Buyers and Sellers (Part 2)

Not since 2017 has the OHL hosted the Memorial Cup, mainly due to the thing we are sick of talking about, the pandemic, and Windsor happened to be the host as well as the champions that year. So after seven long year its finally back in Ontario! Well not really, its in Saginaw, but regardless we are excited that the OHL is the host to the this prestigious tournament. It also means, that we will see two teams from the O playing for the cup, one being Saginaw, and the other determined by the outcome of the OHL playoffs. With this in mind, many teams want to represent and earn their chance to hoist the J. Ross Robertson Cup & Memorial Cup, but to do so, they will need to round out their rosters! This is part 2 of my Buyers and Sellers predictions for the 23/24 OHL season. If you have yet to read part 1 I humbly plug it here for you to read, https://www.ohloffthepuck.com/blog-2-1/OHLbuyers-and-sellers-part1.

Flint Firebirds

To kick things off we have to look at the other team in Michigan. I’ll be honest I am a bit lost of which way Flint where go. After a rough first couple weeks, the Firebirds have turned their season around and look like a team ready to compete. With a returning cast of 04’s who had a good showing in last years playoffs and a dominant OA group of Dann, Giroux, and Kressler upfront, Flint looks ready to make a push. My main concern is on the backend. With the second highest goals against in the league, the defensive side to their game needs improvements, especially not having an OA on their blueline and only Bertucci being drafted into the NHL. Taking into consideration that they have seven 2nd round picks to trade, they got the assets to make a go at the cup. That being said, Flint will be looking to add more veteran presence to the backend if they do decide to buy.

Guelph Storm

So on one hand Guelph has had some terrible luck, starting the season with a top defenseman in Allen being out half the year due to injury, and their star player Poitras making the Bruins unexpectedly (but go Poitras!). Yet, they also just happened to have incredible improvements in the crease from Gillespie, which coming in to the season, looked to be their biggest concern. Ultimately, Guelph just needs more upfront, that being by getting an elite playmaker as well as one or two players to add depth scoring into their middle six. The Storm has a lot of young talent as well as picks, six 2nds and six 3rds, to use for trades giving them some buying power. Don’t expect Guelph to make a lot of moves, but they will make impactful ones.

London Knights

Okay, I’ll admit this one is just cheating. London has already made multiple moves, with their big one so far being for Simpson in net as well as multiple with Niagara which has somehow helped them restock some picks. That said, London honestly doesn’t need much, the backend is talented, their top six is honestly just dominant, and the star power they have now is mostly back again next year. In London’s case, they addressed the largest concern by acquiring a proven goalie going into the season, though they have made room to bring in other players, its most likely the Hunter’s will be looking to add depth more than anything else to this roster.

Owen Sound Attack

At the time of writing this, Owen Sound sits in 9th place in the Western Conference, out of a playoff spot. Not the place most expected them to be at this stage of the year, but still, the Attack have a veteran roster, along with which is likely to be Barlow’s last year in Junior, how doesn’t the franchise commit, similar to how Kitchener did last year despite the slow start. They already did a coaching change, so all that leaves now is to add. So far they seem to be banking on the stud that is George in net, but personally I don’t think he is ready to lead the squad deep into the playoffs, so I expect them to shop for a veteran goalie. The other piece they need is a backend to produce some offence besides Sedley. That being said, Owen Sound doesn’t have many picks to trade compared to some of the other teams on this list, so they might have to give up some players to make the moves they need to make.

Saginaw Spirit

As the Memorial Cup hosts, Saginaw is clearly going to be buying. Goaltending has been the biggest setback thus far for the Spirit, but I’m not convinced that’s where they will focus. I think Oke is capable of backstopping this team but only if there is a strong team in front of him. With eight 2nds still in their hands despite trading two already, as well as a lot of young talent, Saginaw has more assets than any other team looking to buy. However, its the youth of this team that is the issue, meaning, this is a team I expect to look for renters at this stage to really boost the experience of the roster but will do so without jeopardizing their season next year, which is likely to be another big year for the franchise.

Soo Greyhounds

How dare the collective not think higher of this team, heck, even I feel like I underestimated them in my predictions of the standings for the season. Sitting on top of the West Division, with the second highest goals for in the league, many were incorrect, this is a team that can score! My concern now, is that they are losing a lot of their games against the other top projected teams in the league, so by rounding out the bottom six and making themselves a tougher team to play against throughout the lineup they will cement themselves as one of the teams to beat all season long.

Sudbury Wolves

To me, the Wolves are the team to beat in the Eastern Conference. Already having seven NHL drafted players, two of which are 1st round picks in Dvorsky and Musty, this is a team that came into the year ready to make a deep playoff run at worst. With a veteran backend, a goalie with high potential in import Vondras, and Goyette, its likely coming down to this team just meeting expectations. However, a key area of concern in the first quarter is the lack of powerplay production. Currently the worst in the league at 9.9% with just 7 goals on 71 powerplays. There are some players likely to be on the market this year that Sudbury will be in the bidding for that would help quarterback the special teams which is a crucial piece the Wolves want to figure out. With a large arsenal of 2nd and 3rd round picks at their disposal, trades will happen.

The Other Guys

Then we have the other teams. Those that I don’t feel confident to classify as strictly a buyer or seller this year, for one reason or another.

Erie Otters

Erie is in my opinion a bit of a Darkhorse. Lots of talent, especially a lot of young talent who are impactful players for the Otters. But Erie doesn’t have the assets to be a buyer without hemorrhaging their future. With very few picks, compared to the other buyers, Erie will be forced to make smaller moves, though they did pick up Gaudreau for a relatively good price in my opinion. I know the Otters plan to make a splash this year but the franchise is just in a weird place due to poor asset management the last few seasons, so I think its better for them to retool than to commit strongly one way or the other.

Kitchener Rangers

The Rangers are a strong team, sitting first in the league, so why wouldn’t they be buyers? Well its their success that has me put them here instead. Kitchener has what they need already and what they didn’t they had gifted to them through the return of Mesar and Schmidt from the AHL. Kitchener is actually sitting in a spot where they have to many assets, already having to move Hamara and eventually they will have to move one of their OAs as well once Martin returns from injury as that will put them at fours OAs. So I don’t expect the Rangers to make many changes at all to their roster and stay the course because it is wildly successful so far with Jussi Ahokas running the bench.

Mississauga Steelheads

While Kitchener is a surprise juggernaut in the West, the Steelheads are proving to be a beast in the East. Mississauga should be a year out from being a top team but when you have so much talent like they do success follows. So despite only four players on their roster making up the OAs and 04s, they are winning a lot. They don’t have much to sell, as the vast majority of the team including the top players will be back next year and they are already loaded with draft picks. They could go out and buy, they surely have the assets too, but why hinder the future next year when this squad will naturally be in a better place then they already are. So, with the exception of filling their third OA spot, I highly doubt Mississauga will make moves.

Niagara IceDogs

Should Niagara be a seller this year? Probably, yeah. Does management recognize this? Of course not. Originally I had the IceDogs as a seller, move some of the more veteran players to help continue the rebuild as the franchise attempts to repair itself. Instead, management seems to think they have a playoff team and continue to over buy from London to start and change those out of regulation losses to wins. I disagree, I think Niagara needs to rebuild, but playoff experience, especially for young players like Roobroeck and Czata is invaluable so I choose to look at the few positives this organization has right now.

Oshawa Generals

The Generals are a very fun team to watch play hockey. They have so much talent, the consistency however just isn’t always there. Yet, without Ritchie, who started the season recovery from injury, they have been hanging in the fight. They have had some amazing performances from Oster in net and multiple guys in the lineup. Yet, they are still relatively young and I think its a year to soon. That said, I also don’t think its worth them selling as there is more to gain in strong playoff experience for this young squad going into next season. So, I think Oshawa will continue to be a top team in the East, I could even seen them in the second round of playoffs. But they will retool if needed, potentially to bring in more 05s, particularly on the backend at most.