NEUGSIE’S AROUND THE SJHL

By: Jamie Neugebauer
Voice of the ND Hounds

August is done, and the pre-season is well underway! Instead of doing another 10 things for the last couple weeks, I have decided to instead go through the teams in the league, and give my thoughts on their off-season (as far as I’m able to know), some interesting adds and losses, and my key questions ahead of the season. The order will reflect how the regular season shaped up a year ago. Here’s the third installment.

1.     Melfort Mustangs – Key Additions: F-Deklan Whillans (1999), D-Kevin Bachul (2001), F-Alaister Standen (2001), D-Jaden Callan (2000); Key Losses: F-Carson Albrecht, F-Justin Ball, F-Tanner Zentner, D-Kayle Tosh, G-Noah Giesbrecht; Key Questions: The Ball-Albrecht-Zentner line was as good as the league has seen in a very long time; who fills the hole of the enormous loss of that unit? There is no doubt that Shawn Parkinson was excellent in net last year, but he had another star in Giesbrecht along with him; will be able to shoulder the load of being the undisputed No. 1? Will head coach and GM Trevor Blevins be content with a rebuild, or will he splash the cash to kickstart the Mustangs into a contender mid-campaign?

2.     Estevan Bruins – Key Additions: F-Tyler Savage (2000), F-Devon Cyr (1999), D-Tylor Ludwar (1999), G-Keenan Rancier (2000), F-Griffin Asham-Moroz (2001), F-Cal Caragata (2002); Key Losses: F-Michael McChesney, F-Turner Ripplinger, F-Bryce Platt, F-T.J. Irey, D-Johnny Witzke, D-Jake Heerspink, F-Will Koop, F-Trystyn DeRoose; Key Questions: The new crop of Estevan forwards sure are electric, but they are also pretty young; how will they perform when it gets going for real? By all accounts Keenan Rancier has been brilliant in net at Bruins camp, but Kadin Kilpatrick is back, signee Ben Greenlee is around, and Grant Boldt might be coming back from the States…another logjam in the Estevan goal, so who will get the chances? Who will take the leadership mantle with Captain Heerspink and his generation out the door?

3.     Battlefords North Stars – Key Additions: F-Rylan Nivon (1999), G-Austin Schwab (2001), D-Dylan McCabe (1999), D-Liam Antoniuk (2001), F-Steven Kesslering (2002); Key Losses: G-Joel Grzybowski, D-Cody Spagrud, F-MacGregor Sinclair, F-Owen Lamb, F-Braydon Buziak, F-Ryan Gil; Key Questions: The defending champs return a bevy of talent and character, so expectations remain high; but will there be a championship hangover? Will Austin Schwab, the son of ex-NHLer Corey, be the answer to fill the huge shoes of the superstar Grzybowski in goal? Is there enough dynamic offence on this team when push comes to shove? As good as the D-corps should be on paper, the question still remains of how head coach Brayden Klimosko will fill the magnificent minutes of the departed captain Cody Spagrud.

4.     Nipawin Hawks – Key Additions: F-Burke Simpson (2001), G-Scott Bird (2001), D-Cole Nisse (2001), D-Dylan DiTomaso (2000); Key Losses: G-Declan Hobbs, G-Patrick Pugliese, D-Gage Misskey, F-Jaxsen Wiebe, D-Walker Cote; Key Questions: Hobbs was widely considered the league’s best goaltender for the past two years, and Pugliese was not far behind him; is Bird the actual replacement Doug Johnson has in mind? It’s easy to assume that falling in Round 1 to the No. 8 seeded Yorkton Terriers a year ago didn’t sit well with the always-powerhouse Hawks; how will they bounce back? Like Battlefords, how will the Hawks handle the weight of expectation that comes with wearing the Nipawin sweater? Will Jake Tremblay truly breakout offensively, and fulfill the tantalizing promise he has shown in his two years in the league thus far?

(Follow Jamie on Twitter at @Neugsie)