| 2023–24 OHL season | |
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| League: | Ontario Hockey League |
| Sport: | Hockey |
| Duration: | Preseason August 2023 – September 2023 Regular season September 28, 2023 – March 24, 2024 Playoffs March 28, 2024 – May 15, 2024 |
| Finals Champ: | London Knights (5) |
| No Of Teams: | 20 |
| Tv: | Rogers TV YourTV TSN |
| Seasonslistnames: | OHL |
| Prevseason Year: | 2022–23 |
| Nextseason Year: | 2024–25 |
| 2023–24 CHL season | |
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| League: | Canadian Hockey League |
| Sport: | Hockey |
| Duration: | OHL September 2023 – May 2024 QMJHL September 2023 – May 2024 WHL September 2023 – May 2024 |
| No Of Teams: | 60 |
| Tv: | RDS TSN Rogers TV |
The 2023–24 OHL season was the 44th season of operation (43rd season of play) of the Ontario Hockey League. The league played a 68-game regular season which began on September 28, 2023 and concluded on March 24, 2024. The post-season began on March 28, 2024 and concluded on May 15, 2024.
The London Knights won the J. Ross Robertson Cup and represented the Ontario Hockey League at the 2024 Memorial Cup. The Saginaw Spirit hosted 2024 Memorial Cup, which was held at the Dow Event Center in Saginaw, Michigan. Saginaw and London faced each other in the Memorial Cup Final, with Saginaw winning 4–3 to win their first Memorial Cup in franchise history, as well as becoming only the third American team to win the Memorial Cup.
On February 7, 2023, the Hamilton Bulldogs announced that the club would be moving to Brantford, Ontario, for three seasons due to renovations and the long-term closure of First Ontario Centre beginning this season. The team also announced that the team would be known as the Brantford Bulldogs and play at the Brantford Civic Centre.[1]
On July 7, 2023, the OHL announced the preseason schedule for the 2023–24 season. In total, there were 48 preseason games which began on September 1 and concluded on September 23.
Neutral site games will be played in Ayr, Beamsville, Cornwall, Hanover, Millbrook, Norwood, Ohsweken, Port Hope and St. Thomas.
OHL training camps began in late August in preparation of the 2023-24 season, which began on September 28, 2023.[2]
On January 31, 2024, the Mississauga Steelheads announced plans for the club to relocate to Brampton, Ontario for the 2024-25 OHL season. The team plans to play at the CAA Centre and will be known as the Brampton Steelheads. Previously, Brampton hosted the Brampton Battalion in the OHL from 1998-2013 until the franchise relocated to North Bay, Ontario.[3]
On June 13, 2024, the OHL Board of Governors approved the relocation and officially announced the team will be known as the Brampton Steelheads.[4]
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
Standings as of March 24, 2024[5]
| Rank | Team | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | East | 68 | 40 | 19 | 7 | 2 | 89 | 39 | 273 | 204 | ||
| 2 | Central | 68 | 39 | 20 | 7 | 2 | 87 | 39 | 300 | 240 | ||
| 3 | East | 68 | 37 | 20 | 9 | 2 | 85 | 36 | 267 | 243 | ||
| 4 | Central | 68 | 38 | 22 | 8 | 0 | 84 | 37 | 248 | 212 | ||
| 5 | Central | 68 | 38 | 23 | 4 | 3 | 83 | 37 | 328 | 272 | ||
| 6 | East | 68 | 36 | 24 | 6 | 2 | 80 | 35 | 253 | 228 | ||
| 7 | East | 68 | 33 | 31 | 4 | 0 | 70 | 32 | 247 | 272 | ||
| 8 | Central | 68 | 28 | 36 | 4 | 0 | 60 | 23 | 234 | 283 | ||
| 9 | East | 68 | 20 | 40 | 7 | 1 | 48 | 19 | 183 | 296 | ||
| 10 | Central | 68 | 17 | 43 | 6 | 2 | 42 | 17 | 193 | 323 |
| Rank | Team | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Midwest | 68 | 50 | 14 | 1 | 3 | 104 | 48 | 322 | 197 | ||
| 2 | West | 68 | 50 | 16 | 1 | 1 | 102 | 50 | 303 | 215 | ||
| 3 | West | 68 | 45 | 18 | 3 | 2 | 95 | 42 | 286 | 215 | ||
| 4 | Midwest | 68 | 41 | 23 | 4 | 0 | 86 | 41 | 290 | 225 | ||
| 5 | Midwest | 68 | 33 | 28 | 5 | 2 | 73 | 30 | 254 | 270 | ||
| 6 | Midwest | 68 | 33 | 28 | 6 | 1 | 73 | 30 | 210 | 225 | ||
| 7 | Midwest | 68 | 29 | 30 | 6 | 3 | 67 | 28 | 246 | 274 | ||
| 8 | West | 68 | 30 | 33 | 4 | 1 | 65 | 28 | 232 | 274 | ||
| 9 | West | 68 | 25 | 39 | 3 | 1 | 54 | 21 | 204 | 292 | ||
| 10 | West | 68 | 18 | 42 | 5 | 3 | 44 | 17 | 247 | 360 |
Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes[6]
| width:30%;" | Player | width:30%;" | Team | width:7.5%;" | width:7.5%;" | width:7.5%;" | width:7.5%;" | width:7.5%;" | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| David Goyette | Sudbury Wolves | 68 | 40 | 77 | 117 | 29 | |||||||
| Anthony Romani | North Bay Battalion | 68 | 58 | 53 | 111 | 20 | |||||||
| Dalyn Wakely | North Bay Battalion | 66 | 39 | 65 | 104 | 71 | |||||||
| Quentin Musty | Sudbury Wolves | 53 | 43 | 59 | 102 | 66 | |||||||
| Denver Barkey | London Knights | 64 | 35 | 67 | 102 | 28 | |||||||
| Deni Goure | Owen Sound Attack | 68 | 36 | 60 | 96 | 30 | |||||||
| Easton Cowan | London Knights | 54 | 34 | 62 | 96 | 64 | |||||||
| Zayne Parekh | Saginaw Spirit | 66 | 33 | 63 | 96 | 64 | |||||||
| Carson Rehkopf | Kitchener Rangers | 60 | 52 | 43 | 95 | 45 | |||||||
| Hunter Brzustewicz | Kitchener Rangers | 67 | 13 | 79 | 92 | 24 |
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[7]
| width:25%;" | Player | width:25%;" | Team | width:5%;" | width:5%;" | width:5%;" | width:5%;" | width:5%;" | width:5%;" | width:5%;" | width:5%;" | width:5%;" | width:5%;" | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Michael Simpson | London Knights | 48 | 2776 | 34 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 121 | 4 | 0.905 | 2.61 | ||||||||||||
| Jacob Oster | Oshawa Generals | 60 | 3569 | 35 | 16 | 7 | 1 | 168 | 3 | 0.905 | 2.82 | ||||||||||||
| Andrew Oke | Saginaw Spirit | 41 | 2282 | 29 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 110 | 2 | 0.890 | 2.89 | ||||||||||||
| Jackson Parsons | Kitchener Rangers | 51 | 2906 | 27 | 18 | 2 | 0 | 145 | 4 | 0.897 | 2.99 | ||||||||||||
| Collin MacKenzie | Ottawa 67's | 31 | 1690 | 14 | 11 | 2 | 1 | 86 | 1 | 0.901 | 3.05 |
| Team | Arena | Home Games | Avg. Attendance | Capacity | data-sort-type="number" | Cap. Percentage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 34 | 9,035 | 9,036 | 100.0% | |||
| 34 | 6,492 | 7,131 | 91.0% | |||
| 34 | 5,109 | 5,180 | 98.6% | |||
| 34 | 4,704 | 4,715 | 99.8% | |||
| 34 | 4,610 | 6,450 | 71.5% | |||
| 34 | 4,213 | 9,500 | 44.3% | |||
| 34 | 4,039 | 4,118 | 98.1% | |||
| 34 | 3,987 | 6,716 | 59.3% | |||
| 34 | 3,878 | 5,300 | 73.2% | |||
| 34 | 3,855 | 4,928 | 78.2% | |||
| 34 | 3,824 | 4,640 | 82.4% | |||
| 34 | 3,688 | 5,527 | 66.7% | |||
| 34 | 3,673 | 4,195 | 87.6% | |||
| 34 | 3,522 | 3,729 | 94.4% | |||
| 34 | 3,319 | 5,614 | 59.1% | |||
| 34 | 3,124 | 4,365 | 71.6% | |||
| 34 | 3,109 | 2,952 | 105.3% | |||
| 34 | 2,870 | 4,262 | 67.3% | |||
| 34 | 2,722 | 3,500 | 77.8% | |||
| 34 | 2,431 | 5,612 | 43.3% |
Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes[10]
| width:30%;" | Player | width:30%;" | Team | width:7.5%;" | width:7.5%;" | width:7.5%;" | width:7.5%;" | width:7.5%;" | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Easton Cowan | London Knights | 18 | 10 | 24 | 34 | 18 | |||||||
| Calum Ritchie | Oshawa Generals | 21 | 8 | 22 | 30 | 16 | |||||||
| Sandis Vilmanis | North Bay Battalion | 16 | 10 | 17 | 27 | 4 | |||||||
| Denver Barkey | London Knights | 18 | 6 | 21 | 27 | 16 | |||||||
| Kasper Halttunen | London Knights | 18 | 17 | 9 | 26 | 14 | |||||||
| Dylan Roobroeck | Oshawa Generals | 21 | 11 | 15 | 26 | 28 | |||||||
| Dalyn Wakely | North Bay Battalion | 16 | 13 | 10 | 23 | 18 | |||||||
| Beckett Sennecke | Oshawa Generals | 16 | 10 | 12 | 22 | 21 | |||||||
| Max McCue | London Knights | 18 | 3 | 19 | 22 | 20 | |||||||
| Owen Van Steensel | North Bay Battalion | 16 | 7 | 13 | 20 | 21 |
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[11]
| width:25%;" | Player | width:25%;" | Team | width:5%;" | width:5%;" | width:5%;" | width:5%;" | width:5%;" | width:5%;" | width:5%;" | width:5%;" | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Andrew Oke | Saginaw Spirit | 6 | 329 | 5 | 0 | 10 | 1 | 0.938 | 1.83 | ||||||||||
| Charlie Schenkel | Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds | 11 | 634 | 6 | 4 | 25 | 2 | 0.913 | 2.36 | ||||||||||
| Sam Hillebrandt | Barrie Colts | 5 | 315 | 2 | 3 | 13 | 1 | 0.938 | 2.48 | ||||||||||
| Michael Simpson | London Knights | 18 | 1043 | 15 | 2 | 45 | 1 | 0.908 | 2.59 | ||||||||||
| Mike McIvor | North Bay Battalion | 15 | 919 | 10 | 5 | 41 | 1 | 0.914 | 2.68 |
The OHL All-Star and All-Rookie Teams were selected by the OHL's general managers.[34]
On March 27, 2024, the league announced the results of the Ontario Hockey League Priory Selection Lottery. Each of the four non-playoff participated in the lottery, as the 20th place Niagara IceDogs had a 40% chance of winning, the 19th place Windsor Spitfires had a 30% chance of winning, the 18th place Peterborough Petes had a 20% chance of winning, and the 17th place Sarnia Sting had a 10% chance of winning. The Windsor Spitfires won the lottery and selected first overall and selected Ethan Belchetz from the Oakville Rangers with their selection.[35] The entirety of the OHL Priority Selection Draft will take place over two days, as rounds 1-3 take place on April 12, while rounds 4-15 will be on April 13.
These are the results for the first round of the draft:[36]
| Player | Nationality | OHL Team | Hometown | Minor Team | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ethan Belchetz (LW) | Windsor Spitfires | Oakville, Ontario | Oakville Rangers U16 (OMHA-SCTA) | ||
| 2 | Alessandro Di Iorio (C) | Sarnia Sting | Vaughan, Ontario | Vaughan Kings U16 (GTHL) | ||
| 3 | Colin Fitzgerald (C) | Peterborough Petes | Peterborough, Ontario | Peterborough Petes U16 (OMHA-ETA) | ||
| 4 | Braidy Wassilyn (C) | Niagara IceDogs | Campbellville, Ontario | Markham Majors U16 (GTHL) | ||
| 5 | Parker Vaughan (RW) | Barrie Colts | St. Thomas, Ontario | Elgin-Middlesex Canucks U16 (MHAO-ALI) | ||
| 6 | Cole Zurawski (RW) | Flint Firebirds | Etobicoke, Ontario | Mississauga Rebels U16 (GTHL) | ||
| 7 | Pierce Mbuyi (LW) | Owen Sound Attack | Mississauga, Ontario | Toronto Marlboros U16 (GTHL) | ||
| 8 | Caleb Malhotra (C) | Kingston Frontenacs | Toronto, Ontario | Vaughan Kings U16 (GTHL) | ||
| 9 | Alex McLean (C) | Guelph Storm | Perth, Ontario | Barrie Jr. Colts U16 (OMHA-ETA) | ||
| 10 | Tyler Challenger (LW) | Erie Otters | Mississauga, Ontario | North York Rangers U16 (GTHL) | ||
| 11 | Nathan Amidovski (C) | Ottawa 67's | Alliston, Ontario | Barrie Jr. Colts U16 (OMHA-ETA) | ||
| 12 | Luca Blonda (RD) | Sudbury Wolves | Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario | Pittsburgh Penguins Elite 15's (NPHL-15) | ||
| 13 | Adam Valentini (C) | Mississauga Steelheads | Toronto, Ontario | Toronto Marlboros U16 (GTHL) | ||
| 14 | Aiden O'Donnell (C) | Brantford Bulldogs | Cole Harbour, Nova Scotia | Steele Subaru U18 (NSU18MHL) | ||
| 15 | Evan Headrick (C) | Kitchener Rangers | Garden River, Ontario | Oakville Rangers U16 (OMHA-SCTA) | ||
| 16 | Ryder Carey (C) | North Bay Battalion | Hamilton, Ontario | Oakville Rangers U16 (OMHA-SCTA) | ||
| 17 | Brady Smith (RW) | Oshawa Generals | Mississauga, Ontario | North York Rangers U16 (GTHL) | ||
| 18 | Ryder Cali (C) | Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds | Penetanguishene, Ontario | Markham Majors U16 (GTHL) | ||
| 19 | Dimian Zhilkin (RW) | Saginaw Spirit | Oakville, Ontario | Toronto Jr. Canadiens U16 (GTHL) | ||
| 20 | Logan Hawery (C) | London Knights | Barrie, Ontario | Barrie Jr. Colts U16 (OMHA-ETA) | ||
| 21 | Kohyn Eshkawkogan (RD) | Ottawa 67's | Manitoulin Island, Ontario | North York Rangers U16 (GTHL) |
On July 3, 2024, the Canadian Hockey League conducted the 2024 CHL Import Draft, in which teams in all three CHL leagues participate in. The Windsor Spitfires held the first pick in the draft by a team in the OHL. The Spitfires selected Ilya Protas from Belarus with the OHL's first selection in the draft.
Below are the players who were selected in the first round by Ontario Hockey League teams in the 2024 CHL Import Draft.[37]
On June 28–29, 2024, the National Hockey League conducted the 2024 NHL Entry Draft at the Sphere in Las Vegas, Nevada. Beckett Sennecke of the Oshawa Generals was the highest player from the OHL to be selected, as he was taken with the 3rd overall pick by the Anaheim Ducks. A total of 39 OHL players were selected in the draft.[38]
Below are the players selected from OHL teams at the NHL Entry Draft.[39]
Belarus
Czech Republic
Sweden
Finland
Germany
Slovakia