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Sarnia, ON
– There is no question about the importance of
the 2011-12 season for the Sarnia Sting. After
missing the playoffs the last two years, followed by
a complete overhaul of the team over the summer, it
is obvious that this is a year where missing the
playoffs is simply not an option.
With new
names being brought into the organization that reads
more like an NHL draft class, and the Sting being
ranked 8th on the CHL top 10, the hype around the
city is very much warranted. But without a single
minute of regular season ice time yet to be played,
there is still a question of how far can this years
Sting go, and can they live up to the hype?
"We want
hype here in the city every year, not just this
year," said Head Coach
Jacques
Beaulieu. "With the new regime we want to be
competitive every year. There is always pressure on
coaches to win and we just got to make sure we do
things right and put a good product on the ice."
Though
Beaulieu doesn't put much stock into the Sarnia
Sting preseason where they went 4-1-1, it was a good
indication of the new talent level that has been
brought into the organization over the summer.
Headlined of course by Nail Yakupov and Alex
Galchenyuk, the new Sarnia Sting will feature two
forward lines of NHL drafted, or so to be NHL
drafted players. Reid Boucher played much of the
preseason with Yakupov and Galchenyuk on the top
line before reporting to the New Jersey Devils
rookie camp and looks to be a comfortable fit with
the two Russians, scoring four goals and one assists
in the first four preseason games.
Taylor
Carnevale, Brett Ritchie and Ludvig Rensfeldt will
make up the second line of forwards, all three of
which missed preseason action due to being in NHL
training camps. Ritchie and Rensfeldt have since
returned and will be in the line up come Friday.
But more
importantly through the preseason was the emergence
of bottom talent who stepped into top line positions
throughout the preseason. Charlie Sarault picked up
assists while putting in time on the second line, as
did Craig Hottot who picked up four goals throughout
the preseason. Dominic Alberga also put up six
points for the Sting, and will be a main stay on the
teams third line energy line.
"The kids
are buying into what we are trying to teach," said
Beaulieu. "We are slowly putting some structure in
our game."
On
defence, captain Nathan Chiarlitti will headline a
core of blue lines that had a major rebuild over the
summer. Second round draft pick Anthony DeAngelo
showcased his puck moving abilities throughout the
preseason, while Alex Basso teamed up with
Chiarlitti to create offence and found his name on
the score sheet multiple times. Sarnia still awaits
the appearance of Connor Murphy in a Sting uniform
who is still dealing with a knee injury.
One
unfortunate in the Sting preseason was the injury to
Alex Galchenyuk after hitting a rut in the ice.
Galchenyuk skated on Wednesday and will skate again
on Thursday and the team is hopeful he practices
with them on Saturday. But he has been ruled out of
the home opener against the Erie Otters.
On paper
from top to bottom, this seasons Sarnia Sting looks
as talent as they have showcased so far. But there
isn't a need to get ahead of ourselves, as this
years Sting has just as much to prove, if not more
then any team before it. With Erie on Friday,
followed by a trip to Windsor on Sunday, Sarnia has
a chance to prove themselves early on.
"We still
have a lot of work to do," said Beaulieu. "Hopefully
we are prepared enough to put a good game on for
Friday night."
Puck drop
is at 7:00pm at the RBC Centre.
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@sarniasports.
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