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Saturday, September 12th 2009

Rebuilding or reloading?
Caps begin defence of Kent, Fred Page Cups Sunday

SUMMERSIDE
JASON SIMMONDS
The Journal Pioneer

So, are the Summerside Western Capitals reloading or rebuilding?
The Capitals, who graduated eight players off last year’s Maritime Junior ‘A’ Hockey League Kent Cup winners and Fred Page Cup Eastern Canadian champions, open the 2009-10 regular season at Credit Union Place Sunday. The Dieppe Commandos visit for a 4 p.m. start.
“In the business I don’t necessarily want to rebuild; you try to retool,” said first-year Capitals head coach and assistant general manager Gordie Dwyer of Sea View. “We have a lot of good returning parts.
“We have a lot of character players… It was a big year for them last year and the returning players have learned a lot. We just want to build on those successes starting this year.”
The Capitals start the year with 11 returnees from last season and forward Chad Earle, who led the Caps with 57 regular-season points two years ago, has returned.
Goaltender Alex Dupuis (university) and forward Josh Currie (P.E.I. Rocket) are the only eligible returnees not back.
“We’re going to have a team that can score goals, but basically we’re going to try and outwork the other teams every night,” said Dwyer. “We’re going to have to grind out a lot of games and play up-tempo, in-your-face kind of hockey.”
The Capitals went 2-2 (won-lost) in pre-season play and 16-year-old rookie Darcy Ashley of Brooklyn had a team-high six points (3-3).
Defensively, 2008 draftees Lance Pridham of Montrose and Newfoundlander Cody McNamara, who Dwyer called “junior ‘A’-ready players”, have had strong camps and will join returnees Daniel Whelan, Spencer MacDonald and Parker Deighan.
“I like our mix back there and we still have a few numbers to work out as to who’s going to be in the mix,” said Dwyer.
Paul Dorsey, who backed up Dupuis during last year’s playoff run, will start the year as the No. 1 goaltender. Jared Kelly, who played in the Island Junior Hockey League with Kensington last year, is the other half of the goaltending tandem.
“Paul had a good camp with the Ottawa 67s of the Ontario Hockey League and he’s a returning guy,” said Dwyer. “He brings a little bit of stability to that position.
“Jared had a good camp after a strong showing in Saint John (of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League). He’s going to be pushing for ice time as well.”
As for early-season expectations, Dwyer said he hasn’t set any.
“We’re going to build every day as we go forward,” he said. “I have to get to know the guys a little bit better as hockey players, and they have to buy into our system of hard work ethic and conditioning.
“We want to be competitive and a hard team to play against.”
PHOTO CREDIT- Jason Simmonds/The Journal Pioneer.