Northern road trip will provide good test, great bonding for Barber Poles
After an up-and-down weekend, the Ottawa 67’s are preparing to return to the ice on Thursday night, when they kick off their northern road swing in North Bay.
It’s not the first time the guys have packed themselves onto the bus this season, they’ve done that a number of times when you include the preseason, but it will be their first hotel stay of the year, opening a great opportunity to grow ever closer.
“It’s nice to spend time with teammates on the road,” said Tuomas Uronen, before sharing that the OHL road trip experience shares many similarities to what he’s used to back home in Finland. “That’s one of the big things with these games.”
The loss in Kingston on Sunday afternoon hung in the air on the return trip, spoiling the quick ride with a humbling lesson – there are no easy games in the OHL.
There’s no rest for the wicked, especially not this upcoming weekend, as the Barber Poles will square off with the North Bay Battalion, Sudbury Wolves, and Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds, who are a combined 9-4-1-1, with the Greyhounds, in particular, potting a whopping 37 goals in their six games.
“They are all playing at efficient paces right now,” Assistant Coach Paul Stoykewych said. “We are expecting physical, hard-working teams. It’s not easy to go into anyone’s building and take two points, so we’re going to go into North Bay on Thursday, and really focus on that one.”
Focusing on each day at a time, the 67’s aimed to solidify a couple of things in their limited practice time this week. They have gone back to basics, using their built-up conditioning as a buffer to spend time walking through their game plan, which Stoykewych says is critical to winning games.
“We have really slowed things down,” he said. “We’ve gone to detail, structure, routes, positioning. Without our structure, we won’t [win games]. We can be as competitive as we want, but if you want to be a good team, it’s in the structure.”
Regardless of whether the games are at The Arena at TD Place or somewhere else, the mission is the same – the Barber Poles are looking to put two points in the bank. Still, there are many things that differ, ranging from sleeping in a hotel, or team dinners at a restaurant.
In his life, Stoykewych has seen many roadies, whether it was with Western Michigan University, or coaching at the University of Ottawa. In that time, he has learned that you really have to look after yourself by eating right, hydrating, and making sure you get those eight hours of shut-eye.
It is a grind, make no mistake, but at the end of every junior hockey career, the stories told the most are often the ones that come on the road.
“I’ve always wanted to come to the OHL, and I always heard about the junior hockey road trips being once-in-a-lifetime,” rookie forward Nic Whitehead said. “I’m excited to get out there and play in front of those crowds. It’s going to be rowdy, but it’ll be fun.”
Without question, this road trip would be a lot more fun for the players if they could get some wins. Earning victories will be quite the task, but it’s something the players are up to.
The game plan is well established by now, and when executed, the 67’s are a dangerous team, as evident by their win over the Wolves last Saturday afternoon. Unlocking that could be key, but continuing to grow as a unit will also be a focus.
“We have to play together,” Uronen said. “We have to play our game, that’s being comfortable with the puck, and making good decisions.”
