2022/23 OHL Preview Part 2 - Western Conference

Part 2 of my season preview is a look at the Western Conference.

Much like the Eastern Conference, I see the West being extremely competitive this year. The only team that I think is heading into the year as a true rebuilder is the Soo Greyhounds. That's bad news for them because the rest of the Conference will be gunning for a title. I'm particularly interested in how the Midwest Division shakes down. Will this turn into a rebuilding season for London or will they find another way to remain competitive? Given the strength of the Storm, Rangers, and Attack, they will be hard pressed to find consistent wins.

1. Flint Firebirds (West Division Champs)

Believe it or not but Flint (by my count) has the most goals returning of any team in the OHL. Yeah, OK, there is some concern that new goaltender Will Cranley will not be able to provide the stability that Luke Cavallin did. But, I'm not sure they need their goaltender to be anything more than simply adequate. This Firebirds team is going to score a boat load of goals. Look for Amadeus Lombardi and Riley Piercey to have huge breakout seasons. Yeah, the defense isn't extremely sexy either. But, I think the Firebirds will address that by adding a veteran fairly early in the year. They know that this is their year and I think they will push their cards all in pretty quickly. I have the Firebirds finishing first because I think that the West Division is a tad easier than the Midwest. Strength of schedule will be the difference.

2. Guelph Storm (Midwest Division Champs)

On paper, the Storm might actually be the third best team in the division behind Kitchener and Owen Sound, but I'm trusting my gut on this one. Part of it is my high opinion of Cam Allen and how I anticipate him becoming one of the league's elite defenders as a draft eligible player. Part of it is how I love the makeup of this roster. There's depth. There's creativity. There's speed. There's grit. The top two lines of the Storm are as good as anyone in the OHL. I also think Jacob Oster takes a nice step forward in the crease. Something else to watch for (and no offense meant to Profaca, McFarlane, and Walker): this Storm team could upgrade their overage group with so many talented OA players on the trade block currently. That would improve their outlook even more. 

3. Kitchener Rangers 

It was a heck of an offseason for the Rangers. They brought in Hunter Brzustewicz, who looks like he can be a top pairing defender for the team. It looks like they hit on both of their Import swings from the last two years as Hamara will definitely play and it all but seems Mesar will too. This team is incredibly talented. The question is...what kind of goaltending will they get? Jackson Parsons and Marcus Vandenburg are relatively inexperienced. Parsons has high end upside as a starter in the league, but is he ready for that role already? Would the Rangers be a potential landing spot for someone like Marco Costantini (at the expense of OA Jack Harper)? Unquestionably, the strength of this team is up front. I have no problem saying that the Rangers have the best top nine of any team in the OHL heading into the season. Carson Rehkopf looks like he's ready to take that next step. Serpa and Valade will be motivated OA's. Pinelli will be trying to establish himself as an OHL star finally. The addition of Mesar would be huge. This team could easily end up as the cream of the crop this year.

4. Sarnia Sting 

I must admit, I am a little bit weary putting the Sting this high. It would be quite the jump for them compared to last year in a very tough Conference. Yet, here I am. It starts in net. Ben Gaudreau is going to prove himself a star this year and he will prove himself to be the OHL's best netminder. The defense isn't going to wow you, but they are a veteran group and that goes a long way in the OHL. Up front, the Sting, by my count, are right up there in most returning goals in the OHL from a year ago. Ty Voit should have a breakout year. They brought in two potential impact imports in Vilmanis and Limpar Lantz. Porter Martone has the skill to be an immediate impact player. You are returning talent and adding to that. 

5. Windsor Spitfires

This prediction is built entirely around the assumption that Wyatt Johnston and Matt Maggio will return. If that's the case, those two should tear apart the league again and the Spitfires have enough secondary talent to support them. On defense, I like Sobolev to have a breakout year. At forward, I like Oliver Peer to do the same. They will have veteran goaltending. But all of this revolves around Johnston and Maggio. If Johnston sticks in Dallas and Maggio ends up playing in the AHL, then things could get ugly and the Spits could be joining the Greyhounds at the bottom of the Conference. This is also a good time to mention that I think the Attack are a better team than Windsor...but again strength of schedule will be important and that Midwest division is tough.

6. Owen Sound Attack

There's some volatility here. This isn't the most experienced team in the league. They enter the year with only two OAs, top defender Nolan Seed, and starting netminder Nick Chenard. However, they are not devoid of talent. How about Colby Barlow? He could easily score 50 this season in his NHL draft year. Then he's surrounded by a group of hard working, competitive players (would you expect any less from an Owen Sound team) like Burroughs, Bryant, Goure, Petrovsky. The real wild card here is Kaleb Lawrence. He's finally healthy and the Kings draft pick will be looking to be a quality top six forward. My only only concern? This team's defense is not big. Can they withstand the constant barrage of the division's top offenses?

7. London Knights

How this season ends up going for the Knights is a huge mystery. Up front, this is not your typical London team. It lacks top end fire power. Denver Barkey has a real chance to lead the team in scoring as a draft eligible player. However, preventing goals should be a team strength. They still have Brett Brochu in net. They have one of the deepest defensive groups in the entire league. Would it be shocking if Dale Hunter embraced this team's identity as a staunch defensive team, bringing them into the top four of the Conference? Not in the least. However, I do think that this is a bit of a rebuilding year that could see London deal Brochu, their other OA's, and other 03's to help them usher in a new era built around Barkey, Dickinson, Testa, Bonk, and perhaps Kasper Halttunen if they can convince him to come over at some point this year. 

8. Saginaw Spirit

The Spirit might just be the most difficult team to predict this season. There's no question that this team is more talented than they showed last year when they were among the league's worst. Injuries decimated them all year long and they didn't have the depth to recover. They can't possibly have that bad of luck again can they? I like the group of '05 and 06's on this team and I think that really helps them this year in terms of handling adversity. Josh Bloom should have a big year. Sapovaliv should too. Goaltending should be a strength with a motivated Tristan Lennox in the fold with Andrew Oke. I think Mitchell Smith has an outstanding overage season in support of Mintyukov. They might be a little young to push up further than a bottom playoff spot, but who knows. Will the real Spirit please stand up?

9. Erie Otters

If Erie wasn't in the Midwest division, I'd feel a lot better about their playoff odds. This isn't a bad team by any means. I just don't think that they are in the same category as the others in that division and that could be trouble. Goaltending is a big time mystery. Who will step up as a go-to offensive player? Is it Malcolm Spence in his rookie year? Is it Terrance in his draft year? Is it returning leading scorer Elias Cohen? The defense is the strength, especially in terms of puck movement. But, again, I just don't see a team that can compete in the Midwest Division. Another year at the bottom of the standings wouldn't be the worst thing. Another top pick to pair with Spence would be huge.

10. Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds

The Hounds are losing seven of their top eight scorers from last year with only Bryce McConnell-Barker (#6) returning. Only two players on this roster have ever scored more than 15 goals in the OHL. That's just not a recipe for success. Look, the Hounds are due for a true rebuilding year. This team has been competitive for so long under Dubas and Raftis. But it eventually catches up to you in the OHL and this is the year that it does for the Soo. They can deal the few veterans they have for some further assets and they can end up with someone like Roobroeck or William Moore at the draft.