UDBURY, Ont. — Almost anyone could look good on a line with Sudbury Wolves forward Quinton Byfield, assuming they could keep up with the reigning OHL rookie of the year.
Nick DeGrazia kept up during the Wolves’ orientation camp scrimmage on Sunday and definitely looked good doing it. Sudbury’s first-round pick during the recent OHL under-18 draft scored for Team White on a nice wraparound feed from Byfield, then returned the favour by setting him up on a give and go.
Even more encouraging, perhaps, was that after coaches juggled up their lines, DeGrazia continued to produce, eventually recording a hat tick in a 7-4 win over Team Blue at Gerry McCrory Countryside Sports Complex.
“It was pretty good,” smiled the Thunder Bay native, who only turned 16 this past December. “It was good competition here and it was a good time.
“The first practice yesterday wasn’t my best, but as the game went on today, I thought I had a good game. It was probably just the nerves that got the best of me at first, but I came out better today.”
Byfield, one of three regulars to return for the camp alongside Jack Thompson and Isaak Phillips, also scored on Sunday. Simon Labelle, Ryan Burke and Michael Tiveron had the other goals in a comeback victory for Team White.
Sudbury native Giordano Biondi tallied twice and Samuel Vachon and Philippe Daoust once each for Team Blue. Landon McCallum, the first-round pick in this year’s OHL Priority Selection, had a pair of assists.
While not an official tryout, Saturday’s practices and Sunday’s scrimmage certainly offered a chance for each of the 35 players, whether returning prospects or members of the new draft class, to make a strong impression heading into the summer.
DeGrazia had one of the longest seasons in the group, including a run to the Telus Cup national midget championship with the Thunder Bay Kings. His teammates, forward Nikolas Campbell and defenceman Anthony Biniaris, also attended Sudbury’s camp as free agents.
“I still feel fresh,” said DeGrazia, who was named most sportsmanlike player at nationals. “Of course, it takes a toll on your body, but you just continue playing hockey. It’s fun and it’s what I want to do.”
He may get a good opportunity to do so, come the Wolves’ main camp at the end of August. Sudbury will have a few openings at forward, with the graduation of overage wingers Darian Pilon and Drake Pilon, who are headed to university, and 19-year-old import Adam Ruzicka, who recently signed with the NHL’s Calgary Flames. At least one other 19-year-old forward from this season will suit up elsewhere come 2019-20, as well, to bring the Pack within the league-mandated limit of three OAs.
While there are fewer available spots on the back end, some of the defencemen who skated on the weekend will likely get long looks, as well.
“We’re really happy with what we have seen the last couple of days,” said Rob Papineau, the Wolves’ general manager and vice-president of hockey operations. “The skill level on these kids is really high and it’s the way we want to play. These guys can skate, they can control the play, they’re possession guys and a lot of them, it’s like they have been playing together for a little while, because they have that ability to read the play and they’re smart kids.”
Papineau liked the competitive atmosphere in the Sunday scrimmage, which remained close until White pulled away in the final frame.
“There were even some guys using their bodies a little bit, throwing some checks, and that’s nice to see,” he said. “It is an orientation, but competitive kids are going to come out, in every opportunity they get, and they’re going to compete.”
Sudbury’s GM hopes the players who attended, should they hope to compete for roster spots at main camp, will take the coaches’ feedback to heart and come back both physically and mentally prepared.
“Take what you learned this weekend in a couple of days and now that you know what to expect a little bit more, you can come in a little bit more calm, a little bit more ready for the main camp,” Papineau said. “None of our veteran players are at these camps, so as good as the pace was and as good as the tempo was, the older guys who have been in the league a couple of years are going to bring that up a couple of notches at the main camp, so make sure you go back this summer, work hard and come back as strong as you possibly can.”
Biondi, a 14th-round pick last year, hopes to keep trending upward after a solid season with the Rayside-Balfour Canadians of the NOJHL. While the speedy local product may have surprised some with a 15-goal, 17-assist regular season, after totalling 20 points as a minor midget, he has long been confident with his ability to produce.
“With the numbers I have put up, I felt I would be able to do the same thing coming into this camp,” Biondi said. “I give a lot of credit to my teammates this year. They took me under their wing and helped me a lot, and that definitely helped me coming into this.
“I definitely felt more confident than last year, knowing what I was going into. Playing with Rayside this year helped a lot, playing against older guys and the skill was much higher, I would think, than playing major midget, faster hockey. Like I said, the older guys all took me under their wing and taught me a lot of things, so it helped a lot to make me feel comfortable.”
Though not a Nickel City native, free agent Daoust also felt right at home, and not just because the 17-year-old’s junior team, the French River Rapids, plays the Canadians several times each season. Daoust’s parents are from the Rapids’ hometown of Noelville and he has several relatives both there and in Greater Sudbury.
Having taken a growth spurt to match his skill level and skating ability — he was one of the top performers in sprints on Saturday — the 5-foot-11, 145-pounder would love a chance to play before family and friends at the major-junior level.
“My puck-handling has improved and I think I really set up the play well and I’m patient with the puck,” Daoust said. “I’m hoping that the coaches and the staff really see that in me and they like what I do out there.
“It would be pretty cool to play in the OHL in Sudbury. I have lots of family here and always have a good amount of people who come to support me, so I think it would be a pretty cool scenario if I ever ended up playing here.”
Photo credit: Ben Leeson/Sudbury Star
