VOORHEES, N.J. – Noah Powell had established himself as a mainstay on the Ohio State University hockey team but after one year decided that route might not be the fastest one to a career in the National Hockey League.
So he packed up his gear, headed for the Ontario Hockey League’s Oshawa program and the move has paid off for the Flyers’ fifth-round (148th overall) pick in the 2024 NHL Draft.
Powell posted nine goals and 22 points in 28 games with a plus-8 rating. So far, it looks like he’s made the right decision.
“For me, there’s a couple things,” he said after a workout session at the Flyers Training Center. “My family and I felt like it would be a great opportunity in the OHL. Just a better path in my development. Going to Oshawa, I felt would be a unique opportunity. Play in a new league, a different environment than what I was exposed to at OSU.”
Powell said Canadian junior hockey plays a style more similar to that of the NHL.
“Hopefully it translates to the pro level later on,” he said. “My physicality and grit.”
The 6-foot-1, 200-pound Illinois native said he noticed the difference in style of play almost right away.
“I got to play more games,” he said. “Kind of buy into a role that I aspire to play. I feel like that was very beneficial for me. Be around guys that are signed and know what it’s like to go to a training camp. Guys that are currently trying to make NHL rosters.”
Powell sees himself as a power forward someday.
“A nitty-gritty guy,” he said. “Drive to the net, big hits, scoring dirty goals. Just being a pest to play against.”
Maybe “pest” isn’t a strong enough word. At least not if you ask teammate Jack Nesbitt, who was leveled by a Powell check during a drill on Thursday.
But it was all good. Once Nesbitt got back upright, there were a few laughs to be shared.
“He (Nesbitt) is a great guy, I just met him a couple days ago,” Powell said. “We were all hanging out playing paintball together and stuff like that. Getting out there, being physical, competing against each other and then laughing about it, that’s a role I want to practice at and get better so that one day I can do that here.”
Although Powell has left Ohio State, he’s going to continue his college studies at Arizona State.
He said his family and his guidance counselor had input into that decision. His family had helped get him through some problems early in life.
According to a story on NHL.com, Powell began to show symptoms of bilateral hearing loss, a mild to moderate hearing impairment in both ears at age 4.
Eventually, his parents feared the hearing issues would prematurely end Powell’s blossoming hockey career, but instead they found the American Hearing Impaired Hockey Association (AHIHA), a Chicago-based program for hearing-impaired hockey players founded by Chicago Blackhawks Hall of Famer Stan Mikita.
“I feel like you’ve got to lean on the people closest to you, whether that be friends, family, coaches,” Powell said, “and I’ve been fortunate enough to have a very supportive family through this hockey process, and friends as well.”
If that sort of support continues, Powell just might find himself someday doing his dream job, namely patrolling NHL rinks.
Source: Berkshire mont