Mason Chitaroni has Plan B
It is the London Knights of the Ontario Hockey League that Mason Chitaroni wants to play for this season.
That is because Chitaroni is a plum prospect of the Knights, who took the 5-foot-10, 150-pound defender in the fifth round, 99th overall, at this year’s OHL priority selections draft from the Soo Jr. Greyhounds of the Great North Midget Hockey League.
But if Chitaroni doesn’t make the Knights as a 16-year old, he has a Plan B in place with the Blind River Beavers of the Northern Ontario Jr. Hockey League.
…[read more]First T.J. Aceti award winner
Cash Rowswell has been selected as the first ever winner of the T.J. Aceti Goalie Award.
Young Rowswell was presented with the award today at an emotional, albeit informal backyard gathering.
A goalie who competed at the pee wee major AA level within the Sault Major Hockey Association during the 2019-2020 season, the 13-year old Rowswell was the unanimous choice by a four person committee as the winner of the T.J. Aceti Goalie Award from a group of eight other local puck stoppers.
…[read more]New commander in Cochrane
Memorial Cup champion and National Hockey League draft pick Tom Nickolau is taking the reins of the Cochrane Crunch of the Northern Ontario Jr. Hockey League.
The 54-year old Nickolau has purchased the Cochrane franchise from previous owners Ryan Leonard and Katherine Leonard.
Nickolau, who was a member of the 1986 Ontario Hockey League and Memorial Cup champion Guelph Platers, also holds the distinction of being an NHL draft pick of the Detroit Red Wings.
…[read more]Kingston on the cusp
An off season of change in leadership relative to the rebuilding of the Kingston Frontenacs has taken on a major contractor to do two jobs.
The Ontario Hockey League team has given coach Paul McFarland added responsibility as its new general manager. As the new GM, McFarland replaces Darren Keily, who was fired last month.
Just over two months before surprisingly releasing Keily, who had been with the organization for 12 years, the Frontenacs fired head coach Kurtis Foster after two seasons on the job to make way for the return of McFarland, who had been an assistant in the National Hockey League the past three years. Before leaving for the NHL, McFarland had three straight winning seasons as the bench boss in Kingston.
…[read more]New gig for John Parco
A successful three season run at the helm of the Soo Thunderbirds of the Northern Ontario Jr. Hockey League has turned into a new challenge for high end coach John Parco.
The soon to be 49 year old Sault Ste. Marie product has signed a two-year contract with the Italian Ice Hockey Federation.
In his new role, Parco will be the director of hockey development for the Italian Federation.
…[read more]Colts could be Barrie good
Horse power is poised to make some noise in and around Barrie.
And a couple of northern Ontario boys represent a faction of high end skaters who figure to make the Barrie Colts an Eastern Conference contender come the 2020-2021 Ontario Hockey League season.
Left winger Nick Porco, a Sault Ste. Marie product, and pride of Powassan defenseman Connor Punnett are two players who went to Barrie in separate exchanges with the Saginaw Spirit during the 2019-2020 season.
…[read more]Fronts zero in on new GM
Kingston Frontenacs figure to have a new general manager in place towards the end of August.
Frontenacs president Doug Springer told the Kingston Whig Standard that the Ontario Hockey League team has narrowed down a list of candidates to take over from Darren Keily as GM.
Springer said he hopes to have a new GM in place within three weeks.
Keily was surprisingly fired by Springer earlier this month after having helped to guide the Frontenacs through two rebuilding seasons.
…[read more]OHL return to play reaction
It spells cautious optimism and hope, albeit with some lingering uncertainty.
It is a date that players, coaches, fans — and anyone with any sort of association to the Ontario Hockey League — can focus on and look forward to.
And while there is still so much to do as the COVID-19 pandemic remains in our midst, the recent announcement by the OHL that it plans to begin the 2020-2021 regular season on December 1 has at least partially pulled the major junior league from the state of relative dormancy it has been in since the 2019-2020 season was shut down in mid March of this year.
For players like 19-year old forward Nick Porco, a Sault Ste. Marie native and member of the OHL’s Barrie Colts, it is something to work towards.
…[read more]OHL has its D-day plan
A conditional plan is in place.
That is, Ontario Hockey League commissioner David Branch has confirmed a return to play for all 20 teams.
Planned start date is December 1, 2020, subject to ensuring that the players, fans, staff and community are able to play and attend games safely, said Branch.
Training camps for all 20 teams are expected to begin around the middle of November.
…[read more]Imports commit to Kingston
This adds up as a commitment coup for the Kingston Frontenacs.
That is, forwards Martin Chromiak and Vitali Pinchuk have both committed to return to Kingston for the upcoming Ontario Hockey League season.
Both players were selected by Kingston during the 2019 Canadian Hockey League import draft and are coming off their rookie season with the Frontenacs.
After back-to-back losing seasons in which it won just 33 of 130 regular season games, Kingston is positioned to be an Eastern Conference contender in 2020-2021.
…[read more]A good coach is a good coach
Junior hockey and the way it operates and carries on can be cyclical, trendy and copycat.
And while some may say or feel that junior hockey is a young man’s game when it comes to the art of coaching, that is simply not the case.
For example, as the Northern Ontario Jr. Hockey League and Ontario Hockey League both boast exceptional coaches who are in their 30s and 40s, so too do they feature high end bench bosses who are in their 50s and 60s.
In other words, when it comes to the NOJHL and OHL as two junior hockey leagues of illustration, a good coach is a good coach, regardless of age.
…[read more]Return to play proposals
Junior hockey leagues throughout Ontario have been working on various proposals relative to a return to play at some point in the 2020-2021 season.
Under the Canadian Jr. Hockey League umbrella there are four junior A leagues that are based in Ontario. They are the Northern Ontario Jr. Hockey League, the Central Canada Hockey League, the Ontario Jr. Hockey League and the Superior International Jr. Hockey League.
The province is also home to the Ontario Hockey League, which is part of the major junior level, Canadian Hockey League.
…[read more]Kerfuffle in Kingston
This one ranks as a stunner.
After 12 years with the Kingston Frontenacs — first as assistant coach, then as assistant general manager, then as director of hockey operations, and most recently as general manager — Darren Keily was unceremoniously let go by the Ontario Hockey League team earlier this week.
The surprise announcement by Kingston owner Doug Springer was shocking for a number of reasons including the fact that Keily had just guided the Frontenacs through two trying seasons of rebuild and had them poised to become an Eastern Conference threat come the 2020-2021 season.
…[read more]Cross border hockey issues
Let us hope and pray that junior hockey will be played at some point during the 2020-2021 season. However, for example, what happens if the junior hockey season gets the go ahead to begin play but the Canada-United States border remains indefinitely closed?
…[read more]Spitfires swoop a defender
Windsor Spitfires have added another defenseman to their blue line brigade.
The Spitfires have acquired 2002 birth year defender Michael Renwick from the Hamilton Bulldogs for a second round pick at the 2022 Ontario Hockey League priority selections draft.
Of note, Renwick is a grandson of former Spitfires assistant coach Dave Prpich.
…[read more]Frontenacs take a pass
Kingston Frontenacs general manager Darren Keily is more than happy with the two import forwards that the Ontario Hockey League team has on its roster.
Thus, the Frontenacs — who are poised to become a very competitive OHL team after two seasons of major rebuild — have opted to pass on taking part in today’s Canadian Hockey League import draft.
Instead, the Frontenacs will retain their two players from the 2019 CHL import draft — forwards Martin Chromiak and Vitali Pinchuk.
…[read more]Junior hockey’s new normal
In one way at least, the Northern Ontario Jr. Hockey League has a potential advantage over the Ontario Hockey League.
That is, should attendance restrictions be mandated once junior hockey is cleared for game activity, the NOJHL would be in a more enviable position than the OHL.
Attendance is the major source of revenue for the OHL. And while NOJHL teams do rely on attendance as a means of survival, they are also enhanced financially as a ‘pay to play’ league.
As well, NOJHL teams are in a favourable geographical region relative to the COVID-19 pandemic.
…[read more]OHL trade reprise
Trade season in the Ontario Hockey League opened on June 1.
And while there has not been a flurry of activity, several seasoned skaters have been swapped from one OHL team to another.
North Bay Battalion has been involved in two significant transactions while frequent trade partners, Flint Firebirds and Guelph Storm, made yet another exchange with each other. In the space of 12 months — from last off season to this one — Flint and Guelph have made no less than five trades with each other.
Meanwhile, Saginaw Spirit pulled off what could be a helluva heist in getting a former first round pick from North Bay for a bargain price.
…[read more]Flint, Guelph make a deal
Flint Firebirds have bolstered their blue line brigade via Ontario Hockey League trade with the Guelph Storm.
Highly-touted defenseman Zack Terry is on the move from Guelph to Flint for a pair of 2023 draft picks.
In confirming the trade, Firebirds general manager Barclay Branch referred to Terry as “both an impressive player and person.”
…[read more]Kingston trio makes music
A troika of forwards stands tall in the talent pool that is poised to help elevate the Kingston Frontenacs into future Ontario Hockey League contention.
Center Shane Wright and wingers Zayde Wisdom and Martin Chromiak are first line pieces of the puzzle that have Kingston ticketed for emergence within the Eastern Conference come the next OHL season.
All three were major points producers with the Frontenacs during the 2019-2020 season — and they all have time on their side in the form of remaining OHL eligibility.
…[read more]Hounds have 50-50 shot
Soo Greyhounds have a better chance of being in the 2021 Memorial Cup tournament than they do of winning next spring’s Ontario Hockey League championship. To be sure, the Greyhounds have to beat out only one team — the Oshawa Generals — to gain automatic entry into the 2021 national championship event.
…[read more]Schlueting to Saginaw
Saginaw Spirit general manager Dave Drinkill has started the Ontario Hockey League trade season with a bargain pickup.
Drinkill has obtained 2002 birth year defenseman Pacey Schlueting from the North Bay Battalion for a fourth round draft pick in 2024 and a 12th round pick in 2023.
The 6-foot-1, 185-pound Schlueting was a first round pick of the Battalion, ninth overall, at the 2018 OHL priority selections draft from his hometown North Bay Trappers of the Great North Midget Hockey League.
…[read more]Dressed for the Knights
He has the hat. He has the t-shirt.
Next, it is the jersey of the London Knights that Mason Chitaroni wants to wear.
That’s because Chitaroni is a plum prospect of the Knights, who took the 5-foot-10, 150-pound defender in the fifth round, 99th overall, at this year’s Ontario Hockey League priority selections draft from the Soo Jr. Greyhounds of the Great North Midget Hockey League.
“I want to show London that they made the right choice in drafting me,” the 15-year old youngster relayed to Hockey News North.
…[read more]Top 12 OHL rookies are …
Ontario Hockey League has confirmed its first and second team all-rookie selections from the 2019-2020 season. General managers from the 20 OHL teams conducted the voting process.
…[read more]Two teams on the upswing
When a team has been at the bottom of the standings, it figures that there is no place to go but up.
Two years ago, the 2018-2019 season, it was the Kingston Frontenacs who finished in last place in the 20-team Ontario Hockey League. And this past season, the 2019-2020 campaign, it was the North Bay Battalion which had the dubious distinction of having the worst record in the OHL.
…[read more]Lambert to lead T-Birds
This is a multiple coaching hire of well known local hockey people.
Soo Thunderbirds of the Northern Ontario Jr. Hockey League will have a new look coaching staff for the 2020-2021 season, Hockey News North has confirmed. And leading the way as the new bench boss of the T-Birds is a man who played the game at its highest level.
…[read more]Guarding the Greyhound net
A pressing question relative to the Soo Greyhounds ahead of the 2020-2021 Ontario Hockey League season correlates with the most paramount position of all.
Who will be the goalies for a Greyhound team that sees itself as a contender to the extent that it is bidding to play host to the 2021 Memorial Cup tournament and be a participant?
…[read more]Ryan Dugas has the numbers
On a Kingston Frontenacs team that posted the worst overall record in the Ontario Hockey League over the past two seasons, it was their youngest goalie who had the best numbers of any puck stopper. By far.
…[read more]Famine of the Frontenacs
General manager Darren Keily has a distant goal of bringing a long-awaited Ontario Hockey League championship to Kingston. So too does head coach Paul McFarland. But that may be much easier said than done considering the Kingston Frontenacs have never — ever — won an OHL title.
…[read more]Top dog in the Hound pound
Soo Greyhounds have confirmed the signing of their first round pick from the 2020 Ontario Hockey League priority selections draft.
…[read more]More of the future in Flint
Fresh from their finest season in a franchise history that began in 2015, Flint Firebirds have added fuel to the future with the signing of two more players from the 2020 Ontario Hockey League priority selections draft.
…[read more]OHL scouts put in the time
It can be a time consuming job as a nightly gig that also includes morning and afternoon assignments on the weekend. But passion and perseverance lies within the pores of the average Ontario Hockey League scout.
…[read more]Chitaroni has a flip side
It is destination unknown for Mason Chitaroni relative to the 2020-2021 hockey season. That is, the 15-year old defenseman with the world-class speed — he does not turn 16 until October 2 — could be playing in the Ontario Hockey League, the Northern Ontario Jr. Hockey League, or for any one of four teams in the Greater Ontario Jr. Hockey League when the 2020-2021 campaign gets going.
…[read more]Porco in the Nick of time
As dictated by the COVID-19 crisis, time is standing still in the hockey world. Still, as for time away from the hockey rink, Sault Ste. Marie product Nick Porco is putting it to good use.
…[read more]Coaching rerun in Kingston
It took the Kingston Frontenacs less than two weeks to fill their vacant head coach position. And it will be a familiar face manning the bench in Kingston when the next Ontario Hockey League season begins.
…[read more]Sting operation nets another
Sarnia Sting of the Ontario Hockey League has snagged a second American skater away from the Michigan State Spartans of the Division 1, National Collegiate Athletic Association.
…[read more]Northern lights of the OHL
It has been said that hockey players from northern Ontario are, on average, overlooked when compared to those from the Greater Toronto Area and the southwestern and eastern parts of the province.
…[read more]Trying for an OHL tryout
Landon Deforge is not what one would call a big kid, standing in at 5-foot-8 and tipping the scales at 155 pounds. Nonetheless, the skilled, smart, speedy skater played a big role for the Timmins Majors of the Great North Midget Hockey League during the 2019-2020 season.
…[read more]Mason has Knight vision
He is working out on his own, in the family basement and in the garage. He jogs alone through his neighbourhood — and thinks of the season ahead. A 2020 Ontario Hockey League priority selections draft pick of the London Knights, Mason Chitaroni has a vision of where he wants to be when training camp opens.
…[read more]Seca to manage the Sting
An educator with a long-time link to the Ontario Hockey League, Dylan Seca has been promoted to general manager of the Sarnia Sting.
…[read more]Frontenacs fire Foster
Kingston Frontenacs general manager Darren Keily has made head coach Kurtis Foster the fall guy for the failures of the Ontario Hockey League team over the past two seasons.
…[read more]Firebirds click top pick
Flint Firebirds of the Ontario Hockey League have confirmed the commitment of 2020 first round draft pick Gavin Hayes.
…[read more]Sarnia takes it to the Max
The third overall pick at the 2020 Ontario Hockey League priority selections draft has opted for the Sarnia Sting over the Michigan State Spartans of the Division 1, National Collegiate Athletic Association.
…[read more]Toms training for next term
Plum, home grown prospect Connor Toms is running the local hub trails and working out in the basement gym of his family’s Sault Ste. Marie home as he preps for the next hockey season.
…[read more]Good times, good Knights
Sustained success of 18 successive winning seasons under the current ownership and operation of brothers Dale Hunter and Mark Hunter is the latest chapter of a good London Knights history.
…[read more]Jack Matier, social distancing
Social distancing and bans on group activity relative to the coronavirus pandemic has had an obvious effect on hockey players and teams.
…[read more]Rolling dice on NCAA recruits
Teams in the Ontario Hockey League have not been shy to use early to mid round draft picks on players who have already made verbal commitments to Division 1, National Collegiate Athletic Association schools.
…[read more]New gig for Michael Kantor
Hard-driven Michael Kantor, who played in more than 200 Ontario Hockey League games for Saginaw Spirit, Soo Greyhounds and Sudbury Wolves despite never being drafted, is turning to the business side of the game.
…[read more]Nickel Caps ‘D’ gets OHL nod
Defenseman Teegan Dumont from the Sudbury Nickel Capital Wolves of the Great North Midget Hockey League has been invited to the Ontario Hockey League training camp of the London Knights, Hockey News North has confirmed.
…[read more]