Afternoon Notes: Misa, DiVincentiis, Team Canada
San Jose Sharks head coach Ryan Warsofsky elaborated on why top prospect Michael Misa missed the start of Team Canada’s World Junior Championship training camp. Misa is not too injured to miss any World Juniors time, but was still considered recovering day-to-day, per Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now. That was enough for San Jose to keep Misa with the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda for a couple more days, and a couple more practices.
Misa taking in a tad more pro coaching before headed to camp will be no bad news for Team Canada. They will be bringing in a potential tournament MVP in Misa, who scored an incredible 62 goals and 134 points in 65 OHL games last season. That earned Misa the second-overall selection in the 2025 draft, behind New York Islanders defenseman Matthew Schaefer, who will not head to World Juniors camp. Misa will form a formidable top-line with Gavin McKenna and Porter Martone and look to bring Canada their first World Junior Gold since 2018.
Other notes from around the league:
- The Winnipeg Jets have reassigned depth goaltender Domenic DiVincentiis in the wake of Connor Hellebuyck‘s return. DiVincentiis served as backup for a few days after Thomas Milic – who earned three starts in Hellebuyck’s absence – was reassigned earlier in the month. DiVincentiis did not make his NHL debut. He has six wins and a .915 save percentage in 13 AHL games this season, and will battle with Milic for the Manitoba Moose’s starting role.
- Hockey Canada will announce their men’s Olympic roster on New Year’s Eve per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. Team Canada has already locked six players into the lineup – Sidney Crosby, Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, Connor McDavid, Brayden Point, and Sam Reinhart. They also hosted an orientation camp that invited 42 players to prep for Olympic selection. The camp roster only featured three goalies – Jordan Binnington, Adin Hill, and Sam Montembeault. All three goalies have struggled in the season since, which could make for some interesting decisions come the last day of the year. With Crosby, McDavid, MacKinnon, and Makar getting ready for their first Winter Olympics, Canada will be the early favorite for 2026 Gold.
Jets Recall Domenic DiVincentiis, Reassign Thomas Milic
The Winnipeg Jets have swapped backup goaltenders. Winnipeg announced they have recalled Domenic DiVincentiis and reassigned Thomas Milic to the AHL’s Manitoba Moose.
DiVincentiis, 21, has spent the last two years playing with AHL Manitoba. The Bolton, ON native was selected with the 207th overall pick of the 2022 NHL Draft by the Jets, and spent the two years following his draft with the OHL’s North Bay Battalion.
He was relatively successful with the Battalion, particularly in the 2022-23 season. Overall, DiVincentiis finished his OHL career with a 77-26-7 record with a .907 SV% in 117 games. In Manitoba, though it’s largely been in a backup role, he’s managed a 19-19-3 record in 41 games with a .909 SV%.
Meanwhile, Milic heads back to the Moose after debuting in the NHL. Unfortunately, his debut did little to inspire confidence. He finished with one loss in three games with a .871 SV% and 3.46 GAA. In his most recent games against the Buffalo Sabres and Edmonton Oilers, Milic allowed four goals on 28 shots.
Regardless, whether it be DiVincentiis or Milic, the Jets are simply attempting to hold down the fort until Connor Hellebuyck returns from injury. Since the reigning MVP exited the lineup in mid-November, Winnipeg has managed a 3-6-1 record while allowing 35 goals on 297 shots (.882 SV%).
Winnipeg Jets Sign Domenic DiVincentiis
The Winnipeg Jets have signed prospect goaltender Domenic DiVincentiis to a three-year entry-level contract with an $858k AAV, per a team announcement.
DiVincentiis, 19, was a seventh-round pick of the Jets at the 2022 draft who has earned this entry-level deal on the back of an exceptional breakout 2022-23 campaign with the OHL’s North Bay Battalion. DiVincentiis went 36-9-2 with North Bay, posting a .919 save percentage and 2.33 goals-against-average. He also led North Bay to the OHL’s Conference Finals, posting a .926 save percentage in 20 postseason games.
His save percentage was the highest among all OHL netminders with at least 40 games played, and he led the OHL in both wins and shutouts. That highly successful campaign earned DiVincentiis a multitude of honors, including the OHL’s Goalie of the Year award, as well as a spot on the CHL’s Second All-Star Team.
As he won’t turn 20 until next March, DiVincentiis is slated for another season in the OHL with North Bay. With Connor Hellebuyck on an expiring contract, the Jets have made investments into the goalie position looking towards the future.
After drafting 2023 World Juniors Gold Medalist Thomas Milic last week, they’ve made another move: signing their most promising goalie prospect to his entry-level deal and rewarding him for an exceptional OHL campaign.