OHL Finals Preview – Majors vs. Attack

The Mississauga St. Michael’s Majors and Owen Sound Attack will be looking for a chance to hoist the Ontario Hockey League Championship trophy for the first time in team history, beginning Tuesday night in Mississauga at the Hershey Center.

The Majors captured their first Bobby Orr Trophy as Eastern Conference Champions with a 4-1 series win over the Niagara IceDogs and advanced to the Rogers OHL Championship Series for the first time since 1962 when they competed as the St. Michael’s College Majors.

The Attack also captured their first Western Conference Championship title earning the Wayne Gretzky Trophy and will be the first Owen Sound based team to ever compete for the Robertson Cup.  The Guelph Platers, who relocated to Owen Sound in 1989, last appeared in the OHL Finals and captured the title in 1986.

Season Series

The last time the Majors and Attack met, there was snow still on the ground and people were beginning to Christmas shop.

That was November 28th, in Mississauga, and the Majors came away with a 6-3 victory, and their eighth win of the month.  It was a month in which they went 11-1, including a 4-2 victory in their only trip to Owen Sound.

Changes Since Then…

The trade deadline passed, and both teams added pieces to their respective puzzles for the anticipated long playoff runs.

Owen Sound added defenceman Jay Gilbert from the Plymouth Whalers and goaltender Michael Zador from the Oshawa Generals.

Mississauga beefed up their offence, adding Chris DeSousa, and their defence, acquiring Michael D’Orazio, both from London.  As well, they received another gift, as Russian forward Maxim Kitsyn left the Kontinental Hockey League to join the team.

Players to Watch in Series

Mississauga St. Michaels Majors

Maxim Kitsyn

Kitsyn, who left the Kontinental Hockey League after the World Junior Championships to join the Majors, leads the team in playoff scoring.  In 13 games played, he has 7 goals and 14 points with 10 PIMs.  A treat to watch in the offensive zone with his dynamic skill, coach Dave Cameron has been preaching defence to the Russian forward.  His transition this from January until now has been great to watch.

Stuart Percy

One of the Majors’ most complete players, Percy is a defenceman to keep your eye on.  Ranked 53rd by Central Scouting for the upcoming NHL Draft, Percy is relied heavily on by coach Dave Cameron.  One of their best skaters on the back end, he rarely gets caught in a bad situation, or turns the puck over.  While not know for his offensive game (1G, 4PTS in playoffs), Percy is an effective player in all aspects of the game and will need to continue his solid play.

JP Anderson

Anderson has been lights out these entire playoffs.  Having played in all 13 games for the Majors so far, Anderson has posted four shutouts – two off his six from the regular season – a .931 SV%, and a 1.68 GAA in the team’s 12 wins.  Undrafted, Anderson was also cut from the Canadian World Junior team this year.  The goalie advantage in this series goes to the Majors.

Owen Sound Attack

Andrew Shaw

This year’s playoffs have been a coming out party of sorts for the 19-year old forward.  Traded from Niagara in the off-season, Shaw is another undrafted player in this series worth keeping an eye on.  Shaw is one of the top scorers on the team (8G, 15 PTS), which is quite the accomplishment when playing with the likes of captain Garrett Wilson and Joey Hishon. Shaw was named the OHL’s Hardest Working Player this season, and he has continued that into the playoffs.

Jesse Blacker

A draft pick of the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2009, Blacker is the rock of the Attack defensive corps.   After requesting a trade from the Windsor Spitfires due to lack of playing time, Blacker has been leaned on all season to play in most situations, and he has thrived with the additional responsibility.  In the playoffs, Blacker is the leading point producing defenseman for the Attack (4G, 12 PTS) and he will need to continue his solid play if the Attack expect to beat the Majors.

Keevin Cutting

One of the biggest movers in Central Scouting’s top-100 North American skaters, Cutting goes into this year’s draft ranked 87th, up from 92nd.  Playing on the second defensive pairing, Cutting is going to need to take advantage of the exposure the OHL finals give to turn some heads.  Like Percy, Cutting is a smart player who makes a great first pass out of his own zone, and for a young player, is very calm under pressure.  While his offensive side has been questioned, he plays sparingly on the power-play, as Blacker and Matt Stanisz take most of the two minutes.  He will be in tough against Mississauga, as they throw three great lines of the boards that can hurt a team at any time.  If he plays well, look for his draft stock to rise come June.

Pre-Series Sound Bytes

Both coaches were asked, having not played each other a whole lot during the season, what the biggest components were for their teams to be successful.

“It’s going to come down to execution and who can perform.  You hope the other factors you can’t control, like injuries, and the hockey gods shining on you, hitting the post and goes in, or hits the post and goes out, things like that.  The number one thing from our poitn of view is execution.” – Dave Cameron (MIS)

“Execution is the key.  This is a business of performance on demand.  That’s what we’ve ben asking our players to do since day one.  They need to be prepared to respond and perform the right way.  What it really boils down to is execution, battles, heart and desire.” – Mark Reeds (OS)

Series Schedule

The series kicks off Tuesday in Mississauga, with game two set for Thursday in Owen Sound.  The schedule goes as follows…

Game 1 – Tuesday May 3 at 7:00 pm at Mississauga

Game 2 -  Thursday May 5 at 7:00 pm at Owen Sound

Game 3 – Friday May 6 at 7:30 pm at Mississauga

Game 4 – Sunday May 8 at 4:30 pm at Owen Sound

Game 5 – Tuesday May 10 at 7:00 pm at Mississauga*

Game 6 – Thursday May 12 at 7:00 pm at Owen Sound*

Game 7 – Sunday May 15 at 2:00 pm at Mississauga*

*if necessary