Hounds giving Pucci a chance
Three years after he was drafted into the Ontario Hockey League, Frankie Pucci is finally getting a good opportunity to show that he belongs.
A 1997 birth-year left winger, Pucci was taken by the Erie Otters in the 12th round of the 2013 OHL draft from the Soo Thunder minor midgets.
The 5-foot-10, 165-pound speedster then spent the 2013-2014 season with the Soo Indians, leading the Michigan-based major midget squad in scoring.
After just failing to make Erie the next season, Pucci played the 2014-2015 campaign with the Niagara Falls Canucks of the Greater Ontario Jr. Hockey League and after signing a standard OHL contract, got into one game with the powerful Otters.
Seemingly poised to make the Otters full-time, Pucci began the current 2015-2016 season in Erie and played in one game only to be re-assigned back down to Niagara Falls.
Undaunted, Pucci returned to Niagara Falls and put up 22 goals, 45 assists, 67 points in 40 regular-season games before posting 3-7-10 totals in 8 playoff matches.
Along the way — at the January 11 trade deadline — Erie traded Pucci’s OHL rights to the Soo Greyhounds for a 10th-round pick in 2017. Thus it appeared that Pucci would be joining the Greyhounds for the rest of the current 2015-2016 season.
But Pucci would have to wait more than two months before making his Greyhound debut.
Niagara Falls did not immediately release Pucci to the Greyhounds and the youngster remained with the Jr. B Canucks until their playoff season ended in late March. It was only on the eve of the Hounds first-round playoff series with the Sarnia Sting that Pucci finally got to join his new OHL team in the Soo.
Obviously impressed by what Pucci had to offer at practice, Hounds coach Drew Bannister immediately inserted the hard-working winger into the lineup for Game 1 of the Sarnia series and he has been to retain his spot on the fourth line. In fact, in his just third game as a Greyhound — and fifth as an OHLer — Pucci scored his first OHL goal.
What does the future hold for Pucci?
Having just turned 19 in January, he has another season of OHL eligibility remaining in 2016-2017. There is the also the possibility that Pucci could play as an overager in 2017-2018.
For now — as the Soo gets set to play host to Sarnia tonight with a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven Western Conference series — Pucci has shown that he can at least play in the OHL.
PHOTO: Frankie Pucci, in OHL playoff action for the Soo Greyhounds. (Photo by Ali Pearson.)
Pucci should have been playing in the OHL 2 years ago he is a 200 foot hockey player that puts up good points.
Fantastic should have been in the line up much earlier.
Niagara Falls ownership should be ashamed of denying Frankie the opportunity to play for the Hounds on 3 separate occasions this season. All water under the bridge now as he is with the team now and being held back has only made him hungrier to work to stay a Hound. Congrats Frankie!