TORONTO – The second-half of the 2022-23 Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL) campaign is nicely underway and many of its member clubs are receiving solid offensive contributions from the back-end.
Among that group we find that six CJHL defencemen have racked up 40, or more, points so far this season.
Pacing the pack is Cobras de Terrebonne (LHJAAAQ) blueliner Romain Rodzinski.
The 20-year-old rearguard has supplied 54 points, in just 26 outings, on 13 tallies and a CJHL-high 41 assists among D-men.
That leaves him fourth in overall LHJAAAQ numbers and is tops in his league with a solid plus-45 rating.
Then there is Sam Court of the Brooks Bandits (AJHL). Court, who turns 19 on Saturday, and is committed to attend the University of New Hampshire (Hockey East) on NCAA Division I scholarship, has notched nine markers and helped set-up 40 others to date.
Rounding out the Top 3 is Toronto Jr. Canadiens (OJHL) defenceman Cooper Bertrand.
He has points in eight straight and has totalled 47 in all during the season on 16 goals and 31 helpers.
Listed below are the current CJHL leaders in points among defencemen, as well as the front-runners in the nine respective leagues:
| CJHL Scoring Leaders: Defencemen (As of Jan. 5, 2023) | ||||||
| PLAYER | TEAM | YR | GP | G | A | PTS |
| Romain Rodzinski | Cobras de Terrbonne (LHJAAAQ) | 02 | 26 | 13 | 41 | 54 |
| Sam Court | Brooks Bandits (AJHL) | 04 | 34 | 9 | 40 | 49 |
| Cooper Bertrand | Toronto Jr. Canadiens (OJHL) | 02 | 36 | 16 | 31 | 47 |
| Julien Jacob | Wellington Dukes (OJHL) | 02 | 35 | 7 | 35 | 42 |
| Ed McNeil | Summerside Western Capitals (MHL) | 02 | 26 | 10 | 31 | 41 |
| Kenyon Nyman | Timmins Rock (NOJHL) | 02 | 35 | 10 | 30 | 40 |
| Auston D’Orazio | Trenton Golden Hawks (OJHL) | 02 | 37 | 9 | 30 | 39 |
| Isaac Sooklal | Haliburton County Huskies (OJHL) | 02 | 34 | 5 | 34 | 39 |
| Zach Carson | Wisconsin Lumberjacks (SIJHL) | 02 | 27 | 16 | 22 | 38 |
| Hayden Lacquette | Portage Terriers (MJHL) | 03 | 31 | 12 | 25 | 37 |
| Caleb McDonald | Whitecourt Wolverines (AJHL) | 02 | 36 | 4 | 33 | 37 |
| CJHL League-by-League Scoring Leaders: Defence | ||||||
| AJHL | ||||||
| PLAYER | TEAM | YR | GP | G | A | PTS |
| Sam Court | Brooks Bandits | 04 | 34 | 9 | 40 | 49 |
| Caleb McDonald | Whitecourt Wolverines | 02 | 36 | 4 | 33 | 37 |
| Tanner Komzak | Whitecourt Wolverines | 02 | 36 | 9 | 37 | 36 |
| Tanner Willack | Blackfalds Bulldogs | 03 | 33 | 5 | 28 | 33 |
| Breck McKinley | Spruce Grove Saints | 03 | 33 | 8 | 24 | 32 |
| Kade Turner | Okotoks Oilers | 03 | 37 | 3 | 29 | 32 |
| SJHL | ||||||
| PLAYER | TEAM | YR | GP | G | A | PTS |
| Aleksa Babic | Estevan Bruins | 02 | 36 | 3 | 25 | 28 |
| Tynan Ewart | Battlefords North Stars | 02 | 31 | 5 | 22 | 27 |
| Zander Stewart | Nipawin Hawks | 03 | 32 | 4 | 23 | 27 |
| Reece Richmond | Flin Flon Bombers | 02 | 30 | 1 | 25 | 26 |
| Jarod Sych | Notre Dame Hounds | 03 | 29 | 10 | 15 | 25 |
| MJHL | ||||||
| PLAYER | TEAM | YR | GP | G | A | PTS |
| Hayden Lacquette | Portage Terriers | 03 | 31 | 12 | 25 | 37 |
| Trent Sambrook | Winkler Flyers | 02 | 36 | 6 | 29 | 35 |
| Brandon McCartney | Portage Terriers | 02 | 30 | 3 | 26 | 29 |
| Evan Bortis | Niverville Nighthawks | 02 | 33 | 6 | 20 | 26 |
| Kian Calder | Portage Terriers | 02 | 30 | 8 | 17 | 24 |
| Adam Rajsigl | Swan Valley Stampeders | 02 | 30 | 6 | 19 | 25 |
| SIJHL | ||||||
| PLAYER | TEAM | YR | GP | G | A | PTS |
| Zach Carson | Wisconsin Lumberjacks | 02 | 27 | 16 | 22 | 38 |
| Jack Cook | Kam River Fighting Walleye | 03 | 20 | 7 | 15 | 22 |
| Dylan Jouppi | Wisconsin Lumberjacks | 02 | 25 | 1 | 21 | 22 |
| Dayvan Bull | Red Lake Miners | 03 | 26 | 4 | 15 | 19 |
| Nolan Palmer | Sioux Lookout Bombers | 03 | 25 | 5 | 11 | 16 |
| NOJHL | ||||||
| PLAYER | TEAM | YR | GP | G | A | PTS |
| Kenyon Nyman | Timmins Rock | 02 | 35 | 10 | 30 | 40 |
| Kyloe Ellis | Greater Sudbury Cubs | 04 | 34 | 7 | 27 | 34 |
| Alex Little | Powassan Voodoos | 03 | 29 | 8 | 21 | 29 |
| Nicholas Toffoli | Greater Sudbury Cubs | 02 | 33 | 7 | 17 | 24 |
| Adam Shillinglaw | Hearst Lumberjacks | 04 | 35 | 2 | 22 | 24 |
| OJHL | ||||||
| PLAYER | TEAM | YR | GP | G | A | PTS |
| Cooper Bertrand | Toronto Jr. Canadiens | 02 | 36 | 16 | 31 | 47 |
| Julien Jacob | Wellington Dukes | 02 | 35 | 7 | 35 | 42 |
| Auston D’Orazio | Trenton Golden Hawks | 02 | 37 | 9 | 30 | 39 |
| Isaac Sooklal | Haliburton County Huskies | 02 | 34 | 5 | 34 | 39 |
| Crossley Stewart | Burlington Cougars | 02 | 30 | 6 | 28 | 34 |
| CCHL | ||||||
| PLAYER | TEAM | YR | GP | G | A | PTS |
| Brandon Walker | Carleton Place Canadians | 02 | 26 | 9 | 16 | 25 |
| Wil Murphy | Ottawa Jr. Senators | 03 | 32 | 6 | 19 | 25 |
| Nicholas Paone | Navan Grads | 03 | 30 | 8 | 16 | 24 |
| Joseph Ianniello | Navan Grads | 04 | 26 | 5 | 17 | 22 |
| Hunter Brown | Smiths Falls Bears | 03 | 30 | 4 | 18 | 22 |
| LHJAAAQ | ||||||
| PLAYER | TEAM | YR | GP | G | A | PTS |
| Romain Rodzinski | Cobras de Terrbonne | 02 | 26 | 13 | 41 | 54 |
| Vincent Trudel | Titan de Princeville | 03 | 26 | 14 | 22 | 36 |
| Maxime Lacasse | Panthères de Saint-Jérôme | 02 | 31 | 7 | 27 | 34 |
| Zachary Racicot | Collège Français de Longueuil | 02 | 29 | 8 | 25 | 33 |
| Adam Emery | Inouk de Granby | 03 | 26 | 7 | 25 | 32 |
| MHL | ||||||
| PLAYER | TEAM | YR | GP | G | A | PTS |
| Ed McNeil | Summerside Western Capitals | 02 | 26 | 10 | 31 | 41 |
| Sam McKinney | Miramichi Timberwolves | 02 | 28 | 8 | 22 | 30 |
| Peter Stanger | Campbellton Tigers | 02 | 28 | 8 | 19 | 27 |
| Josh Steele | Truro Bearcats | 02 | 27 | 7 | 17 | 24 |
| Brendan Bays | Truro Bearcats | 02 | 27 | 6 | 18 | 24 |