Family ties gave Thomas Sirman a “head start” with the 67’s
Coming to the Ontario Hockey League is a big transition from life in minor hockey, and every player prepares for their experience in different ways, but if you have a family member that has gone through it before, it can take a bit of the weight off your shoulders.
Although it’s not a rarity that siblings end up in the OHL, it’s a little less common when two brothers play for the same organization. During his career, Will Sirman spent some time with the Ottawa 67’s, filling an important role early in the season, while NHL camp invitees were away from the club. A few years later, his brother Thomas was drafted by the Barber Poles.
Despite being over four years younger than his brother, Thomas says the two have been inseparable their whole lives, bonding over their favourite sport. Will has become an idol for Thomas, continuously pitching in to help him reach his highest heights.
“My brother is someone who I look up to a lot,” Thomas said. “We have always been close, and involved in each other’s hockey. To see him go through his career [leading up to cracking an OHL roster] showed me the hard work it takes to get there.”
In his CHL career, Will played just two games with the 67’s, but spent enough time in Ottawa to learn what the organization is all about. His career consisted of time with the Windsor Spitfires before coming to Ottawa, and a stint in the QMJHL with the Charlottetown Islanders, before he committed to Queen’s University.
Will’s CHL tenure served as inspiration for Thomas, who watched as many games as he possibly could, always rooting for his brother. When he couldn’t watch, it was typically when he was at his own games or practice, working to climb up the OHL Draft rankings in 2020.
That’s exactly what Thomas ended up doing, but the destination was still unknown. As the third round wore on, he couldn’t watch, allowing Will to take charge of the laptop, where the draft was being live-streamed. When the 67’s came up with the 60th pick, the ruckus began.
“Will called out from the kitchen that it was Ottawa,” Thomas recalled. “He went nuts, I came running down the stairs, because I didn’t really believe him. He knew what it was like here. He said it was a great place to develop, and I was going to get a lot better here. He told me there was no better place to go in the OHL.”
With COVID-19 still raging on, draftees didn’t have the chance to have a typical draft night, and for many, the chance to wear some of their new team’s gear was a months-long wait. In the Sirman household, however, it was readily available.
“He was here long enough that he had all the merch, so we had a full duffle bag of 67’s shirts, shorts, and other gear,” Thomas said. “I had all the gear to associate myself with the team right away.”
Will took the closet raiding as an honour, and was thrilled to see his brother taken by the Barber Poles.
“I didn’t even realize I had [that much gear],” Will said with a laugh. “Within a few minutes of being picked, he had my sweater, pants, helmet, and gloves on in the basement. We took a couple of photos right away, it was pretty special.”
Merchandise wasn’t the only thing Will shared with Thomas that night, though. He laid on the words of wisdom, with full confidence that his brother would succeed at the next level.
“I told him it would be a journey,” Will said. “You’ve got five years, there will be ups and downs, but you have to keep working. I knew he could do it, I told him he has the right mental makeup, the skill, and the poise to do it.”
Will remembers telling Thomas how good Ottawa would be for his career, reminding him of what he got out of his time in the Nation’s capital.
“Ottawa is one of the most pro-hockey-like experiences you’ll get, in terms of organizational structure,” Will said. “It’s a well-oiled machine. It was really beneficial for me as a player. Moving to a big city as a 19-year-old, and playing in a leadership role, albeit in the short term, helped me pick some things up.
Thomas quickly found his footing in the league, but it took some time for his first goal to come. In North Bay, fate changed, and it did so in glorious fashion. Thomas dangled through the neutral zone with the confidence of a 100-point scorer, and beat Joe Vrbetic cleanly, getting his brother hyped up.
“I’m normally quiet when I watch, but that goal had me out of my seat,” Will said. “I never scored a goal that nice in my CHL time, and he did that for his first one. I knew that he could do it, I was just surprised that he would try it.”
The pair remain close, constantly communicating back and forth as much as possible. With Thomas recently making the switch to forward, you can bet that he went to his brother, looking for whatever pointers he had.
