NHL scout likes new Hound
A seasoned National Hockey League scout with ties to Sault Ste. Marie has good things to say about sizeable centre Colin Fitzgerald, who the Soo Greyhounds recently acquired in a major Ontario Hockey League trade with the Peterborough Petes.
“I like him,” relayed Mike Dawson, who scouts for the Seattle Kraken of the NHL, in reference to the 6 foot 3, 210 pound Fitzgerald, who has a 2008 birth date. “And I think that the fans in the Sault are going to like him.”
The 52 year old Dawson — who was born and raised in the Sault before going on to play three full seasons in the OHL as a rugged defenseman and then advanced to play Canadian university hockey and then on to the minor pro level — carries a reputation as a thorough, well respected NHL scout of many years. And when Dawson gives his take on a particular draft eligible OHL player, he does so after having closely watched the prospect play on multiple instances.
And in evaluation of Fitzgerald — who Dawson has seen all of last season and into this one — the Seattle scout relayed to Hockey News North that “he (Fitzgerald) has yet to produce offensively at the level that was expected of him so far this year.
“But,” Dawson stressed in further analysis of Fitzgerald, “he is big and he plays a physical, heavy game … he is a hard worker … he is a big body … and he is not easy or fun to play against.”
While the Greyhounds gave up six future draft picks for the highly regarded Fitzgerald — who was taken by Peterborough with the third overall pick in the first round of the 2024 OHL priority selections draft — only one of the traded picks originally belonged to the Soo.
Thus, in essence, Greyhounds general manager Kyle Raftis was dealing from draft capital depth and strength when he made the trade for Fitzgerald. And Raftis is of the firm belief that Fitzgerald — who had asked his hometown Petes for a trade — is an elite OHL player who brings so much to the table.
“The 2008 age group is very top heavy where it has a lot of elite players at the top and then there are some good players who are going to take some time. And I would put Colin in that elite group,” Raftis relayed to Hockey News North.
“When you have a centre who is six foot three and who can play hard and has a lot of skill, can skate, can compete … well, there are not a lot of guys out there like that,” Raftis said of Fitzgerald. “To know you could acquire him at this point and have a few years to work with him made a lot of sense for us. We have good depth to surround him with and I really think that (Fitzgerald) is going to thrive as a member of the Soo Greyhounds.”
Simply put, it was an easy decision for Raftis to make to go after and pursue Fitzgerald upon learning that the youngster was, shockingly, made available for trade by Peterborough.
“These types of centres do not grow on trees,” Raftis further stressed in describing the assets of Fitzgerald. “To find someone who can skate like he can, who can shoot like he can, who is that big, who has a great IQ and who plays incredibly hard… well, at this time, it was too tough to pass up the chance to get him.”
At the time of the trade, Fitzgerald had six goals, seven assists, 13 points in 24 games with the Petes. As a 16 year old rookie during the ’24-25 OHL regular season, Fitzgerald had 12 goals, 16 assists, 28 points in just 48 games on a lowly Peterborough team.
“He was their best forward most nights and played a lot of minutes for (Peterborough) as a 16 year old last season,” Raftis noted of Fitzgerald as a rookie with the Petes in ’24-25. “As a 16 year old, that is a lot to handle. Now that he is with us I think that he has got a ton of room to grow … and at the same time, I don’t think it’s going to take him very long to get in a groove.”
As for any risk in trading for Fitzgerald, Raftis relayed to Postmedia that, “anytime you make a trade, there is always an element of making a bet on something. Anyone can see the physical elements that Colin brings to the game … and I think that it is a bet that you have to make. I would much rather have the player than have the regret of seeing him play somewhere else.”
And as a 2008 birth year player, Fitzgerald still has years and years of OHL eligibility remaining.
“This trade helps our team now and it helps our team moving forward,” said Raftis. “Sometimes you do a move where you’re hoping it will pay off down the road. In this case, I think this is that unicorn that can help now and in the future.”
And as the Greyhounds are certainly within the mix and range of contending teams such as the Windsor Spitfires, Flint Firebirds, London Knights, Kitchener Rangers and Owen Sound Attack in the hotly contested Western Conference of the OHL, they have added a large component to their lineup in the person of promising NHL prospect Fitzgerald.