World Junior rosters begin to take shape (we're happy for a kid in Ottawa but still concerned about a slight in Sarnia), the Battalion get deeper in the East while we wait for someone in the West to blink, and a couple of D highlight our Prospects of the Week.

OHL championships and Memorial Cups are so elusive because junior hockey runs in cycles. Over the course of a typical 4-5 OHL career, you'd be lucky to play for a championship once. So, you'd better make the most of that opportunity to capture that coveted title. But things were different for Mark Matier. He played three years with the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds, during which he won two OHL championships and a Memorial Cup under the guidance of Ted Nolan. The memories of those championship runs -- and beating the player who snubbed the Soo, Eric Lindros, on the way to winning one of those OHL titles -- come flooding back in this episode. Sit back and enjoy Matier's recollections of one of the most dominant runs any OHL team has ever boasted.

Remembering Ray, a gruesome injury, a goalie fight (!), running up scores, racking up points, dealing Hunter Haight, and our Prospects of the Week.

He led the 1999 Memorial Cup in scoring and captured the junior hockey championship with that Ottawa 67's team. He carried his "rookie duties" as a badge of honour at every stage of his hockey career. But while recovering after a series of injuries, reality set in for Justin Davis. Was everything he went through actually "normal?" And if it was, why was that considered normal within the culture of the game? The soul-searching led to a full-blown memoir called 'Conflicted Scars: An Average Player's Journey to the NHL.' There's no hockey-bashing in the book, or in this episode. Just an honest -- and often funny -- assessment of the game that challenges us to reconsider our perceptions and give serious thought to changes that should happen.

A premier franchise is performing below expectations, East beasts get beat this weekend, Saginaw is not only hot but the city wants to host the Memorial Cup, the Shane Wright surge, and our Prospects of the Week. Oh, and Cooperalls. Because, Cooperalls.

A storied pro hockey career means, years later, you have a ton of stories to tell. And after crossing paths with Sakic, Sundin, Selanne, and Arbour, you can bet the stories have some star power. But Iain Fraser's story is really more like a lifetime of friendships forged with both teammates and opponents. These friendships continue to this day and just ask anyone about "Fraz" (I asked several people) and watch their face light up. "Smart player who played both ends of the ice so well" and "one of the toughest guys I ever played with, on and off the ice" were just a couple of the responses. Through all the stops over all the years, and after all the encounters with all the coaches, one of the biggest things OHL fans will remember is that Fraz captained the winning team during The Greatest Memorial Cup Ever.

Come for the Ryan Callahan speech, stay for the analysis of mouth guard misconducts, big names being moved, fired coaches, and our Prospects of the Week. Lots to chew on in this episode! Just make sure it's not your mouth guard...

His OHL career started with an historically bad team. But even that team, which set a record for single-season futility, taught him the value of a tight-knit group. He'd go on to win an OHL championship, play for some influential coaches, and collect more than a few stories along the way. This episode also features our first-ever cameo, as a former teammate drops in on Adam Colagiacomo to surprise him. "Colly" is still working in the game today, coaching kids and giving them life lessons from his years in junior and in pro. Those lessons shine through as you listen to this top-notch episode.

A lot to discuss this week, including the Brennan Othmann trade, knowing the environment so you know the player, the Bulldogs getting booted from their home rink, NHL teams that got steals in June, our Prospects of the Week...and that time we almost hit a moose near North Bay. It's just another week in the life of the OHL!

The first ever selection made by the expansion Belleville Bulls, Dan Quinn would go on to become a 1st rounder to the NHL. He played for Larry Mavety in Belleville but also Wayne Gretzky...who he would later play *against* in the legendary Battles of Alberta in the 1980s. A close friend of Steve Yzerman, Quinn would also play with Mario Lemieux. From draft interviews at a McDonald's just off the highway to running sandy horse tracks as part of his training, Dan Quinn brings it all on this week's episode. And we haven't even mentioned golf yet...