Josh Wainman gets a second chance with the Hamilton Bulldogs
Hopes to prove them all wrong after Erie Otters dropped him to go with younger blood
Josh Wainman was expecting to play a big role in his 19-year-old season with the OHL’s Erie Otters.
The Otters had other ideas.
The six-foot, 183-pound defenceman found himself back home in Peterborough after the pre-season ended when the Otters informed him they intended to go with younger players on their blue-line.
They told him to go home while they worked on trading him. He practised with the Lindsay Muskies to stay in shape until the Otters announced Friday he’d been dealt to the Hamilton Bulldogs.
He found out around noon on Friday and drove to Hamilton with his older brother
Zack to make his Bulldogs debut that night in a 7-1 loss to the Oshawa Generals.
Wainman picked up an assist in Hamilton’s 3-2 win over his hometown Peterborough Petes on Saturday.
“I think it’s a great opportunity,” Wainman said following Saturday’s game.
“I am very thankful the Hamilton Bulldogs gave me a chance here and I’m looking to prove a lot of people wrong.
“Nothing against (Erie), they were a great organization. They treated me awesome and world class and, yeah, just trying to prove people wrong.”
He’s also trying to prove something to himself.
“I don’t think I had a spectacular year last year and I’m looking to have a great one this year,” he said.
The Bulldogs are in a similar position this year as Erie was last year having lost a ton of players to graduation after winning an OHL championship.
“I learned a lot (In Erie) from the older guys and I was kind of an older guy last year and I kind of took a leadership role in the room. I am going to try to translate that here. Just lead by example and hopefully the younger guys kind of follow along,” Wainman said.
The Bulldogs’ depth on defence had taken a hit with some injuries so the timing was right, said president and GM Steve Staios.
“He’s got good mobility, good game sense and we’re happy to have him,” Staios said.
“We started to watch some game film on Josh and liked his mobility and his ability with the puck, so we think he’s going to fit in well.”
In 131 games with Erie, Wainman had five goals and 21 assists for 26 points with a -31 rating and 42 penalty minutes.
He was Erie’s fourth-round pick in the 2015 OHL draft.