The OHL Gold Cup is an import stage in the Hockey Canada Program of Excellence. Players from the OHL Gold Cup are evaluated during the event for a chance to be invited to Hockey Canada’s Under-17 Selection Camp, held annually in Calgary, Alberta.

For just about anyone who loves hockey, especially those who spend most nights in a rink scouting for an OHL Gold Cup team, a skilled player is easy to spot. Finding 20 skilled players who can learn to play together in less than a week is a tougher task. It isn’t just about finding the most skilled players, there is a balance that needs to be struck.

Or at least that is what the Director of Operations for Team OMHA Black and OMHA White believes.

Chris McCleary has been part of the Ontario Minor Hockey Association (OMHA) teams at the OHL Gold Cup since its inception and has worked to refine his process in not just finding players, but creating a team. Take the example of an OMHA championship team and the top players from that roster.

“In the past, we’ve just put all those players on the same team with the idea in mind they already have some chemistry amongst them, they’ve played together, they should be able to do the same thing on [the OHL Gold Cup] team. But we found it didn’t work, for whatever reason putting all of those players on the same team, they didn’t perform to their capabilities,” explains McCleary.

This is also the fifth event for Greater Toronto Hockey League (GTHL) Director of Operations, Tony Visca. He was first introduced to the OHL Gold Cup as a coach, before moving to the operations side. That initial experience has shaped the way he builds a team, as he now likes to start with creative players.

“Our best players that we’ve identified who have gone on to play for the national team, [under]-18, and ultimately the World Junior teams are the most [skilled] but they’re also very smart hockey players,” Visca says. He has also discovered another path to identifying those smart players.

“When we’re getting close to selecting a player I actually go see them in practice, I don’t watch them in games anymore because you want to see their work ethic and you want to see their ability to do things outside of their comfort zone.” 

The OHL Gold Cup challenges players to participate on a team in roles they may not be used to. A top line forward from a club team may now be in a checking role, for instance. And this may not be the last time players face a changing role.

“When [Hockey Canada scouts] identify players they are really looking for the personality, character, hard work, work ethic, all the intangibles that make up a player,” says McCleary. “After doing this a number of years, it makes sense because this is such a short event...so you want people to come in there for all the right reasons.”

At the OHL Gold Cup, those reasons can include playing for Members, Branches, but most of all, a chance to wear the red and white.

By: Lee Boyadjian