Battle Report
Mike Foligno says junior hockey is about developing players, but more importantly about winning hockey games, especially with Ontario Hockey League playoffs right around the corner.
And that's why the Sudbury Wolves GM said his youngest players
have seen less ice time and his best veteran players are being
asked to carry a much greater load.
The Wolves will try and make it three wins in a row on home ice
as they host the St. Michael's Majors tonight, 7:30 pm, at the
Sudbury Arena.
Foligno says the Wolves have won five of their last six games
on home ice because he's decided to play his veterans more.
His team was "inconsistent on a regular basis" over much of the
season because they had a lot of young players in the lineup
and he was trying to give his rookies a chance to prove they
can contribute at the major junior level, said Foligno.
Down the stretch and into the playoffs, it's time to stop
worrying about developing the rookies and start playing his
best players to try and win as many games as possible, said
Foligno.
Those same young players have proven they can play in the OHL
and will have plenty of time to develop over the coming years,
he said.
At this level of hockey, there's a fine line between winning
and losing and the time has come for his core of veteran
players to carry the load and take this team deep into the
playoffs, he said.
"We rolled four lines for much of the year, but we're no longer
doing that...we're going with the guys capable of doing the job
we need to get wins," he said.
Some of the top teams are only dressing one or two rookies each
game, while the Wolves have dressed as many as six or seven for
most games this season, said Foligno.
He's pleased with the progress of the youngsters, but he admits
some of the rookies are not going to see a lot of ice time down
the stretch.
Foligno believes the Wolves core of veterans is as solid as any
in the Eastern Conference.
With only a couple of home games left, he knows his club is
going to have to return to form on the road in order to secure
home-ice advantage for the post-season.
"We're playing well right now and we just want to continue that
momentum down the stretch and ensure we're playing our best
hockey once the playoffs begin," he said.
Enemy Line
Despite having the worst record in the Ontario Hockey League's Eastern Conference, the St. Michael's Majors still have playoff aspirations.
"We're still expecting to win a lot of hockey games the rest of
the way," said head coach Bud Stefanski, noting the Majors have
four wins and a tie in their last 10 games.
With only 39 points in 57 games, the Majors trail Peterborough
by 10 points for the eighth and final playoff position in the
Eastern Conference.
The Majors come to Sudbury tonight with a record of 18 wins, 36
losses, two overtime losses and one shootout loss. This doesn't
include their game at home Thursday against Brampton.
With almost all of their remaining games against teams above
them in the standings, Stefanski said a late-season winning
streak could vault his club into the post-season.
"It's all about getting into the post-season because anything
can happen once you get there," he said.
The team has been playing some of its best hockey of the season
and former Wolves forward Jesse Messier, who was traded along
with Justin Vaive and two middle-round draft picks, for overage
sniper Justin Donati at the OHL trade deadline, has been
leading the way, said Stefanski.
Messier is averaging one point per game over 16 games since the
trade.
"Jesse's not a flashy player, but he's very smart and very good
down low cycling the puck and he knows what to do with the puck
around the net," said Stefanski. "He's fit in quite nicely with
our hockey club, no question."
Messier is turning in a very solid season as he now has 22
goals and 25 assists in 56 games with Sudbury and St. Mike's.
He sits fourth in team scoring.
The Majors have had several solid seasons in succession, but
lost a ton of players last year and Stefanski, who is
completing his third year behind the bench after years of
success in Barrie, realized this would be a rebuilding
season.
Addressing players early in training camp, Stefanski said he
wanted his young players to improve, work hard and compete and
he's pleased with how his team has progressed.
With so many young players in the lineup every night, there
have
been long stretches of poor play, but things have improved dramatically since the beginning of 2007, said Stefanski.
Matt Caria leads the team with 32 goals and 40 assists in 54
games.
