Young team progresses throug
The Elmira Sugar Kings’ 2022-23 season was pegged as a rebuilding time right from the start. That much is obvious when the team sees more than a dozen roster spots turnover, with rookies galore in the lineup.
Still, there was never any quit as the team got better as the season went along.
Early on, there was another transition, as head coach Rob Collins left in mid-October to join the OHL’s Guelph Storm as an assistant coach. Director
of Hockey Operations Scott McMillan stepped behind the bench, eventually taking on the job full-time.
The Kings eventually ended the Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League regular season with a record of 29-20-1, good for fourth place in the Midwestern Conference behind the KW Siskins, Stratford Warriors and Cambridge Redhawks.
“It was an interesting year, with obviously a lot of turnover in the roster. And then losing our coach, I think six games in, it was certainly a season with a lot of unique challenges. But at the end, I think we were able to close the gap between us and the top three teams and get into that group,” said McMillan of the Kings’ season.
With their finish in the standings, the Kings faced the fifth-place Ayr Centennials in the first round of the playoffs, taking the series in six games.
Next up, they faced the conference’s first-place team, the KW Siskins, falling in six games.
While noting every team wants to go the distance, McMillan said the playoffs were indicative of the Kings’ development through the season.
“We look back at it, I think you always want to win your last game, but there were a lot more successes than disappointments in this year given everything that we had to go through.”
While every season begins with some turnover as players age out