Cody Hodgson will make his 2009-10 Ontario Hockey League debut on Thursday night.
Hodgson, the captain of the Brampton Battalion and a 2008 first-round pick of the Vancouver Canucks, has not played this season because of a bulging disc in his back. He will be in the lineup at the Powerade Centre when the Battalion plays host to the Erie Otters.
The disc problem led to nerve troubles for Hodgson, but he was able to recover without having to undergo surgery.
Hodgson arguably was Canada’s best player at the 2009 world junior championship in Ottawa last winter, helping Canada win gold. Most junior hockey observers had him pencilled in as Canada’s captain at the 2010 world junior — had Hodgson not been injured or made the Canucks roster. Instead, Patrice Cormier was captain and Canada lost in the gold-medal game to the U.S.
Hodgson was the Canadian Hockey League player of the year for 2008-09 after he led the Battalion to its first OHL final, where it lost to the Windsor Spitfires.
With a record of 17-21-7-5, the Battalion holds down the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. With 18 games remaining in the regular season, Brampton has 46 points, six more than the Erie Otters, who are in ninth with 40.
terry.koshan@sunmedia.ca
