A sweep by the Timmins Rock may not have been the way the Powassan Voodoos envisioned their season ending when they broke camp in early September, but there is plenty to be optimistic about when it comes to the Jr. “A” squad.
Under first year head coach, and soon to be owner, Peter Goulet, the Voodoos saw an improvement of eight points in the standings from 2021/22, and seven total wins as the team went 37-20-1 on the year. The team went an impressive 21-8-0 at the Powassan Sportplex, ensuring that fans got what they paid for.
Under his watch, the team also put up a combined 486 penalty minutes, 73 less than the Timmins Rock who had the second least penalty minutes.
For Goulet, the camaraderie is what helps a team become successful, and he credits the players for being professional during some turnover.
“Every team changes,” said Goulet, the NOJHL’s coach of the year. “New players come in…friends of these guys get traded out and having to do that is not easy. I traded Josh Hardiman (assistant coach), not an easy thing to do, but we have a great relationship.
“At the end of the day the toughest part of the job is telling a player ‘sorry, it’s not going to work out, or if you want to play more, you’re going to have to go to another team.’ I have been on that side of it, and to let them down easy is important. For us and these players, hockey is everything. It’s family, school, and hockey.
“When you’re 16 and have a dream to make the NHL, you should have that dream and you need to chase that dream as a young man and when they don’t make the team out of camp, they get so disappointed.”
Leadership can also play a part in helping a team throughout the season and when it comes to leaders, team captain Alex Little is one of the best. The defenceman enjoyed a banner year, being named NOJHL’s defenceman of the year, and a first team all-star and on the team front, he was awarded the Steve Harland MVP award, and the Tomas Yachmenev Sportsmanship award. Oh yeah, he also rewrote the record books as his 58 points surpassed the 48 by Dayton Murray in the 2016/17 season as the most in a single season by a defenceman.
Little was joined by Goulet and trainer Matt MacDougall as first team all-stars, while Tucker Shields and Mitch Wilkie were named second team all-stars. Wilkie, who posted 33 points from the back end, was named the Eric Nagy Top Overager, while Shields and his 55 points, and scholastic achievements won the Jim Bruce Education and Hockey award. Other award winners included Jake Fullerton, named the Nate McDonald Most Improved player, Kannon Flageolle was crowned the Paker Bowman Playoff MVP, while Ryan Patrick and Daniel Dirracolo shared the Harrison Israels Top Rookie title.
Inevitably the team will see turnover. Any team at the junior level will lose players to other teams, or overagers graduating out and Powassan is no exception. The Voodoos will see the likes of the aforementioned Wilkie depart, along with Connor O’Brien, Liam Serviss, Nicholas Liotino, Chase Strychaluk, Thomas Gazich, and Flageolle.
The Voodoos were also successful in having players be noticed at post junior levels. O’Brien, Serviss, Liotino, Strychaluk, and Flageolle have all committed to playing hockey at either the NCAA or CIS level, with other players still choosing their paths.
For a player like Strychaluk, he only played 20 games in the regular season, amassing 22 points, and another 10 in the playoffs (13 points), but they were memorable.
“My first couple of days were a little hectic,” the 20-year-old explained. “Everyone was great when I got here, and a pleasant surprise to see how great everything was and unexpected.
“It’s like getting a Christmas gift you didn’t expect and you open it up like ‘wow, this is amazing, I can’t believe this is happening.’”
“It’s a lasting impact,” explained Goulet on his players graduating. “Chase will forever remember this team, the staff, the Frontline, Chris Dawson, myself. He just told me if we’re in the finals and he’s done school, he’s going to come up.
“What more do you want to hear from a 20-year-old? I believe there are guys on this team that if we’re lucky enough to get to a championship, there would be guys coming back and watching it and Chase solidifies it. It’s really a special relationship and I tell all my players that as long as I am above the ground, I am here for them.
“Job resume, having a bad day? Need to call someone, call myself, or Josh (Hardiman). It’s a commitment for life and I know they would be there too.”
Coming from southern Ontario in the OJHL, Strychaluk says his eyes were opened to the talent in the north.
“I expected it to be a little slower and a lot more hitting, but when I got here, I noticed it was not much different, just a little more physical. Someone told me it’s like college where people are going 110% all the time. It was a little challenging, but when you get used to it…it’s good.”
Although the team ultimately fell in the East Division final to Timmins, Powassan had experience playoff success a round earlier, defeated the Hearst Lumberjacks 4-2. That series win was the first since 2019 for Powassan when they ousted the Kirkland Lake Goldminers in six games.
“I think the team atmosphere coming into Hearst was great,” explained Strychaluk. “I think everyone expected to end it sooner. When you have the mentality that there is no way we’re going to lose. We just took care of business and it was a great time.”
Moving forward with a strong staff system in place, it’s not hard to envision more playoff success for Powassan, maybe even another championship, with some former players returning to take it all in.
