Siskins have lost depth and scoring touch: GM
Stayner Siskins general manager Richard Gauthier almost seems glum when speaking about his beloved hockey team. In recent history, the fiery GM has been known to throw bombs at his players and even coaches with a you-or-me attitude.
This season is different. The green and gold are off to a mediocre start, 5-4-3. Gauch, as he is respectfully called, would be looking to improve. He would say, “give it time, they are all young and learning the junior game” or “they’re no good, I’ve got to get the defence bigger and tougher and guys who want to be on the team.”
On Monday, when asked about the team, he simply said, “It’s tough! Lots of kids are going to school and we’re only keeping them for a year… We are average“
He also adds that the team has lost a lot of depth and scoring touch from last season. “We only have one and half lines of scoring punch. [Sean] Healy is hurt. We’re struggling to put the puck into the net.”
Twelve games into the season, Stayner has scored 40 goals and given up 34. Ricky Darrell, the club’s leading scorer, has accounted for 11 of those goals. Only Lucas Jeffery and Kyle Paulitzki have managed to hit the five-goal plateau. Jackson Clarke has four goals, Jordan Taylor three, everyone else two, one or zero goals.
The other thing is that good players are looking to play for a winner and go deep into the playoffs with the prospects of getting a look at by a college or a higher ranking junior league. Barrie is the hotbed that Junior C teams draw from. Considering Alliston is annually in the provincial finals or final four, the Hornets are the number one destination point for a number of players. They also have Darrin Shannon, a former NHLer, as their coach.
“We’ve got to get things rolling,” he points out, speaking about the players, coaches and himself.
This Thursday at the Stayner rink, Midland, who is off to a good start with a 10-3-0 record and tied for first with Alliston, visit the Siskins. Friday night Stayner plays the Kings in Penetang. The Kings are also playing .500 hockey.
A four-point weekend would give the club a big boost and just might get Gauthier from singing the blues to chirping his tough hockey philosophies and beliefs.
In recent games, Stayner played Caledon Golden Hawks twice. On Sunday, Oct. 18, the two clubs played to a 3-3 score and on Thursday, Oct. 22 in Stayner the Siskins lost 3-2.
“We made more mistakes than they did,” he said in reference to the loss to Caledon.
Issac Swanton and Kort Weir scored Thursday’s goal. Creemore’s Jackson Clarke notched two in the 3-3 tie. Ricky Darrell scored the other.
Alex Hargrave is a financial advisor, enjoys outdoor recreation and is an avid sports fan. He writes about local sports, primarily hockey and baseball.
