Warrior Watters extols experience
BRAMPTON, Ont. – The camaraderie is what overage left winger Ian Watters will remember most about the 2011-12 edition of the Brampton Battalion.
“It was an unbelievable year, and I’ll never forget it,” said Watters. “This was probably the most fun I’ve ever had playing hockey, and that’s a credit to all the guys on this team.”
Watters saw the end of his Ontario Hockey League career last Thursday night in a 3-1 home-ice loss to the Niagara IceDogs. Niagara swept the teams’ best-of-seven Eastern Conference semifinal.
“That series against Niagara could have gone either way,” said Watters. “We were in all four games and we gave it all we had. At the end of the day, we were pretty happy with our effort.”
The 21-year-old resident of Pickering, Ont., was part of a trio of overagers which included fellow left wingers Brett Mackie and Mitchell Porowski.
“If I could come back for another season I definitely would,” said Watters. “From the coaches to the training staff to all the players, these are such great guys here that you just never want to leave.”
An eighth-round pick in the 2008 OHL Priority Selection, Watters played two games with the Battalion in 2008-09 before joining the club fulltime in 2009-10.
Watters played 161 games over three-plus seasons, producing 45 goals and 52 assists for 97 points while compiling 130 penalty minutes. He skated in 15 playoff games, registering three goals and three assists for six points. His best season came in 2010-11, when he finished second on the team in scoring with 20 goals and 22 assists for 42 points in 68 games.
“Everyone in the organization was so great and so nice throughout my time here that it’s going to be really hard to leave.”
Watters suffered an injury-plagued final campaign, missing 30 games while recovering from three severed tendons in his right wrist incurred in the fourth game of the season, a 4-3 win via shootout Sept. 30 over the host Sarnia Sting.
He scored 16 goals and added 14 assists for 30 points in 34 games, adding two goals and three assists for five points in eight playoff games.
“I knew we had a great team coming into the season. No one thought we were going to be such a good team, but we proved them wrong. We worked really hard, and everybody had that will to win. Nobody wanted to lose.”
Watters, who served as an alternate captain in his final season, embraced the idea of leading by conduct.
“I was honoured to be an alternate captain. I wanted to lead by example by playing hard every shift and always staying positive.
“I tried to help the younger guys and the rookies get used to the league. I think I did that pretty well and I’m proud of my accomplishments.”
Watters, selected as the Battalion’s top overager, also was voted the Don (Hockey) Hadley Memorial Award winner. The award is named for a longtime season ticketholder and is presented by the Booster Brigade to the fans’ favourite player.
