2016-17 OUA Men's Hockey Thread

[northvanman]

2016-17 OUA schedule has been posted:

http://www.oua.ca/sports/mice/2016-17/schedule

Great to see Ottawa back.

I see that McGill, UQTR, and Western all did away with their late Saturday afternoon start times.

Click to read more...

 

[northvanman]

Interesting to see that rather than have a series the final weekend of the first term, Lakehead instead has two road trips of 3 games in 3 nights. I don't ever recall that being on their schedule before. Wonder if they are in cost management mode this year.

 

[AdamMcg83]

2016-17 OUA schedule has been posted:

http://www.oua.ca/sports/mice/2016-17/schedule

Great to see Ottawa back.

I see that McGill, UQTR, and Western all did away with their late Saturday afternoon start times.

And Waterloo has moved their Sat home games from evening (6pm or 7pm) to afternoon (4pm). Everyone has a different strategy!

Also, is it me, or are there way more weekday games this year?

 

[leafhky88]

Per my initial scan of Laurier's schedule, a few items noted:

Oct 14 @ Guelph - Schedule lists the game as "McConnell Arena - Montreal," the home arena of the McGill Redmen. I expect this to be changed - I believe this game should be at home (given their second game with Guelph is away)

Oct 22 - Brantford Homecoming game is against Waterloo this year on a Saturday at 4:00 in Brantford (last year was against RMC)

Nov 2 - A rare Wednesday night game. Laurier is the away team against Waterloo with the game location listed as the Kitchener Memorial Auditorium (Home of the Kitchener Rangers). I am not sure if this is a special occasion.

Jan27 - This game at Guelph is held at the Sleeman Centre. Guelph used to have a game called the "Frosty Mug" which I attended when they played Laurier a few years back. It was fun, as the Sleeman Centre (Home of the Guelph Storm) was mostly filled with students, and the game had the use of the centre ice clock/video screen which allowed for replays of goals/highlights. It was sort of like a major junior game with university teams. I would assume this game is this years' version.

Also,after 3 years in a row of having a "School Day Game" during the week around 11:00 filled with local schools, I do not see one listed for this year. I am not really opposed as I can never make those games anyhow.

 

[pfaffi89]

Hello everyone!

I´m thinking about to attend a game of the Toronto University vs. the Ryerson Rams at Varsity Arena during my vacation in November.

Would you recommend to go there? Is the playlevel compareable to US College Hockey?

Thanks for your help!

 

[Hollywood3]

Hello everyone!

I´m thinking about to attend a game of the Toronto University vs. the Ryerson Rams at Varsity Arena during my vacation in November.

Would you recommend to go there? Is the playlevel compareable to US College Hockey?

Thanks for your help!

The OUA is the weakest conference in Canada and is below the NCAA (mostly). The teams would be low-end German 2nd tier or good 3rd tier. The UQTR Patriotes are playing in Rouen, France on Friday. They are a lot stronger than Toronto or Ryerson and do well against that level of team.

 

[pfaffi89]

The OUA is the weakest conference in Canada and is below the NCAA (mostly). The teams would be low-end German 2nd tier or good 3rd tier. The UQTR Patriotes are playing in Rouen, France on Friday. They are a lot stronger than Toronto or Ryerson and do well against that level of team.

Thanks for your honest opinion. Appreciate it!

 

[leafhky88]

I took in both games Laurier played this week: a 7-3 loss to Waterloo and a 4-2 win over Western.

Laurier looked really rusty against Waterloo. It was great to see Chris Festarini get the start in net after missing every game last year due to concussion issues. However, after an almost 2 year layoff, no one was more rusty than him. The team's play was disorganized and did not help, but he was credited with 5 goals on 16 shots through the first 2 periods to give Waterloo a 5-0 lead going into the third despite shots being around 16-11 (although I do not think the shot stats were quite correct). With some game experience, the coaching staff is likely hoping the former Niagara Icedogs starter regains his junior form that saw him invited to the Montreal Canadiens and Hamilton Bulldogs (AHL) camps. Vinny Merante came in for the 3rd and was beaten twice. Waterloo seemed in mid-season form. Their defence boasts strong players like Moffat, Silas and Wind, and their forwards outworked Laurier's and really seemed to click. They were well deserving of the win.

Laurier looked better against Western, with likely #1 goaltender Colin Furlong getting the start and playing 30 minutes of shutout hockey before Festarini came in for the second half. The question mark for Laurier will be whether any players come out of that game with sustained injuries. Western seemed frustrated and had a number of hits from behind, to the head and after whistles. Laurier defenceman Alex Adams was head-checked by Sean Callaghan seconds after scoring the opening goal and appeared very concussed (he did not return). Recent recruit Brandon Robinson was later hit from behind in the second and did not return. Without a lineup card, it was hard to determine how much of Western's regular lineup was playing. Greg Dodds started in net.

Overall, Laurier had strong performances from returning players Derek Schoenmakers and Christian Mroczkowski (top 2 scorers from last season). Newcomer Jimmy Soper was a stand-out in both games as was Braydon Blight for his physical play. "Bluechip" recruits Andrew Fritsch and Brandon Robinson were fairly silent so far. The biggest question mark on the team is likely on the blue-line, as each game thus far has featured 4 first year defencemen in the lineup. I think as the season moves along, Laurier's success will be tied in to how well newcomers Annecchiarico (lock), Blight (lock), D'Oliveira, Leclerc and Hetherington fit in with returning defencemen Franczyk, Clutsam and Adams. In goal, Laurier has 3 goaltenders who likely want to establish themselves as a starter. It will likely be a challenge to get each the playing time to keep them sharp and ready to go. However, if the goal is to win that particular night only, then I would expect it would be hard to not start Colin Furlong for a large percentage of games. He looked sharp against Western, picking up where he left off from last season where he posted an impressive 0.921% through 16 games, very respectable for a 7th placed team.

Next weekend brings a challenge with Laurier facing 2 AUS teams (SMU and DAL) in Halifax. A win in either is unexpected, and the game against SMU could be quite lopsided given SMU's record against top teams like McGill/UQTR etc. who typically vastly outplay Laurier. The team has picked a tough exhibition schedule with Waterloo, Western, 2 AUS schools and an NCAA opponent in Ohio State. The team should be well battle tested for the beginning of the regular season.

 

[connor macdavid]

uOttawa off to a very good start in pre-season play.

Gee-Gees lost 4-3 in 2OT against a good (albeit rusty early) McGill team in Montreal last Wednesday, then upset last year's no.-1 seed, UQTR, 4-3 on home ice.

They aren't going to beat top-half teams with their talent, but the Gee-Gees are pretty good with their systems and seem to have bought in for year one.

Best Case: 6th
Worst Case: 8th

Also: Carleton-McGill game last Friday was nuts. Felt like a deciding game of a playoff series.

 

[Hollywood3]

uOttawa off to a very good start in pre-season play.

Gee-Gees lost 4-3 in 2OT against a good (albeit rusty early) McGill team in Montreal last Wednesday, then upset last year's no.-1 seed, UQTR, 4-3 on home ice.

They aren't going to beat top-half teams with their talent, but the Gee-Gees are pretty good with their systems and seem to have bought in for year one.

Best Case: 6th
Worst Case: 8th

Also: Carleton-McGill game last Friday was nuts. Felt like a deciding game of a playoff series.

I noticed this. A good omen. There is a fairly strong co-relation between pre-season and regular season success (or failure as the case may be) in university sports.

 

[MiamiHockey]

uOttawa off to a very good start in pre-season play.

Gee-Gees lost 4-3 in 2OT against a good (albeit rusty early) McGill team in Montreal last Wednesday, then upset last year's no.-1 seed, UQTR, 4-3 on home ice.

They aren't going to beat top-half teams with their talent, but the Gee-Gees are pretty good with their systems and seem to have bought in for year one.

Best Case: 6th
Worst Case: 8th

Also: Carleton-McGill game last Friday was nuts. Felt like a deciding game of a playoff series.

I would caution against underestimating Ottawa. Recent experience tells us that teams can overachieve in their first year in a league.

Lakehead went 13-8-3
Carleton went 12-13-3
Nipissing: 12-15-1

Those are good records for a first-year team. I would project Ottawa to be an above-500 team.

 

[AdamMcg83]

Waterloo honoured their 2015-16 Academic All-Canadians yesterday, including a program-record 17 members of the men's hockey team. The team academic average was 81.5%, which is the highest since the number has been tracked (and likely the highest in modern program history). The academic average is up 14.5% since Brian Bourque took over the program in 2005-06.

 

[northvanman]

Guelph out to a quick 2-0 start. Beat Western in a 3-2 game that Western probably should have won as they carried the play in the first and third. Western (Ont.) has 9 first year players following a year when they had 8, so there is a big changeover for them. I have a feeling this will be another year where the OUA West standings are going to be bunched, and Laurier should be in the mix this year. And based on early season/pre-season, Ryerson may be the class of the division. How awesome would that be?!

 

[Rob]

RMC beat Carleton 5-4.

I also see that UOIT might be the real deal. Beat McGill 5-2 in Montreal.

 

[connor macdavid]

RMC looks a lot tougher this year. Sounds weird considering they lost their two top scorers in Domenico and Louis-Seize, but I think the Paladins are deeper this year. Four lines competed shift-by-shift with Carleton.

UOIT has surpassed Queen's, as has Concordia (probably). AINEC on the first one - UOIT is going to claim some scalps this year.

West is set to be wild again.

 

[leafhky88]

Highlights between Laurier and Waterloo's first ever battle of Waterloo at the Aud which drew almost 1100 fans.

http://kitchener.ctvnews.ca/sports/...144648#_gus&_gucid=&_gup=twitter&_gsc=GTwHguf

Laurier came out with a 5-1 victory (with 2 empty net goals).

One night later things did not go as well for Laurier despite firing 53 shots on goal. Brock won 8-4 (with an empty net goal). The main story line was Brock scoring 5 goals on a mere 8 shots in the first period (Laurier scored 2 on 14) from which Laurier was unable to recover.

 

[Rob]

Watched the third period of Ottawa's 2-1 win over Concordia. Last weekend the GeeGees took McGill to overtime. While they might now make the playoffs they certainly aren't the pushovers like we expected.

RMC also looks like they may make the playoffs this year. When is the last time that happened?

 

[MiamiHockey]

Watched the third period of Ottawa's 2-1 win over Concordia. Last weekend the GeeGees took McGill to overtime. While they might now make the playoffs they certainly aren't the pushovers like we expected.

RMC also looks like they may make the playoffs this year. When is the last time that happened?

2008-2009

Here's the thing with RMC: they will (almost) always be the least skilled team in the league. So, to have any success, they have to outwork their opponent by a large margin.

That was their recipe for success under Kelly Nobes. He built a team that was very difficult to play against: even if the opposition outskilled RMC, they had to work to leave the rink with 2 points.

When Nobes left, that work ethic slowly disappeared. In the lean years under Adam Shell, they had decent skill, but no intensity.

Now, watching them play is enjoyable again. They lack skill, but roll four lines and give their opponents fits with their relentlessness. Richard Lim is doing an outstanding job.

 

[Dutch]

RMC has an outside chance of making the playoffs, but I feel that Ottawa can only get better as the season advances. They'll find their style and reflexes that they don't have right now as a brand new team.

Nipissing, I feel, will miss.

 

[connor macdavid]

RMC has an outside chance of making the playoffs, but I feel that Ottawa can only get better as the season advances. They'll find their style and reflexes that they don't have right now as a brand new team.

Nipissing, I feel, will miss.

I'd say it'll come down to RMC v. uOttawa for the 8th spot. Laurentian is very capable of dropping to the back of the pack too. Nip just doesn't doesn't have any offence. Like, at all.

 

[Rob]

Ottawa is up 3 points on Nipissing for the last playoff spot in the East. If they make the playoffs I think Patrick Grandmaitre should get CIS coach of the year.

Western has lost even in a row and are holding on to the last playoff sport in the West. Any idea what is going on with them? Is Dobbs hurt?

I also noticed that there are a couple of 11am games this week. What's the occasion?

 

[Finder24]

Ottawa is up 3 points on Nipissing for the last playoff spot in the East. If they make the playoffs I think Patrick Grandmaitre should get CIS coach of the year.

Western has lost even in a row and are holding on to the last playoff sport in the West. Any idea what is going on with them? Is Dobbs hurt?

I also noticed that there are a couple of 11am games this week. What's the occasion?

1. Call me biased, but I think what Johnny Duco is doing at Ryerson is worthy of being in the COY conversation if Ryerson stays on top of the OUA West.

2. Western is having serious offensive struggles + defence is very young and still maturing. Goaltending has actually been solid, but Dodds tweaked a slight injury before they played Ryerson. Short-term.

3. School day games. Basically a bunch of local schools send classes on field trips to the game. For whatever reason, my school didn't get the memo on this when I was a kid.

 

[leafhky88]

1. Call me biased, but I think what Johnny Duco is doing at Ryerson is worthy of being in the COY conversation if Ryerson stays on top of the OUA West.

2. Western is having serious offensive struggles + defence is very young and still maturing. Goaltending has actually been solid, but Dodds tweaked a slight injury before they played Ryerson. Short-term.

3. School day games. Basically a bunch of local schools send classes on field trips to the game. For whatever reason, my school didn't get the memo on this when I was a kid.

1. Does COY count for just coaching or also roster building? I honestly do not know. From a pure coaching standpoint, Ryerson has the best top to bottom roster in the OUA West without question. From a team building standpoint - to the original point, currently the class of the OUA West. They have been injury plagued and are quite young - so I would concede that.

2. Agreed with above apart from goaltending - their team save percentage is 16th in the OUA. Dodds has been solid at 0.907, but Peresseni sits at just 0.883 and has played in 6 (46%) of Western's 13 games thus far.

To Rob's point - Ottawa looked very good in person when I saw them. I expected an easy win after Laurier beat McGill the night before, and instead saw a game in which Laurier generated virtually no chances and were outplayed from beginning to end by a team almost entirely recruited this past year.

 

[connor macdavid]

1. Call me biased, but I think what Johnny Duco is doing at Ryerson is worthy of being in the COY conversation if Ryerson stays on top of the OUA West.

2. Western is having serious offensive struggles + defence is very young and still maturing. Goaltending has actually been solid, but Dodds tweaked a slight injury before they played Ryerson. Short-term.

3. School day games. Basically a bunch of local schools send classes on field trips to the game. For whatever reason, my school didn't get the memo on this when I was a kid.

1. I am also biased here, but it's not even close. Ryerson has far and away the best team in the OUA West, and should win the division. Nothing spectacular about a team fulfilling expectations for once. Ottawa is a team of 21 year-olds largely recruited from JrA and looks on track to make the playoffs. Grandmaitre over Duco for COY here. Although Hodgins at UOIT and, if their form holds, Gibson at Queen's will also be in the conversation.

 

[Finder24]

1. I am also biased here, but it's not even close. Ryerson has far and away the best team in the OUA West, and should win the division. Nothing spectacular about a team fulfilling expectations for once. Ottawa is a team of 21 year-olds largely recruited from JrA and looks on track to make the playoffs. Grandmaitre over Duco for COY here. Although Hodgins at UOIT and, if their form holds, Gibson at Queen's will also be in the conversation.

I actually wouldn't be opposed to seeing M-A Element in this conversation too. Especially if you factor in recruiting, Concordia is finally starting to come around as a program. However, they haven't been as good this month. There's still time for things to change over there.