Pat Payton
Sports Editor
Stratford Cullitons will be icing a much younger squad in 2010-11.
It wasn’t by design, but that’s the reality of Junior hockey these days, where rosters are in a constant state of change.
Some years, the turnover is high. It’s the nature of the beast . . . players move on, some to higher levels of hockey, some head away to post-secondary schools, and others go overage.
Cullitons started last season with a solid core of something like 14 returnees. This coming year, there could be as many as a dozen new faces in their line-up.
This summer, four key players who helped the Tribe reach the Midwestern Conference final last spring made the decision to play Provincial Tier II Jr. A hockey--including two in British Columbia.
The pair heading to Western Canada are centre Cohen Adair, 18, and defenceman Craig Dalrymple, 19, who will suit up for Powell River Kings. Left winger Kyle Wilhelm, 19, and centre Steve McParland, 19, are taking their talents to Kingston Voyageurs of the Ontario Provincial Hockey League.
All four spent two seasons in red, blue and white colours. Adair is from Stratford, Wilhelm from Tavistock, Dalrymple from Kippen, and McParland is from the northern Ontario town of Schreiber.
The four veterans combined for 81 regular-season goals and 204 points last season. Adair and Wilhelm tied for the Cullitons’ scoring lead with 61 points apiece. Dalrymple (19-26) was fourth and McParland (14-23) fifth on the team points ladder.
Adair, Wilhelm and Dalrymple were kingpins on the Stratford powerplay, clicking for 35 of the team’s 72 powerplay goals in the regular-season campaign.
In the team’s lengthy 16-game playoff run, Wilhelm led the way with 18 points (7-11), Adair had 10 goals and 17 points, while the hard-shooting Dalrymple chipped in five goals and 14 points. They accounted for 15 of the Tribe’s 24 powerplay markers in the post-season.
McParland contributed six goals and 11 points in 14 games.
At the team awards banquet, Dalrymple was named the Cullitons’ most valuable player.
Big holes to fill
Jason Lott, the Tribe’s director of hockey operations, says the departure of Adair, Dalrymple, Wilhelm and McParland leaves big holes to fill.
“Yes, we’re disappointed in one sense; it’s difficult to lose players like those four,” Lott told the Gazette recently. “But on the other hand, we’ve done our job and moved them on to a higher level.”
Lott says Adair and Dalrymple have “greatly improved” their chances of landing a U.S. Division 1 scholarship playing in the British Columbia Hockey League.
He noted that five players on the Powell River team last season received Division 1 scholarships. The Kings reached the BCHL final last spring.
“Routinely, that league has at least one or two players drafted in the first round of the NHL draft,” Lott said. “The B.C. league is the best Tier II Jr. A league in North America.”
Lott says Wilhelm and McParland are heading east to Kingston to improve their (D1) scholarship chances as well.
Cullitons received cash in return for all four players.
Youth movement
As a result of losing the four veteran skaters, Lott admits the Tribe will be younger in 2010-11.
“Adair, Wilhelm, Dalrymple and McParland are all No. 1 guys and basically you can’t fill those holes, so we’re going to go with younger guys,” he said.
One of those youngsters coming in is Jake Ryan, a 17-year-old winger, who played last season with New Liskeard Midgets. Ryan’s teammate Mitchell McCrank will also be on the Cullitons’ roster this season after almost cracking the Stratford line-up a year ago.
The Tribe has signed or committed to about 15 players going into training camp at the Allman Arena, which starts Monday, Aug. 16.
“We’ll be inviting a bunch of guys to our camp, with some spots available,” the director of hockey operations said.
Scrimmages next week on Monday and Wednesday run from 6 to 8 p.m.
Cullitons’ first two exhibition games are Aug. 20 and 21 against St. Marys Lincolns of the Western Conference. The teams play Friday in Stratford and the following night in St. Marys, both at 7:30 p.m.
The Tribe has also scheduled home-and-home pre-season games against London Nationals and Strathroy Rockets.
Notes:
• Jason Lott reports that nine or 10 players are returning from last year’s team, including centre Tyler Masson and defenceman Andrew Lorimer, both Stratford natives.
• In the off-season, Lott shipped goalie Cody Vinnai to Niagara Falls of the Golden Horseshoe loop in a straight cash deal. Vinnai has enrolled at Brock University. The Brantford native spent one season with the Tribe.
• Brad McClure (Owen Sound), Nik Knezic (Niagara) and Mitch McIntosh (Erie) will be attending OHL training camps this fall.
• The Stratford Cullitons Hockey Club is looking for billet families for players for the 2010-11 season. For further information, please contact Steve Sealey 519-271-5487 or Jason Lott 519-272-6515.
