Of the roughly 440 players in the Ontario Hockey League today, four come from North Bay.
Whether that’s too many, or too few, depends on whom you ask. Statistically speaking, in a province of 13.6 million people, we should probably have a couple, but not many more than that.
So it was a remarkable thing on Sunday, when all four North Bay-born players suited up for the same game: two for Sudbury, Danny Desrochers and Ben Garagan, and two for North Bay, Brett Hargrave and Brady Lyle.
Of course, sticklers for accuracy will point out that the trick was nearly accomplished ten days ago, when three North Bay-born players suited up for the Battalion’s improbable 3-2 win over the Erie Otters. On that occasion, Aaron Dart and Michael Silveri accompanied Brady Lyle, with a possible fourth, Hargrave, serving out the remainder of his brief suspension.
But as far as regular roster players, real meat-and-potatoes OHL’ers, it may be a while before Sunday’s feat is repeated. Desrochers is the elder statesman of the group, having played 239 games at last count, followed by Hargrave at 155 games. The two rookies, Garagan and Lyle, have logged 40 and 19 games respectively.
As Battalion fans, the notion of a North Bay kid playing for a visiting team generates a sense of divided loyalty, an internal conflict whether to root for the home team, or root for the hometown boy, and I wasn’t the only one in the building who had hoped Kenny Appleby would play well enough against the Battalion in the finals to earn a pro contract. And though I was displeased that he eliminated the home side in the end, I was happy for him when he went on to win the Memorial Cup.
Even as Appleby moves on, the local pipeline, which was bone dry just a few years ago, is starting to trickle again. Colton Point, a promising goalie playing in the CCHL with the Carlton Place Canadiens, seems destined to play NCAA, though his OHL rights belong to the Otters, while Eric Allair, a defenseman with the Powassan Voodoos, may find himself on the Battalion blueline as soon as next year.
As the 2016 OHL Priority Selection comes into view, usually the beginning of April, it will be exciting to see who emerges as the next generation of junior hockey player from this city, and who might be the next local player to pull the olive green Battalion sweater over his head on draft day.
I asked The OHL Tonight on CogecoTV (note the station’s new name) hockey analyst Greg Theberge for his assessment of the performance of the local lads in Sunday’s game.
Ranjan: There are four North Bay-born players in the OHL, and we had a rare chance to see them in action all at once: Danny Desrochers, Ben Garagan, Brett Hargrave and Brady Lyle. As a city, why should we be proud of that?
Greg Theberge: North Bay should be proud for a couple reasons: one being that all four players played a major role in the game, on special-teams and 5-on-5. It speaks volumes about North Bay minor hockey to be able to develop these players, to harness their natural abilities and prepare them to play at the highest level of junior hockey in the world, especially when we don’t have a minor midget AAA program.
Ranjan: Players like Kenny Appleby, now with the Adirondack Thunder, the overager Danny Desrochers, and 20-year old Brett Hargrave, and Tait Seguin who played last year, are blazing a trail for up-and-coming players from this area…
Greg Theberge: These trailblazers have done a heck of a job. They’ve been through all the early-morning ice times, and the hard off-ice training, and numerous practices and games and tournaments, traveling around the province, north and south. These guys were grassroots players, no different than any of the local North Bay kids in novice and atom, coming up through the ranks, developing their skills. Kenny, Tait, Danny and Brett have shown kids that it can be done, that it’s being done right as we speak. When a 7-year old watches a Battalion game today, it creates a lasting impression in that young mind about what’s possible.
Ranjan: So how important would it be to establish a minor midget AAA program in North Bay?
Greg Theberge: I think it’s vitally important to establish a minor midget AAA program. This allows all of the 15-year-old players to be evaluated on a level playing field, with other minor midget AAA teams all over the province, The question that remains is whether northern Ontario has enough 15-year-olds to form a competitive League that would be on par with the central and southern Ontario leagues. We know that Sault Ste. Marie and Sudbury, especially the Sault North Stars where Mike Amadio and Jake Kment came from, have minor midget programs that are putting great players into the OHL.
Ranjan: We’ve seen plenty of Brady Lyle and Brett Hargrave this year. Let’s talk about Brett first. He may be in the twilight of his OHL career and, quite remarkably, volunteered to help out on a defense that’s been stretched to the breaking point. What does that say about this player?
Greg Theberge: Brett Hargrave is certainly making the most out of this opportunity to prove that he deserves to play and make a positive impact on a team in the Ontario Hockey League. I think the fact that he made the adjustment to defense says a lot about his hockey IQ. I really like the way that he head-manned the puck and made an end-to-end rush with a good scoring opportunity coming from it. I’m biased when I say this, but it’s a lot harder to go from a forward position to play defense in the O then it is going the other way, as Patrick Murphy has done for the Sudbury Wolves. And believe me, the opposition team is well aware when a forward moves back to play D. They try to take full advantage of that and capitalize on the lack of experience.
Ranjan: As the playoffs approach, what can Hargrave do for this club?
Greg Theberge: I think he will add some experience and maybe increase his offensive production as well. He is very capable of bursting through the neutral zone, and into the fun zone, with his deceptive speed, very much in the same fashion we saw him make his end-to-end rush as a D man.
Ranjan: We saw Brady Lyle make a rare foray deep into the offensive zone. A risky decision for a young defenceman, or, could that be a glimpse of things to come?
Greg Theberge: I think that Brady’s decision-making has been excellent thus far, showing us that he’s being creative, and making decisions while realizing his own limits. I think he showing a tremendous amount of confidence, now that he’s getting a chance to play more, and appears to have acclimatized to the pace of the OHL. I’m very impressed, however there’s lots of room for improvement, I’m always looking for better skating out of every player. That’s what separates you from the pack in the eyes of NHL scouts.
Ranjan: I chatted with Coach Dave Matsos of the Sudbury Wolves before Sunday’s game. He holds up Danny Desrochers as a positive example for his young club. He’s wearing the captain’s ‘C’. What did you see in Desrochers’ game?
Greg Theberge: Danny has developed really good chemistry with Mikkel Aagard, his centre, and he realized that he was playing with Patrick Murphy, a natural defenseman on his far wing, and tried to help and support him as best he could. He’s always been a good skater, with excellent puck pursuit, and his forechecking ability causes a lot of turnovers. He’s always been a good penalty killer so, with all those attributes, it’s a given that he’s wearing the ‘C’. But don’t forget, the Wolves have released a lot of veteran players in the past 6 months as Barclay Branch rebuilds that club, but not Danny, who has always been a part of the solution there. So I think he’s representing our city, and the Trappers organization very well. I’d like to see him in a Nipissing University Lakers uniform next year.
Ranjan: It’s not often that a 5th rounder makes such a lasting impression on an OHL club in his rookie year, but Ben Garagan has shown he belongs at this level. What are you seeing from him?
Greg Theberge: I like what I saw in Ben. I like his size and grit, and his ability to get into scoring positions was impressive. You can tell that he’s been well coached, and would be a good role model for young North Bay hockey players to follow. It will be interesting to watch his career in Sudbury, and see him blossom into a Danny Desrochers-type player that any coach would love to have.
