MAKE WAY FOR STEVENS
Liam Stevens wants to be a hit. Teri Pecoskie.
Talk about taking the long way.
Three years after leaving for Guelph, Liam Stevens is home in Waterdown and wearing a Hamilton Bulldogs jersey.
All because it didn’t work out in Chicoutimi. Or Guelph, for that matter.
“I’m very grateful, obviously,” he said of the chance to suit up for his hometown club. “But there’s a point where you’ve got to take advantage of the opportunities you’ve got, and hopefully I’m going to do that here and prove all the teams that let me go wrong.”
Now 19, Stevens was a top prospect when the Storm drafted him ahead of guys like Mackenzie Entwistle, Zack Jackson and Isaac Nurse in 2015. Like Entwistle and Bulldogs teammate Matt Strome, he was even on the radar at Hockey Canada.
“There isn’t a hit he doesn’t like,” OHL Central Scouting wrote at the time. “It could be open ice, along the boards, on the forecheck. He is a very powerful skater and is explosive in his lower body.” The service also praised his puck skills, hard wrist shot and “overlooked” offensive side.
He showed all of it in a decent rookie season. He registered seven goals and five assists and saw more ice as the season wore on. Then, in his sophomore year, things started to go “downhill,” he said. His production stalled.
When the left winger returned to Guelph last September, he encountered a new coach — his third in less than three years — and a glut of forwards. George Burnett, who also serves as the team’s GM, couldn’t promise him a spot in the lineup every night.
“We had three or four kids in the same situation,” said the former Bulldogs bench boss. “It was really just the way it worked out. Nothing personal.”
The Storm waived him four games into the season. Almost immediately, he was claimed by the QMJHL’s Sagueneens.
“So, I ended up in Quebec,” said Stevens.
It was tough at first, especially for a guy who doesn’t speak much French. But it got better. He was playing a lot, happy and posting the best numbers of his junior career.
Then, it happened again. At training camp in Chicoutimi last month, the Sagueneens told Stevens they had to let some veterans go — including him.
He was all right with it, he said. He came home, kind of accepting his junior career was done. Until the Bulldogs called.
GM Steve Staios said he wanted to give Stevens a chance. He’s a good kid with energy, determination and strong work ethic who has “done everything to show us he should be with us this year.”
Coach Dave Matsos said Stevens has impressed in the preseason, particularly on the penalty kill. He likes his consistency and predicted he could even compete for top-six minutes.
Stevens will take it, whatever it is. “Anywhere I end up, I’m not going to complain,” he said. “I’m just going to make the most of it.”