Sarnia Legionnaires
2009 - 2010

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Team Canada Under 20 Hockey


by Dan McCaffery
special to


Bob Williams (Legionnaires General Manager), Jess Drydak, Tom Knight (Legionnaires President)

Sarnia Legionnaire scoring sensation Jesse Drydak is going to play for his country this spring.

The speedy right-winger has been selected to suit up for Team Canada in the Under 20 hockey tournament set to take place in Sweden later this month.

Drydak is the only member of the Western Ontario Hockey Conference (and one of only two athletes from the entire Greater Ontario Hockey League) chosen for the Canadian team. The rest of the squad, which will be coached by former NHL superstar Dale Hawerchuck, will consist of Jr. 'A' skaters.

Drydak said the honour took him completely by surprise.

"I knew nothing about this at all,” he said. “I was playing road hockey when Bobby (Legionnaire general manager Bob Williamson) called and told me I'd been selected.”

Asked about Hawerchuck, he said, “It's a pretty awesome experience to be able to play for him.”

In fact, Hawerchuck scored 518 NHL goals during a career that include more than 1,100 big league games. More than that, he was on the ice when Wayne Gretzky scored the famous goal that won the 1987 Canada Cup.

Drydak, who turns 19 in July, has just completed a breakout season with the Legionnaires. After collecting 17 goals and 32 points in his rookie year, he led the team in scoring this past winter with 32 goals and 63 points. In the playoffs, he found the back of the net three times and added seven assists for 10 points in just seven games.

The Petrolia native, who lives in Camlachie, gave credit to Legionnaire coach Jeff Perry for much of his success. “I had a lot of confidence going into the year,” he said. “I wanted to be a 'go-to' guy and I had a coach like Jeff Perry, who pushes you to your absolute limits. He really helped me become that player.”

Williamson said the Legionnaires will hold a 'welcome home celebration' for Drydak at the Sarnia Arena on Friday, April 23 at 7 p.m. Tickets are $5 and are available from any executive member or by calling 519-336-8464. All proceeds will go toward offsetting the cost of sending Drydak to Europe.

  • The Legionnaires will hold their annual early bird season ticket sale on Saturday, May 1 at the Royal Canadian Legion on Front Street from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. Team president Tom Knight said prices have been frozen at last year's level, meaning a season ticket holder will see 25 games for a scant $3.96 per contest. “The economy in Sarnia-Lambton is still fragile,” Knight said. “We think it's important to hold the price at less than $4 a ticket.” The first 100 fans to purchase season tickets will receive a prize.

  • The club will start games next season at 7 p.m., a half hour earlier than has been the traditional starting time.

  • The Legionnaires will stage a 'Hockey Day in Sarnia' event in 2011 on the same day as the annual 'Hockey Day in Canada' celebrations. The club is in the planning stages on this event more information will be released in the future.

  • Williamson also announced the Legionnaires will hold their annual mini-camp at the Germain Park Arena on Saturday, May 8 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. More than 80 players are expected to attend, with invitations having gone out to midget, AAA, Jr. 'C' and Jr. 'D' players from across the region. Developing local talent is “what the Legionnaires are all about,” Williamson said.

  • When the St. Thomas Stars made it to the Western Jr. 'B' hockey finals this spring they broke a record that had been held by the Legionnaires for nearly half a century. St. Thomas, which finished in seventh place during the regular schedule, became the lowest ranked team ever to make it to the finals. Prior to that, the 1962 Legionnaires held the distinction, having made it to the championship round after finishing in sixth place. Interestingly, the original Legionnaires made it to the league finals nine times during the 14 years that they operated as a Jr. 'B' team (from the 1954/55 season until the 1967/68 campaign). They won the championship in 1957, 1958, 1959, 1966 and 1968 and lost the final in 1955, 1961, 1962 and 1967. The modern Legionnaires have also made it to the Western final, where they won the 2009 championship.