Amidst a yo-yoing late season performance rate, the Portland Winterhawks have spent the last several weeks looking ahead to the 2016-2017 season. Some call this season a rebuilding year, others prefer to call it a “restructuring” year. The latter term implies that rather than try to duplicate the star offensive lines and veteran defensive pairs of the last several years of Hawks hockey, the organization is more focused on shifting their talent acquisition aims to younger, more energetic players and a diverse roster of young men with specific on-ice disciplines.
This plan has been in place for quite some time, in fact; Skylar McKenzie (C) was drafted and signed by Portland in 2013 because of his impressive and consistent generation of points, and then-GM/Head Coach Mike Johnston stated that the 5-foot-7 playmaker’s scrappy energy would make a fitting successor to team leaders Nic Petan and Chase De Leo. Along the way, Johnston and his successor, Coach Jamie Kompon, have focused on acquiring offensively-minded defensemen like Caleb Jones, intimidating forwards like Rodrigo Abols, and quick and flexible goaltenders like Adin Hill.
Keeping with this plan of restructuring through diversity, the Winterhawks signed 16-year-old defenseman Matthew Quigley on February 24. Quigley has shown himself to be an aggressive proponent of two-way hockey, racking up 13 points in 34 games this season for the Midget AAA affiliate of the Lethbridge Hurricanes. His consistent, fast skating will hopefully fit in nicely with the style of defense Coach Kompon is focused on cultivating.
In a similar move on offense, Portland also signed forward Ilijah Colina the next day. Still playing out his 15-year-old season in the British Columbia Major Midget League, Colina will be eligible to wear a Portland jersey next season. That sounds likely, as Colina is the ranked No. 4 scorer in the BCMML with 10 goals and 42 assists, making him another playmaker and potential leader in the future of the Winterhawks roster. Kompon would be smart to build offensive lines out of a combination of youthful potential like Colina and confident veterans like 20-year-old Rihard Bukharts.
Also joining the Hawks next year will be 15-year-old Bradley Ginnell, whose impressive performance this year was spied by Portland scouts and Coach Kompon himself who visited during the recent Alberta road trip. Ginnell has racked up 40 goals and 40 assists in 35 games in the Alberta Minor Midget Hockey League this season. Granted, that’s a different level of competition than the WHL, but his palpable puck control was the real headliner.
Ginnell was drafted by the Winterhawks in the fifth round of the Bantam Draft last year, and at 6-foot and 170 pounds he will surely be a formidable presence against other players his age.
So, with an influx of scoring potential and defensive aggression, the seasons ahead might have more balance than the one currently limping to a close. At the time of this writing, the Hawks have six games left in the regular season and need any combination of five wins or five losses by the Tri-City Americans. Here’s hoping for some valuable playoff experience for our current players at the very least.
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