Hounds: Who will step up?

Soo Greyhounds, after a 2-1 exhibition record, will open the 2019-2020 Ontario Hockey League regular season on Friday against the Flint Firebirds with a fresh and clean slate. However, there are a few question marks.

One of them is, when will Czech goalie Nick Malik join the team and solidify that position?

And the other is more of a larger question — who will step up and pick up the offensive slack left by the graduation of forwards Morgan Frost and Keeghan Howdeshell and defenseman Mac Hollowell, et al.

Last season, rookie defenseman Ryan O’Rourke was a kid who gave fans what was expected and much more.

Well, watching him on Sunday, in a 6-1 exhibition loss to the Sudbury Wolves, O’Rourke not only elevated his game even more with solid body checking and sound decision making in his own end, he also showed his confidence in his offensive game by scoring the Hounds only goal.

In the exhibition loss to Sudbury, Soo bench boss John Dean chose to rest veterans Alex Johnston, Cole McKay, Holden Wale, overager Jaden Peca, and breakout candidate, in my opinion, Tye Kartye (who will also be helping to fill the offensive shoes ) and let some of the younger kids get some minutes and experience. 

Of note, even though it was exhibition, overage goalie Christian Propp had a very shaky game letting in at least three soft goals and it seemed he wasn’t confident with the puck and handling it around the net. We know Propp is better than that so let’s just chalk that up as nerves and focus.

As for my above mentioned comment “when”, in regards to Malik joining the team, I base that on, let’s say, circumstantial evidence.

We all know that Malik (currently loaned to HC Frydek-Mistek of the Czech 2 League) wants to play in the National Hockey League, we know that he is currently on a team in a men’s league where his ice time and development could be limited, and most importantly to me, we know that Greyhound general manager Kyle Raftis is very careful in his comments to the media.

Still, Raftis is on the record at least two times of saying he is “optimistic” in Malik reporting to the Hounds. This to me speaks volumes and I would wager that Jaromir Pytlik’s buddy will soon be getting his passport stamped at YYZ.

Of note, this kid is playing dynamite right now — he has started HC’s first two games and boasts a 2.34 goals against average with a win loss record of 1-1.

Moving on, even though the Hounds got bombed on the scoreboard by the Wolves, I liked the way they got their sticks in the lanes to intercept passes, I liked the way they battled on the boards, and I also liked what I saw from Brett Jacklin (who will be helping put up some big numbers this year) and Jacob LeGuerrier. 

In respect to LeGuerrier, we all know he is a leader on and off the ice but he is known mostly for his quiet stay at home defensive role. During the Sunday exhibition match, he played his strong role in front of the net but also rushed the puck deep into the Wolves end on more than a few occasions.

The normally stay at home defenceman ended up with five shots on net, so I think LeGuerrier is taking his game to another level and this will not only help the Hounds this season but it will also help him land a nice pro contract in the near future.

Getting back to Jacklin, it is quite obvious he has improved since last season. He is playing with more grit and using his size to his advantage. I saw him win many battles for the puck and position himself better than last year. I think this will be a break out year for him and the Hounds could use the help on the score board.

Even though he wasn’t dressed during the Wolves tilt, I feel local boy Cole McKay will pick up where he left off last year and put up some big numbers and help the Hounds overachieve once again. 

Now, if you attended Sunday’s game, there is no need for panic, as systems are still being tweaked, lines are not set, healthy talent was scratched, and last but not least, even though there is always a compete level, the boys know the difference between playing an exhibition game in front of 1,704 people and the real deal come Friday night.