Taking on the dual role of general manager and head coach is not an easy job. And there’s no doubt that pulling double-duty is much harder in the WHL and QMJHL because of the breadth of scouting area. It’s much more doable in Ontario, where a large concentration of the best minor players is in close proximity.
Mike Kelly assumed both roles in Saint John in the summer of 2012, following the departure of head coach Gerard Gallant. Much like the Ted Nolan-Danny Flynn duo that led Sault Ste. Marie to three straight MasterCard Memorial Cups in the early 1990s, Gallant and Kelly were brilliant together, taking the Sea Dogs to two straight Cups, winning it all in Mississauga in 2011.
When Gallant left, the dynamic changed. Make no mistake, Kelly is a hockey guy through and through, and his resume speaks for itself. It was understood that Saint John was in a rebuild, and the on-ice product was taking shape. Typically, a rebuild for a CHL team takes 3-4 years and this was Year 2 of that cycle. It’s safe to say that the hockey side was headed in the right direction, however, things weren’t quite as rosy on the GM side. Ultimately, there were four key elements of the Kelly era that likely defined his fate.
1. The Ryan Tesink trade to Blainville-Boisbriand. The deal did not reflect well on the organization or on the league, and created a lot of distrust amongst the other 17 teams in the QMJHL.
2. The curious case of Juraj Siska with the ninth overall pick in the 2013 CHL Import Draft. Siska came to the Sea Dogs with a serious back/neck injury. While there were assurances the injury was not as severe as it appeared, there was no way the Sea Dogs medical staff was going to clear him, fearing further aggravation of the injury may lead to long-term damage. Typically there’s a significant financial investment in European picks, not to mention the hole left in the Sea Dogs lineup at the all-important centre position.
3. Pierre Durepos, arguably one of the top defenders in the QMJHL last year, played out his final season as a member of the Sea Dogs. While the Sea Dogs had no expectations of a deep playoff run in 2012-13, Durepos was not needed and likely would’ve netted a king’s ransom had he been moved.
4. Kevin Gagne, a puck-moving, slick-skating powerplay specialist, was traded to Rimouski last season along with a sixth-round pick in 2014 for a first-round pick in 2013, a sixth in 2014 and a fourth in 2014. It was a decent haul, but someone like Gagne should’ve been able to bring back more. If you consider that ’96-born Cody Donaghey brought back second and third-round picks when he moved from Rouyn-Noranda to Quebec, and Halifax had to give up Randy Gazzola and two first-round picks to get Matt Murphy, one would think that both Gagne and Durepos could’ve advanced the rebuild and given the Sea Dogs assets for the long-term.
Having spent a lot of time with Kelly over his tenure in Saint John, I can say that you will not find a better hockey guy. He won’t be out of work long, and the next organization that hires him will be better off for it. It’s just too bad things didn’t work out for him in Saint John.
In the meantime, Ross Yates was given the title of head coach with no interim tag attached to it. Moving forward, Yates will likely get a crack at extending his tenure in Saint John, but look for the Sea Dogs to split the GM and head coach jobs into two separate roles.
OHL: Teams buying or selling?
The Eastern Conference is so up in the air in the OHL that teams are struggling to determine whether or not to load-up or sell-off. Any team looking to add is almost certainly interested in defencemen, and you can include the Sudbury Wolves in that group.
It’s actually the London Knights that are making things cloudy in the East. Before the season started, it was generally thought that London would hold serve in the West and therefore, winning the East would guarantee a place in the MasterCard Memorial Cup. But looking at the Western Conference, it may not be that easy. Guelph is a powerhouse, Erie just ended an 11-game win streak, Plymouth is traditionally a second-half team and Sault Ste. Marie is big, strong and stingy.
The big Eastern Conference wildcard is Oshawa, where Jeff Twohey is weighing whether or not to go for it, or use some very valuable pieces to build for the long-term.
It’s rare to see the Kitchener Rangers in rebuild mode, but that’s the case for first-year head coach Troy Smith. The Rangers coaching staff is young and energetic and it includes former NHLer Mike Van Ryn, who works with the defencemen. The Rangers were thrown a curve when overage goaltender Tyson Teichmann decided to shut it down.
The North Bay Battalion are averaging over 3,500 fans per game. You have to go back five years to the 2008-09 season to find an average attendance (2,342) in Brampton that was well in excess of 2,000.
Good Day for Gaudet
On Monday, Sault Ste. Marie’s Tyler Guadet signed a three-year, entry-level deal with the Phoenix Coyotes. It’s a great story of persistence.
Gaudet played for the Hamilton Jr. Red Wings during the 2010-11 season before signing with the Gatineau Olympiques for the 2011-12 season. Through 38 games that year, Gaudet had just five points in 38 games. He was cut by Gatineau and waived right through the QMJHL.
Later that season, he signed with Pembroke in the CCHL and ended the season with 16 points in 22 games under then head coach Sheldon Keefe. Last year at this time, Gaudet was playing in Pembroke and working at the local Home Depot. Because of Keefe’s recommendation, Greyhounds GM Kyle Dubas signed Gaudet in December of 2012 and he ended the season with eight points in 34 games. He’s off to a fantastic start this season with 22 points in 16 games played.
WHL: Kids & Constantine
Congrats to Team Alberta for capturing gold at the Western Canada U-16 Challenge Cup. Most of the WHL’s first-round picks from the 2013 Bantam Draft participated.
Coincidence or Constantine? The Everett Silvertips, led by head coach Kevin Constantine, have allowed the fewest goals against in the WHL.
MasterCard Memorial Cup
Typically, the Cup rotates from league to league on a yearly basis. For example, the WHL (Saskatoon) hosted in ’13, the OHL (London) will host this season, with the Cup going back to the Q next year in 2015.
However, there’s talk that the rotation will change slightly in 2017. Rumor has it that after the WHL hosts in 2016, the Cup will go right back to the QMJHL in 2017 so that the OHL can host in 2018, marking the 100th anniversary of the MasterCard Memorial Cup, which originated in Ontario.
Other stuff
I’d say Eric Veilleux got his money’s worth for throwing players sticks onto the ice in a game against Rimouski last week. It did cost him two games behind the bench and $1,000. The Blue Jays could’ve used that arm in the starting rotation this past season.
Best wishes to Marty the Marmot, Victoria’s fun-loving mascot who was upended unceremoniously this past week.
It was nice to see Kelly Harper at the Hershey Centre Sunday. He last worked alongside James Boyd behind the Mississauga bench during the 2011-12 season, but has since taken a job as a scout with the Detroit Red Wings.
Speaking of the Hershey Centre, it seemed like the entire Newport Sports Management staff was in attendance (minus Craig Oster and Pat Morris) on Sunday, forcing LA Kings co-head scout Mike Futa to quip: “It must be team photo day.”
NHL scouts are really starting to talk about Nikolaj Ehlers of Halifax.
Rinknet
Big thanks to Jim Price and the Rinknet family for giving Friday Night Hockey a hand. Rinknet software is used by just about every NHL scout I run into and is the software of choice for the CHL. You can learn more about their products here.
Dougie Ball
Have to throw a plug in there for Dougieball 2 — a charity bowling event hosted by Kingston Frontenacs GM Doug Gilmour. Thanks to the fine folks at BMO, yours truly will do his best to throw a few strikes in support of diabetes research next week. You can find out more about the event here.
Stat Trick: CHL Rookie Leading Scorers
SUBWAY Super Series
The WHL released its roster on Monday. For more information on the series, including schedule and ticket information, check here. Sportsnet will carry all six games, so be sure to check local listings for start times in your area.
Friday Night Hockey
FNH has finally arrived: it’s the Halifax Mooseheads playing host to the Moncton Wildcats later this week. Here’s the schedule for the rest of the month:
November 15: London Knights @ Kingston Frontenacs
November 22: Windsor Spitfires @ Guelph Storm
November 29: Edmonton Oil Kings @ Lethbridge Hurricanes