2021 Memorial Cup

[AttackSound]

City council backs Memorial Cup bid

Good to see some other locations be consider for the tournament. As fan of a western conference rival I've seen 3 tournaments dating back to the 2011 tournament hosted by the city of Mississauga.

As a fan who has seen almost every OHL arena at least once in the past 20 plus years a place like the Soo hosting the tournament would be a great location especially the distance between Owen Sound and the Soo. If they offered similar to what Windsor did in 2017 where they had game packages which is similar to most cities hosting would be a big consideration for those who may consider traveling to the Soo.

 

[Saggy]

Be honest....both cities/teams are deserving but it will come down to who passes the biggest envelope under the table

 

[windsor7]

Be honest....both cities/teams are deserving but it will come down to who passes the biggest envelope under the table

Exactly

 

[three dog night]

Be honest....both cities/teams are deserving but it will come down to who passes the biggest envelope under the table

Always does

 

[HockeyPops]

Cup presentations won’t be in person

 

[windsor7]

Be honest....both cities/teams are deserving but it will come down to who passes the biggest envelope under the table

Exactly.
Branch loves the money.

 

[AttackSound]

Be honest....both cities/teams are deserving but it will come down to who passes the biggest envelope under the table

If anyone thinks it isn't about $$ is just fooling themselves. It always has been and will be.

 

[EvenSteven]

If anyone thinks it isn't about $$ is just fooling themselves. It always has been and will be.

That’s why Missy got it when they did. That’s why London got it the second time in 9 years.

And most importantly, that’s why virtually nobody bids for it anymore.

 

[NOA]

That’s why Missy got it when they did. That’s why London got it the second time in 9 years.

And most importantly, that’s why virtually nobody bids for it anymore.

Lol that last part, so true. It’s unfortunate but it’s just another piece of the pie to why the OHL is slowly fading compared to other leagues getting on their level.

The league needs more balance and parity. It’s clear they have their favorites

 

[Generalsupdates]

Lol that last part, so true. It’s unfortunate but it’s just another piece of the pie to why the OHL is slowly fading compared to other leagues getting on their level.

The league needs more balance and parity. It’s clear they have their favorites

As much as it'd be great for the world to be completely even for people who make more and those who don't, the OHL is a for-profit business.

Most for-profit businesses prefer to make money. I can see why they'd make sure that they make money during their biggest event of the season, rather than giving it to someone who's not going to make money for them.

 

[NOA]

As much as it'd be great for the world to be completely even for people who make more and those who don't, the OHL is a for-profit business.

Most for-profit businesses prefer to make money. I can see why they'd make sure that they make money during their biggest event of the season, rather than giving it to someone who's not going to make money for them.

I’m not saying give it to Peterborough in 2014 but there are other teams that at least deserve more of a fair shot at it. I can tell you from personal knowledge, they flat out don’t give a good chunk of teams much of a chance.

For longer term stability, it is important that there is more balance. Even the biggest money maker in the NFL roots for parity. No they ain’t giving a SB to Cleveland but they even cycle through host cities much more than the OHL does

 

[Peter Maclean]

I vote for the soo it can definitely host a memorial cup and deserves it. Best fans and team has a great chance this year with young coaching core. Oshawa is talented too so time will tell

 

[Saggy]

In just looking at the product on the ice TODAY (meaning to start the season), I think SSM is substantially better than Oshawa. If they played a series to see who hosted I’m guessing SSM wins 4-2. Having said that, I live substantially closer to Oshawa and I’d like to go so for that reason alone in voting for Oshawa...lol....when will decision be made?

 

[Generalsupdates]

In just looking at the product on the ice TODAY (meaning to start the season), I think SSM is substantially better than Oshawa. If they played a series to see who hosted I’m guessing SSM wins 4-2. Having said that, I live substantially closer to Oshawa and I’d like to go so for that reason alone in voting for Oshawa...lol....when will decision be made?

You think Soo (who didn't even make the playoffs last year in a league where 80% of the teams do and haven't added anyone of significance since then) is substantially better but would only win the series 4-2? Lol thought you would've said 4-0 if it's such a substantial difference, as you say.

 

[OMG67]

To those that suggest not every team has a fair opportunity to host the Memorial Cup, they are delusional. EVERY team has the same opportunity to host the Memorial Cup.

If the organization doesn’t have the right type of facility, then build one. If the organization resides in a town that doesn’t have the required amenities, then move to one that does.

Having great fan support and a good on ice success is only PART of the equation.

Don’t get bitter, get better.

I am tired of listening to the “small market” teams whine about their lack of opportunity. The population in Sault Ste Marie is 73,000. There is NOTHING around it either to help fuel their attendance. Yet, there they are in the thick of potentially hosting the event.

 

[Saggy]

You think Soo (who didn't even make the playoffs last year in a league where 80% of the teams do and haven't added anyone of significance since then) is substantially better but would only win the series 4-2? Lol thought you would've said 4-0 if it's such a substantial difference, as you say.

I hear what you are saying but they haven’t lost anyone and have a team full of solid (yet not spectacular) 18 and 19 year olds.

I just don’t see Oshawa having that depth

 

[Generalsupdates]

I hear what you are saying but they haven’t lost anyone and have a team full of solid (yet not spectacular) 18 and 19 year olds.

I just don’t see Oshawa having that depth

As of right now I'd agree that Oshawa's forward depth isn't good enough to win. The D depth is there (5/6 are good, could use 1 more) and both goalie spots are taken care of.

But as is the case in any junior season, how a team looks now vs how it looks when the playoffs start are drastically different and Oshawa has the pick capital and young player capital to make a handful of large moves, and Roger Hunt has proven himself to be one of the best GMs in the league.

I look back to the Gens 2015 team that won it all and had statistically the best season in Gens history and that group going into the off-season was:

Josh Sterk-Cole Cassels-Michael Dal Colle
Brad Latour-Sam Harding-Hunter Smith
Jacob Busch-Aidan Wallace-Joe Manchurek
Justice Dundas-Owen McDade-Matt Hore

Josh Brown-Will Petschenig
Chris Carlisle-Stephen Deserocher
Mitch Vande Sompel-Daniel Robertson

Ken Appleby (had never been a starter before)
Shawn Mabley


There's no way anyone would've predicted that roster to finish over .500 but of course they go on to sign Anthony Cirelli, draft Tobias Lindberg and Jeremy Brodeur and then trade for Dakota Mermis, Matt Mistele, Michael McCarrron, Brent Pederson and suddenly that's an entirely different team and the best team in the CHL that year. And the Gens have almost double the amount of 2nd/3rd round picks right now than they did at their disposal in that 2015 season.


To me the biggest indicator on whether or not a team is going to be good is 1) does it have a few studs to build around? and 2) does the team have picks+young players to trade to get to a championship team.


It's very, very rare for a team to be so good that they don't need to make any moves. Just isn't how it works in junior hockey. And based on that I'd think the top 5 teams going into the season would be Oshawa, Mississauga, Windsor, Saginaw and Soo.

 

[Saggy]

I agree with 100% of what you are saying and that is why I put the caveat of TODAY in my original post. So the question still remains, if Soo get to host then does Oshawa make those trades? Conversely, if Oshawa gets to host will Soo have the picks to go all in or just go with what they have. Dont get me wrong, I still think Oshawa is one of the top team in the east but I dont see them being a shoe-in even for their own division...let alone MemCup. Lots of horse trading to go.

 

[Generalsupdates]

I agree with 100% of what you are saying and that is why I put the caveat of TODAY in my original post. So the question still remains, if Soo get to host then does Oshawa make those trades? Conversely, if Oshawa gets to host will Soo have the picks to go all in or just go with what they have. Dont get me wrong, I still think Oshawa is one of the top team in the east but I dont see them being a shoe-in even for their own division...let alone MemCup. Lots of horse trading to go.

To answer your question, yes. Even if they don't get the Mem Cup host, Oshawa is still one of the best teams and surely would be going for it in their last year with Tomasino, Kooy, McShane and Vallati/Ennis.

If Oshawa gets it however I'm not sure the Soo would go all-in. To me it makes more sense for them to go for it the year after as after this year they'd really only lose Trott, LeGuerrier and probably Pytlik. Could see it making sense for them to buy 2-year guys to make a smaller run this year and then a big run next year if they don't get the bid.


You say you don't see OSH as a shoe in for the division, who do you think is good there? Petes will be one of the worst in the league, OTT is losing Rossi, Keating, Garreffa, Hofenmayer, Bahl, Okhotyuk and their hfboards seems to think they'll trade Andree to give the net to Cranley for the first time since he just got drafted and needs to play. Kingston will be an up and coming team but still too young and don't have a goalie imo to make any real noise in terms of finishing 1st in the division. Hamilton is the wild card I guess but I don't particularly like any of their D-men and a goalie combo of Roy and Constantini would really, really scare me if I'm a Hamilton fan and expecting my team to win this year

 

[HockeyPops]

You say you don't see OSH as a shoe in for the division, who do you think is good there?

Maybe he meant the new Covid 3 team division of Oshawa-Barrie-Mississauga?

 

[OMG67]

To answer your question, yes. Even if they don't get the Mem Cup host, Oshawa is still one of the best teams and surely would be going for it in their last year with Tomasino, Kooy, McShane and Vallati/Ennis.

If Oshawa gets it however I'm not sure the Soo would go all-in. To me it makes more sense for them to go for it the year after as after this year they'd really only lose Trott, LeGuerrier and probably Pytlik. Could see it making sense for them to buy 2-year guys to make a smaller run this year and then a big run next year if they don't get the bid.


You say you don't see OSH as a shoe in for the division, who do you think is good there? Petes will be one of the worst in the league, OTT is losing Rossi, Keating, Garreffa, Hofenmayer, Bahl, Okhotyuk and their hfboards seems to think they'll trade Andree to give the net to Cranley for the first time since he just got drafted and needs to play. Kingston will be an up and coming team but still too young and don't have a goalie imo to make any real noise in terms of finishing 1st in the division. Hamilton is the wild card I guess but I don't particularly like any of their D-men and a goalie combo of Roy and Constantini would really, really scare me if I'm a Hamilton fan and expecting my team to win this year

Ottawa may not be a bonafide contender BUT they do look like they are returning a significant roster that can compete at a high level. Combine that with possibly the best coach in the league and an emerging first class development organization and they may be right there with one or two significant moves.

Beck-Hoelscher(OA)-Quinn (1st BUF)
Laforme-Gaidamak-Simontaival (3rd-LA)
Robinson-Tolnai-Clarke (2nd-NJ)
Johnston-Crete-Sirizzotti
Varga

This team should have no issues putting the puck in the net. On top of that, there is still a decent possibility they manage to lure a NCAA player like Peterson (3rd-STL), Kuntar (3rd-DET), Ambrosio (4th-COL) or Bradley (7th-DET). Import, Gaidamak was a first line forward with the under-17 Russian team. Import, Simontaival is a scoring machine running at two points per game at the under-18 level last year and played some pro. He’ll play for Finland at the WJHC as a lock on the top 2 lines.

They are deep on the blueline as well but lack veteran experience:

Rippon(OA)-Matier
Belanger-Costantini
Sawyer-Gill

As of right now they have Andree in net. They won’t trade him for the sake of making room for Cranley. They will need a real serious return.

Andree(OA)
Cranley
Donoso

They also have this year’s draft picks that aren’t even on that chart:
Moldenhauer
Stonehouse
Sirman
Mayich

Don’t count out the 67’s right now. With the NCAA programs pretty much shut down for now and many already announced as suspended for this season entirely, I would think many NHL teams would be seriously pushing a lot of guys to Major Junior if possible.

They need a top pairing D-Man that can put up points and move the puck freely to the forwards 25+ minutes per game to replace a guy like Hoefenmayer. IF they can get that piece, they could do damage.

 

[Generalsupdates]

Ottawa may not be a bonafide contender BUT they do look like they are returning a significant roster that can compete at a high level. Combine that with possibly the best coach in the league and an emerging first class development organization and they may be right there with one or two significant moves.

Beck-Hoelscher(OA)-Quinn (1st BUF)
Laforme-Gaidamak-Simontaival (3rd-LA)
Robinson-Tolnai-Clarke (2nd-NJ)
Johnston-Crete-Sirizzotti
Varga

This team should have no issues putting the puck in the net. On top of that, there is still a decent possibility they manage to lure a NCAA player like Peterson (3rd-STL), Kuntar (3rd-DET), Ambrosio (4th-COL) or Bradley (7th-DET). Import, Gaidamak was a first line forward with the under-17 Russian team. Import, Simontaival is a scoring machine running at two points per game at the under-18 level last year and played some pro. He’ll play for Finland at the WJHC as a lock on the top 2 lines.

They are deep on the blueline as well but lack veteran experience:

Rippon(OA)-Matier
Belanger-Costantini
Sawyer-Gill

As of right now they have Andree in net. They won’t trade him for the sake of making room for Cranley. They will need a real serious return.

Andree(OA)
Cranley
Donoso

They also have this year’s draft picks that aren’t even on that chart:
Mode Hauser
Stonehouse
Sirman
Mayich

Don’t count out the 67’s right now. With the NCAA programs pretty much shut down for now and many already announced as suspended for this season entirely, I would think many NHL teams would be seriously pushing a lot of guys to Major Junior if possible.

They need a top pairing D-Man that can put up points and move the puck freely to the forwards 25+ minutes per game to replace a guy like Hoefenmayer. IF they can get that piece, they could do damage.

I see Ottawa as being a team who can beat anyone on any given night, but aren't consistent enough to be fighting for 1st in the division/conference. They seem like a prototypical 4 seed that can fight to be hosting a home playoff series.

Gotta think either Andree or Cranley will be gone. Cranley isn't going to be the backup for the 3rd straight year. If Andree isn't going, he'll be requesting a trade somewhere to start. STL isn't going to want him sitting on the bench for the 3rd consecutive year.

You're already at a disadvantage getting drafted out of the CHL because teams only have 2 years to decide if you're worthy of an ELC instead of the 4 years you get if you're drafted out of Europe. Cranley won't be letting that go down to 1 year by sitting on the bench again.

Also don't agree with your point on NCAA kids likely coming OHL. If anything the OHL season is way more up in the air than the NCAA is right now for a lot of places. Several conferences have already put their plan out for how they're going to handle it while the OHL hasn't and have had bad rumours about the no-contact. The visuals for the OHL right now would never have a kid looking to leave his scholarship to come here IMO based on the current state

 

[OMG67]

I see Ottawa as being a team who can beat anyone on any given night, but aren't consistent enough to be fighting for 1st in the division/conference. They seem like a prototypical 4 seed that can fight to be hosting a home playoff series.

Gotta think either Andree or Cranley will be gone. Cranley isn't going to be the backup for the 3rd straight year. If Andree isn't going, he'll be requesting a trade somewhere to start. STL isn't going to want him sitting on the bench for the 3rd consecutive year.

You're already at a disadvantage getting drafted out of the CHL because teams only have 2 years to decide if you're worthy of an ELC instead of the 4 years you get if you're drafted out of Europe. Cranley won't be letting that go down to 1 year by sitting on the bench again.

Also don't agree with your point on NCAA kids likely coming OHL. If anything the OHL season is way more up in the air than the NCAA is right now for a lot of places. Several conferences have already put their plan out for how they're going to handle it while the OHL hasn't and have had bad rumours about the no-contact. The visuals for the OHL right now would never have a kid looking to leave his scholarship to come here IMO based on the current state

Ottawa and Oshawa are similarly positioned with respect to draft picks.

Also, if they do trade Andree, it won’t be for a 3rd round pick. They will get a return otherwise they will probably trade Cranley. Donoso is a great young goalie as well. He’s a sizeable kid at 6’1”. His stat lines wherever he’s played have been fantastic.
Max Donoso at eliteprospects.com
The 67’s signed him and he can serve as a backup this season if necessary.

I stand by my assessment. If the 67’s can somehow nail down a top pairing D-Man that can move the puck and Q-B the Powerplay, look out.

We have seen it over and over with the strong London franchise. They breed winners with their strong organization. I think this year will be the 67’s organization coming out party. The last two years were obvious for the 67’s being contenders. This year will be the year the league and those outside the league take notice of how strong the organization is from a professional work ethic and culture standpoint and how that breeds continual success.

 

[Generalsupdates]

Ottawa and Oshawa are similarly positioned with respect to draft picks.

Also, if they do trade Andree, it won’t be for a 3rd round pick. They will get a return otherwise they will probably trade Cranley. Donoso is a great young goalie as well. He’s a sizeable kid at 6’1”. His stat lines wherever he’s played have been fantastic.
Max Donoso at eliteprospects.com
The 67’s signed him and he can serve as a backup this season if necessary.

I stand by my assessment. If the 67’s can somehow nail down a top pairing D-Man that can move the puck and Q-B the Powerplay, look out.

We have seen it over and over with the strong London franchise. They breed winners with their strong organization. I think this year will be the 67’s organization coming out party. The last two years were obvious for the 67’s being contenders. This year will be the year the league and those outside the league take notice of how strong the organization is from a professional work ethic and culture standpoint and how that breeds continual success.

Agree to disagree. I think the 67s are more likely to trade Graeme Clarke than they are to finish 1st in the conference. Good team but not a great team next year

 

[OMG67]

Agree to disagree. I think the 67s are more likely to trade Graeme Clarke than they are to finish 1st in the conference. Good team but not a great team next year

Personally, I actually agree with respect to what direction the 67’s will go next season.

With so much uncertainty linked to the restrictions, only the absolute committed will make significant buyer trades.

For Ottawa, it will depend on how they come out of the gate. IF they have a flashy start, that may make a difference in how they construct their roster for the 2nd half.

I don’t see an early Andree trade. If he is traded it will be more of a deadline deal. I also don't see Cranley causing a fuss either way. I see Cranley getting his two seasons as a 19 year old and an Overage player.

I don’t see Clarke getting traded. He’s an Ottawa kid. I don’t see the trade market hot enough to move these types of guys. I think the buyer teams will have 4 or 5 particular players on their lists and they would be willing to pay for those guys (Jack Quinn being one). I don’t see Clarke being part of that small list.