Both teams are having solid seasons. The Sea Dogs have the best record in the Canadian Hockey League while the Cataractes are 36-16-2-1 and sit fifth overall in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. But both teams know having a great team this year won’t have as big of an impact on the Memorial Cup Selection Committee as their setup for a strong squad next season.
Shawinigan Cataractes general manager Martin Mondou compared the 2012 versions of the Sea Dogs and Cataractes in the Times & Transcript today.
"We just have two 20-year-olds, (forward Dave) Labrecque and (defenceman Gabriel) Lemieux," said Shawinigan general manager Martin Mondou. "We expect to lose four, maybe five guys. We'll have most of our team back next season.Sounds like draft weekend could be a eventful time for the Cataractes.
…
"Since Christmas, us and Saint John have been the two best teams in the league," said Mondou. "I think they're losing a little bit more than us in terms of quality players (after this season).
"We have one European spot open for next season. We have 11 picks in the top six rounds of the (2011 QMJHL draft). That's the most picks among the four teams who are bidding for the Memorial Cup. We also have some good young prospects in midget AAA. I think we have every tool in hand to have a strong team next season. Our goal is to win the Memorial Cup.
"We have chips that we can use in trades to get the pieces that we're missing. Drafting players won't be something that's important for us this year. All the focus is on acquiring players that will help us build for next season."
Safe to say Shawinigan has full confidence in their team for next season. But there seems to be a lot of unknowns here. Both the Sea Dogs and the Cataractes will have their core players returning. But is having the assets to buy better, impact players that big of a selling point? Who knows.
April 7 can’t come soon enough.
No comments:
Post a Comment