Toronto Patriots
Not only did the Patriots drop their Lakeshore name, they dropped their General Manager and Coach Fortier will only have 8 players from last season’s roster. A big overhaul but it is a new era for the Patriots. Fortier is building his team the way he wants and he is taking some gambles with some younger players and pulling in some veteran talent and filling the net with unknowns. In the pipes, Fortier is playing a 16 year old rookie in Emanuel Vella and 18 year old Mat Robson who played in 16 OJHL games with little success. The blueline will have Currie and Kovachis as anchors but surrounding them are 49 games of Jr A experience between 4 defenceman… all 49 belonging to James Sterne. The forward corps is easier to swallow as you still have Jacob Hayhurst, Marcus Rose and Luke Carter amongst others, but again it is about integration of rookies and the veterans helping them adjust. It will be a trying year at Westwood Arena for the Patriots and I imagine life on the road will be tough. Repeat champions? Nope. But a competitive team who will be in many 1 goal games? You bet.
Last Season:
Regular Season: 35-12-3-3 (76 Points, 1st in Division)
Playoffs: Buckland Cup Champions
Players to Watch:
Jacob Hayhurst (F), Kody Gagnon (D), Matthew Cairns (D)