MacDougall rejects offer from NCAA to join Spitfires
The Windsor Spitfires believe Mathew MacDougall can be a building block for the team’s future success.
Acquired nearly two months ago in a trade with the Barrie Colts, the 17-year-old MacDougall finally agreed to terms on Tuesday to join the club.
“In a rebuilding year, it’s good to add a significant player to the roster,” Spitfires general manager Warren Rychel said. “We had him rated to go in the first round (in the 2016 OHL draft), but he was planning to go to school and went in the third round, but he’s an excellent player.”
The five-foot-10, 175-pound MacDougall walked away from a full-ride scholarship offer to the University of Massachusetts Amherst. He was set to join the program in 2019-20, but will now play for the Spitfires.
“I’m excited to finally get started and get going,” the 17-year-old MacDougall said. “We’re going to be a younger team, so it means more ice time and more development.”
Barrie originally received a 14thround pick in 2018 from Windsor along with a conditional fourthround pick in 2020 in the deal. That pick will move over once MacDougall plays one game for the Spitfires.
“He’s got the best of both worlds coming in,” Rychel said. “It’s the best development league and he gets his education paid for. He made a good choice to come to our hockey club.”
A centre, MacDougall spent last season at St. Andrew’s College near Toronto and posted 20 goals and 37 points in 58 games.
“He can put the puck away,” Rychel said of MacDougall. “He’s a good skater, and retrieves a lot of pucks, but his calling card is his skating ability.
“It’s great for him coming into a young team and he’s going to fit nicely into our top six forwards.”
MacDougall said the long delay in signing with the club wasn’t a reflection on Windsor, but how he felt he would contribute as a player.
“I talked to many people to get different opinions and that made it a lot easier,” said MacDougall, who is NHL Draft eligible in 2018. “Really, it was a big thing of whether I thought I could be a quality player in the league or not. I didn’t know how good I would be.
“Really, just seeing how much (the Spitfires) cared and wanted me. They went through a lot to get me and I felt, if they wanted me that bad, it was a good place to be.”
MacDougall said he’s familiar with current Spitfires Connor Corcoran, Chris Playfair and Tyler Angle, who were all part of the same OHL draft class.
“In a couple of years, hopefully we can be a dominant team,” MacDougall said.
With players checking in on Sunday and camp getting underway on Monday, Rychel, who picked up veteran centre Luke Kutkevicius a day earlier, isn’t anticipating any further moves by that point.
“We’ll go from here, but it’s time to start teaching and rebuilding,” Rychel said.
He can put the puck away. He’s a good skater, and retrieves a lot of pucks, but his calling card is his skating ability.