Camp opens amid optimism
Posted Aug 31, 2011 05:12:08 AM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
It’s been eight years since the Kitchener Rangers won the Memorial Cup and three years since they were finalists for the top prize in junior hockey.
Sometimes, in a hockey mad city like Kitchener, the time between championships can feel like forever.
“We want to win in this city. We’ve had some success and the plan is to get back there (to the Memorial Cup),” admits Rangers head coach and general manager Steve Spott. “Saying that, it (the OHL) is a very, very good league with good managers and good coaches. We want to win every year. Is that realistic? Probably not. But that is the plan. We want to be successful every year.”
As the Rangers get set to open training camp in preparation for the 2011-2012 campaign, Spott is all too aware of the pressures. He signed a five-year contract extension this summer, a deal that will keep him in Kitchener through the 2016-2017 season. He knows the team can’t possibly win a championship in each of those years but he also knows there is an added expectation that comes with his long term deal.
“I’m not going to rest on my laurels,” Spott says of the contract extension. “If anything, it drives you even more to be successful. We had a very, very good team last year on paper and we came up short. So now you’re driven even more to get back.”
Coming up short in Kitchener means making the playoffs as a third seed in the Western Conference and falling in a first round, seven game series to the Plymouth Whalers.
After falling behind 3-1 in the series, the Rangers would battle back to force a Game 7 on home ice. But a 4-2 loss in that deciding game brought about the premature end to last season.
That was on April 4th. Almost five months ago. 149 days ago, to be exact. And Rangers fans have been following every off-season move with anticipation of the opening of camp today.
Besides the extension for Spott, the Rangers have traded both of the goalies that carried them through last season. Brandon Maxwell was dealt to Sarnia, bringing forward Brandon Francisco into the fold. Mike Morrison was traded to Peterborough, bringing a trio of picks in return. Highly touted netminder John Gibson was lured out of the US National Development Team program and an NCAA scholarship in Michigan to join the Rangers. Jared Gilbert and Josh Sterk were also convinced to join the Rangers rather than go the US college route.
Just another typical off-season in Kitchener.
And today, as the focus from fans becomes even more intense, the pressure is ratcheted up one more notch.
“I feel pressure Sunday afternoon against Brampton when we have the fan festival out front,” Spott says, only half jokingly. “I want to win that game, too.”
That pressure can be tough to handle, even for a seasoned coach like Spott. After last year’s first round loss, he turned to friend and former co-bench boss Pete DeBoer for a little comfort and wisdom.
Soon after, Spott set his sights on preparing this year’s team for what lies ahead.
“Trust me, they (the players) know what Friday nights are like in this building. When you come out of that tunnel, it’s electric,” Spott notes. “The motivation that goes with playing in this city on a Friday night is second to none in this league.”
The Rangers will have Team Blue and White scrimmages starting this afternoon at 5:30 and continue practicing through the week in preparation for Sunday’s game against a real opponent, when the Brampton Battalion come to The Aud for the annual Labour Day weekend affair.
The real season starts with a home date against Windsor on Friday, September 23rd.
