Nepean, Ont. —
It’s been a number of years — roughly one full player cycle — since the Nepean Raiders were a threat to contend for a Bogart Cup in the Central Canada Hockey League.
That fact does not deter second-year Raiders head coach Darcy Findlay as he and his new-look Nepean squad prepare to open camp in two weeks’ time — it provides motivation.
“Our plan is to put the Raiders back on the map, where they were eight to 10 years ago,” said Findlay, a Bemidji State graduate who once starred in the league with the Cornwall Colts. “We’re entering year two of a three-year rebuild — we achieved our goal last season, ended on a high note, and have added some good talent and character players.”
The Nepean bench boss is excited about his team’s blueline, which will be patrolled by a mix of veterans and prep-school additions.
“We’ve added Davis Browning — a prep-school d-man that a lot of teams in our league wanted,” said Findlay. “Combine that with Corey Tam, a fourth-year guy, and Bailey Brant, and we expect our defence to create and contribute.”
A veteran group highlighted by Tam and a pair of 30-point forwards in Malcolm Arseneau and Antoine Belisle should provide the leadership that Findlay and his staff will need to navigate one of the most competitive fields in CCHL history.
“They’ve got a year under their belt, they’ve got a little bit of playoff experience (and) they should start the year with a bang,” explained the Nepean head coach, who also pointed to Connor Warnholtz and Kari Belec as potential break-out players.
There will be plenty of new faces at the Yzerman Arena, most notably Olivier Gauthier; the Ferme-Neuve, Que. native racked up 85 points with Newbridge Academy and could provide some of the dynamic scoring Nepean has lacked in recent seasons.
Former Stanstead College captain Liam Stagg — described as a “little pitbull with a 200-foot game and skill” by Findlay — will also join the Raiders.
In addition to its prep-school pickups, Nepean acquired forward Ryan Horvat in a summer trade with Kanata.
“Ryan didn’t have a great season due to injuries and other things, but he was the leading goalscorer at Stanstead the year before that,” lauded Findlay. “There’s a reason why he was a high-end prospect.”
It’s expected that Matthew Chan, procured from Hawkesbury for a PDF earlier this summer, will carry the load in net for the Raiders.
“He had a 2.5 goals-against as a first-year guy,” said Findlay, “Carrying that into a sophomore season, (I) can only imagine what his second-year numbers will be.”
The Raiders will open their season at the Labour Day Showcase on Sept. 2 at 7:45 p.m. against the Brockville Braves; Nepean will host the Pembroke Lumber Kings in its home opener on Sept. 10 at 2:30 p.m..
