Greyhounds trio coming together

Enjoying some success heading into the second half of the Ontario Hockey League season, the Soo Greyhounds have found a couple of line combinations that have come together nicely.

One of those lines is the line of Rory Kerins centering Joe Carroll and Cole MacKay.

With roughly 15 games together under their belts, the line settled in and with each player bringing a slightly different element, the trio has found itself being used in a number of different situations.

“We’re pretty close off the ice and it translates onto the ice,” Kerins said. “We’ve been together for about a month and a half now. (Early on) we didn’t play as well. I was kind of worried about us playing together but we did click very well. I’ve never had a line like that where I’ve played with for a long time. It’s really nice to have a (regular) line. We’ve played really well together. We can play against the other teams first line. We can play against their second or third lines. We can score. We can play shut down. We can do a lot of things.”

“At the start, we were just getting a feel for each other,” Kerins also said. “Now, Cole is getting a sense of where I want to be. I’m getting a sense of where Joe and Cole may be and vice verse. We’re just feeding off each other lately and I just think it’s going to get better.”

Carroll and MacKay echoed the sentiment.

“We’re three pretty close guys off the ice,” Carroll said. “We’re talking on the bench all the time and in the intermissions. Now that we’ve been together for about 15 games or so, we really like each other, and it’s been a great line.”

“Macker has the touch around the net so we want to feed him as much as we can and Kerinsy is a great playmaker. He sees the ice really well especially in the defensive zone,” Carroll also said. “I just try to do the dirty work and forecheck for the boys, use my speed to go wide. It’s working out pretty well.”

MacKay spoke of how, once the trio overcame the early adjustments to new linemates, “now that we’ve got our groove going with each other, we know where each other will be on the ice and we’re getting the bounces right now.”

“We’re pretty dynamic,” MacKay said. “Joe is big and that helps. He’s a presence below the goalline and getting the puck out and pushing the pace out of the zone. That makes it easier getting into the offensive zone. Once we’re there, all three of us can move the puck well and also shoot the puck. We’re pretty dynamic coming out of the zone and just maintaining offensive zone time.”

For Carroll, being in the lineup consistently has helped his game and being on a line with Kerins and MacKay has been a positive for all three.

“I was injured for a bit and then suspended so it was kind of hard to get a groove going because I was in and out (of the lineup),” Carroll said. “The last 20 games or so, our line with Macker and Kerinsy have been gelling.”

Greyhounds coach John Dean called the line “a good combination.”

“You have a centre in Rory Kerins who has a really high hockey IQ. He’s always well-positions. He knows how to transport and distribute the puck exceptionally well at this level. You have a guy in Cole MacKay whose competitive level is off the charts. He has one of the best shots in the league and one of the best releases in the league for sure. You put him in a good area and there’s a good chance he’ll put the puck in the net. You match those two guys together and it’s a good combination,” Dean said. “And then Joe Carroll over the last seven or eight weeks has been one of the hotter players for our team in terms of generating chances for himself. Anytime you’re that size, have skill like he does, and can skate, when he puts his mind to it, he’s a tough force. He can forecheck. He can get in on guys' hands. He really disrupts the play for teams trying to break out. When Kerinsy gives him the puck, he’s really good at taking that puck wide and getting inside the dots. It just causes mayhem for the other team.”

“They click well because it’s three different identities that work well together,” Dean added. “It’s been fun to watch.”

For Kerins, the final six games heading into the Christmas break saw the sophomore forward score six times, breaking a drought that saw him score just twice in his previous 16 after a hot start.

The 17-year-old said it was a matter of getting chances but not getting results in the 16-game stretch.

“It started off pretty good then I went through a stretch where things weren’t going in the net but lately, they’ve been going in the net,” Kerins said. “I still think I can do better. It’s all about improving throughout the year and I think I can be better. I’m hard on myself and it may sound crazy to say that, but I still think I can be a lot better.”

“His intelligence is off the charts,” Dean said of the sophomore forward. “If you go talk to Rory Kerins about what we’re trying to accomplish as a Soo Greyhounds team, he’d probably be able to explain it better than I could. He’s one of those guys whose hockey IQ of where to be and reading the play before it happens, he’s a guy that you learn from him a little bit in the things that he’s doing.”

“He’s a pretty special player that way,” Dean added. “Over the last three or four weeks, he’s had a killer instinct with the puck. He’s known as a playmaker. Over the last little while, he’s been a real threat to let that thing rip. And you can see when it’s on his stick that he’s thinking about shooting it first. When you’re a playmaker who is thinking about shooting first, it’s an interesting combination because it’s really difficult for the opposing team to defend. Here’s a guy who likes to make plays and now he’s ripping pucks as hard as he can and if you cheat on him, he’s going to beat you with a pass. He’s really learned to how to balance that weapon.”

For MacKay, a solid second season in 2018-19 is something he’s built on, but personal success isn’t something he’s focused on.

“Just not thinking about it,” MacKay said of his personal success. “It’s secondary to me. We’ve been up and down this year and I’m just more focused on that and getting the team to where it needs to be. I’m just working hard in practice and making sure I prepare the right way and things have been going my way this year so far.”

Dean credited the 18-year-old Sault product for having a good summer and working on his game.

“I give huge credit to Cole in the off-season,” Dean said. “Here’s a guy who scored 27 goals last year and goes undrafted.”

“He decided he wasn’t going to sit and sulk about it and that he was going to go out and do something about it,” Dean added. “In the off-season, he put a lot of time into his skating. And he’s scored four or five goals this year where he’s broken away from the pack, even at the end of shifts. His separation speed (makes it) pretty clear how much work he put in. That extra step this year has really helped him. His shot and his ability to score in those high-danger areas, I don’t think it’s ever going to change. He’s got an elite shot.”

While Carroll spoke of settling into the lineup after missing time early in the season, Dean added that being in the lineup has helped the 18-year-old build some confidence in recent weeks.

“For him to get his reps day in and day out, when you’re in the lineup every day, you start to earn the trust of your coach as well, and he’s been on the penalty kill recently, which is a huge feather in his cap,” Dean said of Carroll. “When you’re involved in special teams and start contributing that way, it’s a huge confidence builder. He’s contributing on a daily basis and now when he jumps over the boards, he feels really good about himself. Joe Carroll feeling good about himself is a heck of a hockey player.”