OHL champs on the market
Ontario Hockey League teams in search of title glory could be in position to acquire players who have a championship background with the Hamilton Bulldogs.
The reigning OHL champions from Hamilton are currently a non-contender in the Eastern Conference and in a battle with the Barrie Colts and North Bay Battalion for a playoff spot.
The Bulldogs have a number of older, marketable standouts who could fetch a return of younger skaters and/or future draft picks ahead of the January 10 (January 9 for overage players) OHL trade deadline.
Hamilton general manager Steve Staios dealt away several high draft picks for veteran players last season and the moves resulted in an OHL championship for the Bulldogs.
With Hamilton in a rebuild, Staios may opt to recover the draft picks he traded away by moving notable, high-end veteran forwards such as Brandon Saigeon, Matthew Strome and Team Canada’s MacKenzie Entwistle.
Saigeon is an overage (1998 birth year) skater while Strome and Entwistle both have 1999 birth dates.
Saigeon has already scored 22 goals this season while Entwistle has 15 and Strome has 13.