Expectations getting set as Greyhounds open camp

Opening day went pretty much as expected for Soo Greyhounds general manager Kyle Raftis.

With fitness testing out of the way and the first on-ice sessions in the books, nerves were evident. But equally noticeable was the fitness level of the 56 players competing for Ontario Hockey League spots this season.

“The personality of our kids really shone in the off-ice portion,” said head coach John Dean. “There was a lot of support, a lot of camaraderie. There were a lot of guys digging deep and pushing each other to be their best in each exercise. That, to me, is the important part.”

Dean added that team therapist Julian Cooper was “extremely happy with the results that he saw.”

For Raftis, the fitness testing is about wanting to “see guys take steps.”

“On the younger side of things, you want to see steps from development camp and returning players take steps from where they left off last year,” Raftis added. “We saw that across the board. We were pretty satisfied with that side of things.”

Tuesday afternoon saw the first on-ice sessions of the week, and Dean noted nerves and fatigue being a factor at times.

“It was a long day for these guys,” Dean said.

“You could see a little bit of nerves,” he said. “The second half of the game, the guys looked a little bit tired, but boy did I see a lot of skill. I see a lot of guys capable of playing at this level. I hate using the word potential, but I see a lot of potential in that group and a lot of flashes of great things.”

With practices and scrimmages scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday ahead of the annual red and white game on Friday night, Raftis said there’s lots to play for in the coming days.

“We’re trying to identify the obvious guys that are going to take that step with us,” Raftis said. “There’s a lot of different directions we can go with this group. You want to see some guys who, when we sit down every night, make us say: ‘This is a no-brainer. We have to put this guy on the roster.’”

“There were lots of good flashes from different players today,” Raftis added. “Some players didn’t show what they can really do, and you want to give them the benefit of the doubt and give them a couple of reps.”

Although he’s in camp, an injury suffered late this summer will keep Sault product Evan Roach off the ice for the duration of camp.