Listed here is an exclusive look at the most recently updated camp draft and invite list. This was obtained early this afternoon from the Maineiacs. See below the list for a brief analysis:
No. NAME POS BIRTHDAY HEIGHT WEIGHT HOMETOWN
31 Champion, Nicholas G 5/2/1990 5’11” 156 Labrador City, NL
41 Kennedy, Jordan G 2/17/1993 6’02” 195 Sydney, NS
Makarov, Andrey G 4/20/1993 6’02 165 Kazan, Russia
Piercy, Tyler G 3/29/1992 5’07” 167 Fredericton, NB
3 Evans-Renaud, Zachary D 2/23/1992 5’10” 180 Charlottetown, PE
4 Saab, Ian D 2/8/1992 6’01” 164 Halifax, NS
6 Finn, Samuel D 1/31/1991 5’11” 196 Québec, QC
11 Orrpars, Oskar C 1/6/1992 5’09” 159 Solna, Sweden
15 Henley, Samuel LW 7/25/1993 6’03” 175 Val-d’Or, QC
19 Morin, Pierre-Olivier LW 4/23/1991 6’00” 170 Trois-Rivières, QC
21 Beauvillier, Francis C 10/22/1993 6’00” 165 Sorel-Tracy, QC
22 Fournier, Stefan RW 4/30/1992 6’03” 192 Dorval, QC
23 Brodeur, Étienne LW 3/10/1991 5’09” 183 Varennes, QC
26 Chaput, Michael C 4/9/1992 6’01” 188 Montréal, QC
27 Critchlow, Cameron LW 12/18/1991 5’10” 189 Fredericton, NB
32 Shannon, Zachary D 10/12/1992 5’09” 180 Fredericton, NB
44 Dame-Malka, Olivier D 5/30/1990 5’10” 185 Montréal, QC
55 Carrier, Samuel D 4/28/1992 6’01” 186 Varennes, QC
57 Houde-Caron, Antoine LW 1/16/1990 5’11” 180 Brossard, QC
73 Bissonnette, Matthew C 1/16/1992 6’04” 185 Beaconsfield, QC
97 Tanguy, Jess C 4/7/1992 6’01” 150 Laval, QC
Hird, Shawn LW 4/4/1991 5’10” 175 Lewiston, ME
Huard, Nick C 3/29/1991 5’08” 179 North Bay, ON
Rousseau, Marc-AntoineLW 9/30/1992 5’10” 173 Beauce, QC
Fournier, Dillon D 6/15/1994 6’1″ 160 Dorval, QC
Lalonde, Christopher LW 1/12/1994 5’8″ 177 Mirabel, Que.
Wood, Brayden D 6/28/1994 5’8″ 158 Oromocto, NB
Bibeau, Antoine G 5/1/1994 6’1″ 173 Victoriaville, QC
Kourkoulis, Jay D 7/24/1993 5’11” 190 Dollard-des-Ormeaux, Que.
Caissey, Christopher RW 6/19/1993 6’0″ 155 Campbellton, NB
Anthoine, Connor LW 6/25/1993 5’7″ 170 Lewiston, ME
Godin, Maxime D 2/28/1993 5’11” 208 Miramichi, NB
Athanasopoulos, Sotiris RW 2/1/1993 5’9″ 169 Dollard-des-Ormeaux, Que.
McDonald, Cole LW 6/9/1993 5’9″ 135 Miramichi, NB
Coonishish-Coon, Jonah INV F 10/12/1993 6’04” 220 Chibougamau, QC
From here down, the list switches to first-name first:
JP Harvey INV F 8/26/1993 5’7″ 192 Cole Harbour
Alex Zafiris INV F 9/7/1992 5’11” 179 Halifax, NS
Nick Jordan INV F 3/23/1993 6’02’ 191 Ripples, NB
Matt Myers INV F 7/14/1992 5’09” 189 Montague, P.E.I.
Colton Stairs INV F 1/25/1992 6’05’ 235 Mapledale, NB
Pat Trainor INV F 2/21/1993 5’10” 155 Auburn, MA
Domenico Antonacci INV D 9/4/1993 5’10” 171 St. Lambert, QC
Stephane Leblanc INV D 3/13/1993 5’09.5″ 150 Moncton, NB
Nathan Kelly INV G 5/31/1992 6’0″ 160 Amherst, NS
The first word that pops into my head when looking at this roster is … wow.
The Lewiston Maineiacs are going to make it relatively east for those fans who follow only winning teams to get back into the fold. The amount of talent this team has assembled here is incredible.
Now, the part no one wants to hear, unless it’s for motivation’s sake: Do I think this team can win a league title this season, just based simply on the makeup of this and other teams’ rosters? Probably not. But it’s sure going to be fun to watch these kids get better as individuals, play as a team and work toward proving me wrong.
There are a few other teams in the league that are better positioned to try and win the league title this season, and will likely spend the resources they have to make that happen. Montreal comes to mind. PEI is another, and, perhaps, Bathurst. Rimouski will be interesting, because the Oceanic appear to be ready to “run” with the Maineiacs in 2011-12, but the team appears to be ready now. That will be a team to watch this season.
But the Maineiacs are going to be fun to watch. A youngish team, there is plenty of experience among the team’s 18-year-olds, there is a good core of 19s, three traded-for 20s and some of the top young talent in the world.
The obvious names stick out: Bissonette, Chaput, S. Fournier, Morin, Brodeur. But the additions, particularly Champion, are the intriguing part. Slowly, GM Roger Shannon has assembled a roster of friends, players willing to not only play with each other, but play FOR each other, and play for a common cause. Every player who will make this roster will do so because they have the same goal in mind. The last time I heard something like that was, oh, about this time, 2006.
Now you sprinkle in the rookies: D. Fournier, Lalonde, Bibeau, and even Makarov, and this crop of newcomers is scary to think about a year or two down the line.
I know this is early, but here’s an educated guess as to how the team may look this season. Keep in mind, there will almost assuredly be a camp surprise or two, and a camp dissapointment or two:
Bissonette – Chaput – S. Fournier
Morin – Beauvillier – Tanguy
Brodeur – Critchlow – Houde-Caron
Coonishish-Coon – Huard – Lalonde – Henley – Orrpars
Finn – D. Fournier
Carrier – Dame-Malka
Saab – Evans-Renaud
Shannon – Wood
Champion
Makarov
Bibeau
Send questions/comments to the editors.
