Article and photo courtesy of the OJHL

Ten Ontario Junior Hockey League teams are getting a crash course at the new OJHL JHPC Summer Showcase in suburban Toronto this week.

Each team is playing four games in as many days at Westwood Arenas, in the shadows of Pearson International Airport in Etobicoke. The tourney, which opened Thursday, ends Sunday night.

“The tournament, conceptually, is for us to view our players, our existing players, our younger players and hopefully our APs to see how they compete at a higher level,” said Georgetown Raiders head coach and general manager Scott McCrory. “It’s not a normal training camp where you’re battling against each other. Now, they’re going to play against other guys who are battling for spots on their teams.”

“You start to see the guys that probably need another year and those guys that are ready to play and the ones who are really close.”

Georgetown is the only team with two entries in the tournament.

Some NCAA scouts are using the event to get an early look at prospects.

Teams are in different places. Some have just opened training camp. Others have been going for a week. Some had teams in the OJHL’s Ontario Junior Development League this spring.

The new-look Whitby Fury are using the tournament as a getting-to-know-you session for all involved.

“With the new ownership and new coaching staff and the turnover of players….We thought it would be a good idea to bring the team together and begin to mould it together a little faster than they did last year,” said Fury head coach and general manager Ryan Ramsay, who played one season in the OJHL.

And after playing three games?

“We’ve got some young guys stepping up,” said Ramsay, who retired in 2015 following a pro career that took him to the AHL, ECHL, Germany and Italy. “The older guys we got (in an eight-player trade) from Pickering have come in and impressed. They’re good kids, going into their third year in the league, so we’ll lean on them for a lot of leadership with the young kids we have.”

Kenny Burrows, the Stouffville Spirit’s general manager and the OJHL’s North/West Conference director, said the coaches he’s spoken with at the showcase were all positive.

“It’s either attend the tournament or schedule a series of one-off exhibition games,” he said. “This format works out well.”

SAVE THE DATES:

Opening night of OJHL 2019-20 season – Sept. 6

The OJHL Governors’ Showcase – Sept. 23-25, Buffalo, NY

- See more at http://ojhl.pointstreaksites.com