Battalion prospect Steven Harland rushes with the puck during one of four mini four-on-four games that took place as part of the North Bay Battalion Orientation Camp this weekend. PHOTO BY CHRIS DAWSON.
The North Bay Battalion wasted no time lining up next season’s roster.
Just three weeks after bowing out to Oshawa in the conference finals, 32 prospects were invited to the team’s spring orientation camp. The players took part in fitness testing and four on ice sessions over the weekend.
Battalion assistant coach Ryan Oulahen said he was very impressed with what he saw on and off the ice.
“I think more so than anything, this weekend is about introduction for the players, especially the new prospects that we just drafted, give them a little taste of what we have to offer, what the atmosphere is like. Fitness testing is big for us, it’s probably more so than the on ice product at his point. On ice, you do four on four and you really want to get guys to feel comfortable and see what they can do skill wise, but overall we felt very pleased with what we saw.”
Close to half of the players taking part were chosen in the Ontario Hockey League Priority Selection this past April, including first-round pick Brady Lyle of North Bay.
Lyle played defence last season at Shattuck-St. Mary’s, a private school in Minnesota. The only other local player was North Bay Midget AAA Trappers product, Eric Allair. The rest were free agents and draftees from 2014 and 2013.
When asked who stood out over the weekend, Oulahen felt many of the younger players stepped up.
“Number one Brady Lyle on the back end, our first round pick, was very impressive. We had a lot of other defensemen, Cameron Dineen kid that came in, Jacob Romalho, some other guys from last year’s draft pick that played very well up front and you had some guys that scored some goals like Steve Harland, I thought he was pretty good, but again its four on four play and we really want to see what these guys can do five on five and against our veteran players.”
Steven Harland, a 2014 6th round selection, was the oldest player on the ice and it showed as he set up and netted some highlight reel goals; just a sample of what he did this season as NOJHL MVP and Rookie of the year with the Powassan Voodoos.
“It’s a great experience to see the skill level people have here, especially being my second year, the first year I was pretty nervous. It’s good to see the competition and how you stack up against them,” shared the Scarborough native who had 95 points in his first season of Junior 'A' hockey.
The reality is that only a handful will make the cut come August and many are feeling the pressure of making a good first impression.
“There are some big kids out here, older and I thought I kept up pretty well with the older guys,” said 2015 third round draft pick Jacob Ball, who visited North Bay for the first time. He was impressed with the community and its strong fan base.
The Battalion plan to invite all of these players back and they look forward to seeing how they will handle playing against the veterans and five on five situations.
“There were a lot of kids who really impressed us which is a good thing. I think for training camp, the biggest message is that its going to be competitive," said Oulahen.
"We got some guys that are going to come in here and make decisions hard, which is what you want and I think Stan had a great quote, ‘We’re not going to rebuild, we’re just going to reload,' and that sums it up and I think it’s something to get excited about."
It’s no secret the Battalion will need new bodies to fill the voids on defense with the departure of captain Marcus McIvor and Brenden Miller.
“So there are going to be lots of spots for these kids that were out here this weekend to hopefully come back in late August and early September to earn those spots,” said Oulahen.
Cameron Dineen (left) played for the New Jersey Rockets of the Eastern Hockey League. His speed and skill from the back end was apparent when he stepped onto the Memorial Gardens ice. PHOTO BY CHRIS DAWSON.
Notables on the back end were New Liskeard native Darien Skeoch, who played for the Calgary Mustangs of the Alberta Junior Hockey League last season, as well as puck moving offensive blueliner Cameron Dineen, who was one of three Americans among the 32 hopefuls.
Oulahen believes defenders that can jump into the play are key components to a successful major junior hockey team.
“The guys that we're drafting now and I think everybody is drafting now is you need guys that can really move the puck, join the rush and nowadays that is how you gain offence. We showed the last couple of years with the defence that we had Kevin Dineen for sure would fit that bill, I think Brady Lyle fits that bill, those two guys for sure can get up the ice and are very smart with the puck and create offense."
Dineen, who has had significant NCAA interest from Yale University, is expected to return to Battalion main camp this August.
A key omission this past weekend was 2014 3rd round pick Cameron Morrison. The Aurora native was named the CJHL Rookie of the Year after his stellar debut season with the Aurora Tigers of the Ontario Junior A Hockey League in 2014-15 (31 goals in 49 games).
At this time Morrison has committed to the University of Notre Dame NCAA Division 1 team for the 2016-17 season.
