Talking OHL trades
Some big names should be swapping sweaters
KITCHENER — The holidays are over and the OHL 21 is back.
This week it’s all about trades, trades and more trades.
The deadline — Jan. 10 at noon — is approaching and the trade freeze for players participating at the world junior hockey championship will be lifted after the tournament wraps up Friday.
That’s when some big names should be swapping sweaters. Let’s get right to it. 1. The Barrie Colts did their heavy lifting by acquiring overage forward Aaron Luchuk from the Windsor Spitfires last month, and I’d say it has worked out OK. Luchuk has eight points in six games and the Colts haven’t lost (heading into Tuesday) since he joined the club.
2. The Erie Otters are waiting for the world juniors to end before trading elite forward Taylor Raddysh. Want T-Rad? Talks reportedly start at four second-round draft picks and a top-flight prospect.
3. I don’t expect the Flint Firebirds to be that active leading up to the deadline. GM Barclay Branch likes to make his moves early and has already traded his big pieces. With five wins in their past 26 games, the focus is on the future now. Though, overage d-man Jalen Smereck would be an impact addition for some team.
4. Guelph is building toward next season, which means any blockbuster trade is unlikely. But teams will be asking the Storm about 19-year-old forward Givani Smith. The Detroit Red Wings draft pick is tough, can score and is built for the playoffs.
5. The Hamilton Bulldogs have led the arms race in the East with the additions of forwards Nicholas Caamano and Ryan Moore, and defenceman Riley Stillman. But don’t be surprised if the Bulldogs continue to tinker. They still have picks in the bank.
6. Kingston tested the waters on goalie Jeremy Helvig, but when other teams scoffed at the asking price — which sounded semireasonable — the Fronts pulled back. The club has since added D Sean Day and F Gabe Vilardi in a whopper with Windsor, and is right back in the hunt in the East.
7. The needs are many for the Kitchener Rangers — elite forward, defenceman, goalie — but the real victory will be if general manager Mike McKenzie can fill some of the voids without parting with centre Riley Damiani or defenceman Giovanni Vallati.
8. London has some decisions to make. Sell for the future or sit tight and try to play spoiler in the West. The direction may depend on whether or not Habs prospect Victor Mete returns to the club after the worlds. But don’t sleep on the Knights who are 19-6-1-1 after starting the season at 1-8-1-0.
9. Mississauga is saying it isn’t shopping its stars, but word behind the scenes is that the team is listening to offers. With three wins in the past 15 games and the thirdworst record in the OHL, it might be time to move on. Big guns Owen Tippett and Michael McLeod have been underwhelming and could use a fresh start elsewhere.
10. With the Niagara IceDogs trading D Zach Shankar to Windsor (for a seventh-round pick) Tuesday, the team now has an open overage slot on its roster. Clubs have until next Tuesday at noon to get down to three overagers and the ’Dogs can now go shopping.
11. Stan Butler’s bunch is fighting for its playoff lives in the East. That makes the North Bay Battalion a prime team to poach. Of the lot, overage centre Brett McKenzie screams as a candidate for a change of scenery. He had 29 goals last season, but has just nine this time around.
12. Oshawa is a team to watch in the second half of the campaign. Goalie Kyle Keyser is 5-1 since returning from an upper-body injury, and the Gens are on the rebound. But I can’t see them adding any huge pieces unless it benefits the club past this season.
It appears Ottawa got a hometown discount by acquiring promising blueliner Merrick Rippon — and two serviceable veterans — from Mississauga for OA Mathieu Foget, a second, third and a conditional fifth draft pick. Rippon refused to play in Kitchener and was traded for two seconds and a conditional pick in the summer.
The Owen Sound Attack just can’t get it right. Goalie Zack Bowman didn’t work out and newcomer Olivier Lafrenière is still searching for his first win in the crease in the Sound. To the team’s defence, injuries and world junior commitments have hurt the roster.
They still believe in Peterborough. So don’t expect a fire sale just yet. The Petes have been building toward this season and, as disappointing as it has been, I’m told they’re considering adding at the deadline, not subtracting.
Veteran goalie Evan Cormier and defenceman Keaton Middleton are the chips in Saginaw. But it’ll take young talent to pry them loose as the Spirit has more than enough high draft picks in its reserve, maybe the most in the league.
Sarnia is finding out what life is like without forwards Jordan Kyrou and Adam Ruzicka. The Sting are 1-5 since the duo left for the world juniors and that has to be a concern heading into the post-season. So, too, does goalie Justin Fazio’s workload.
The Soo is riding a 23-game win streak and has lost just five tilts all season. The Greyhounds are the class of the Ontario Hockey League and could probably head into the playoffs as is, but the team is in buying mode. And they’re looking at elite players, which is scary.
Sudbury won three games in November and three more in December. Dmitry Sokolov is a trade target but, as an import, his market is small. Not sure the Wolves will get much for one-time first overall pick David Levin, who has five goals. The team needs to shed an OA, and adding defencemen Doug Blaisdell or Kyle Rhodes would be a nice (and affordable) depth move for a contending club.
Hats off to Windsor GM Warren Rychel. He won a Memorial Cup last year and has already restocked his roster with prospects, while replenishing his barren draft pick cupboard. And he still hasn’t moved prized assets F Logan Brown and G Michael DiPietro. It doesn’t look like the rebuild will be long for the Spitfires.
I’d love to see the OHL clamp down on shot-clock counters. Staff at every rink seems to have a different definition as to what constitutes a shot on net. It’s wildly inconsistent from rink to rink and goalie statistics are suffering because of it.