted on the game-winning tally in the third period and scored an empty-net goal for insurance as the Admirals defeated Connecticut, 3-1. Finally, in Bridgeport on Sunday, Johnson led the way with a goal and three assists in Norfolk’s 6-3 decision over the Sound Tigers, extending his personal scoring streak to seven games (6-9-15).

Johnson, a 21-year-old native of Spokane, Wash., has 24 goals and 28 assists for 52 points in 62 games for Norfolk this season, ranking third among all AHL rookies in scoring. Signed as a free agent by the Tampa Bay Lightning on Mar. 7, 2011, Johnson played four junior seasons with Spokane in the WHL, winning a Memorial Cup title in 2008 and helping the United States to a gold medal at the 2010 World Junior Championships.

In recognition of his achievement, Johnson will be presented with an etched crystal award prior to an upcoming Admirals home game.

Johnson becomes the seventh Norfolk Admirals player to be named the AHL Player of the Week and the second player this season, joining Carter Ashton (week ending October 9).

The Admirals return to Scope in search of a "sweet 16" wins in a row on Wednesday with a matchup against the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. The puck drops at 7:15 in another Admirals Value Night.

Family Fun Packs include four discounted Red Level Tickets for just $48 plus four free hot dogs, four free popcorns and four free sodas. Fans get all of that for just $48 – that’s a savings of $37!

Student Rush Nights provide $8 White Level Tickets (normally $12) for students with a valid current high school or college ID. In addition, when you buy a Student Rush Night Ticket, you get a buy-one, get-one free offer for the next Student Rush Night.

Family Fun Packs are available at the Scope Box Office, all Ticketmaster Outlets, charge-by-phone at 1-800-745-3000 or online at Ticketmaster.com. Student Rush Night Tickets are available ONLY at the Scope Box Office after 2:00 p.m. on the day of the game.

Individual tickets for all regular season games start at just $12. Tickets are available now at the Scope Box Office, all Ticketmaster Outlets, charge-by-phone at 1-800-745-3000 and online at ticketmaster.com.

Admirals 10-Packs for the 2011-12 season remain available for as little as $110. You may also reserve your 2012-13 season tickets with a deposit of as little as $100 per seat. Stop by the Admirals’ Administrative Offices at Scope, call (757) 640-1212 weekdays from 9:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. or visit norfolkadmirals.com anytime!

The Canada-Russia challenge is a series of games featuring the best prospects from both countries, and TSN's Craig Button is impressed with Buffalo Sabres uber-prospect Mikhail Grigorenko - not with his elite offensive talent, but with his surprising defensive ability.

Button joined WGR's Sabres Hockey Hotline on Friday, and chatted with host Brian Duff about how impressive Grigorenko was in his own zone. "He's that two way player," said Button. "The Russians, we always hear about the high-end skill, and how good they are offensively, but the lynchpin of their system has always been the centermen being the link between offense and defense, and I think people in Buffalo, when they get a real consistent glimpse of Mikhail Grigorenko, they're going to be really impressed with how well he plays defense and how he plays a 200-foot game."

Grigorenko is currently playing on a line with #1 overall pick Nail Yakupov, so the expectation is for that line to produce offensively. However, it's a very pleasant surprise to hear a knowledgeable source like Button, a Rochester native, praise Grigorenko's defensive prowess.

Many Sabres fans think that the talented Russian has a chance to make the team right out of training camp, but as we all know, he'll have to prove his effectiveness at both ends of the ice if he wants to play big minutes for a Lindy Ruff-coached team.

The American Hockey League announced today that Tyler Johnson of the Syracuse Crunch has been named the winner of the Les Cunningham Award as the AHL’s most valuable player for the 2012-13 season, as voted by coaches, players and members of the media in each of the league’s 30 member cities.

Johnson, 22, is tied for the league lead with 33 goals and has totaled 60 points in 60 games for the Crunch heading into the final weekend of the regular season, one of two skaters among the league’s top 10 scorers averaging a point per game. Johnson is tied for the league lead among forwards with a plus-24 rating and is also tied for fifth in power-play goals, scoring 12 times with the man advantage. He took part in the 2013 Dunkin’ Donuts AHL All-Star Classic, and was named a 2012-13 First Team AHL All-Star last week. Syracuse, which has clinched a spot in the Calder Cup Playoffs and is bidding for the East Division title, is 37-17-2-4 with Johnson in the lineup this season, but has won just four of 13 games (4-4-4-1) without him.

A Calder Cup champion with Norfolk last year, Johnson has put up 64 goals and 64 assists for 128 points in 135 AHL games over his two professional seasons, including 100 points (49-51) and a plus-50 rating in his last 87 regular-season games. Johnson signed with Tampa Bay on Mar. 7, 2011, and made his NHL debut this season, notching three goals and three assists in 14 games with the Lightning.