As the Soo Greyhounds prepare for the 2026-27 Ontario Hockey League season, there’s a bit of déjà vu when you look down the potential roster for the new season.
With a number of veterans slated to return to the lineup, things look eerily similar in some ways to what things looked like prior to the OHL trade deadline last season prior to a pair of trades and the return to the lineup of a pair of key players.
“When (Brady) Martin and (Chase) Reid were out and we hadn’t done the (Lukas) Fischer deal yet, it was very similar (to what it is now),” Greyhounds general manager Kyle Raftis said on Monday during the opening day of the Greyhounds development camp at the GFL Memorial Gardens.
“Guys are going to get pushed. There’s going to be some young guys that are going to be able to step in and push some guys and give us some flexibility there. It’s definitely a really good starting core when you drop in five NHL-drafted forwards right out of the gate and see where they can get to, but it’s also about seeing how they gel and with the new coaching staff, you have to let things play out a little bit before you see how it’s going to shake out.”
With main camp slated to start on Wednesday, the Greyhounds will enter camp with three overage players on the roster in goaltender Landon Miller, defenceman Spencer Evans, and forward Christopher Brown.
“Brown had a great year last year, Miller had some good starts for us, but he lost the job in the second half (to Carter George), but he put us in a great situation early in the year, and Spence is that warrior-type for us,” Rafis said. “The conversation with those guys is, when you’re an overage, you have to play meaningful minutes. You have to make sure you’re in the right spot. You can’t just be killing clock.”
Defenceman Brodie McConnell-Barker was also in the mix but recently made the decision to forego a potential overage season in the Sault and will attend Brock University.
With a new rule allowing NHL teams to keep one 19-year-old player with their American Hockey League affiliate, Raftis said Monday that things remain up in the air regarding the status of Martin, a draft pick of the Nashville Predators.
Raftis said there have been limited discussions with the NHL club on what their plan with Martin might be.
“With a lot of changeover there, a lot of things are up in the air,” Raftis said. “At this point, he’ll go to NHL camp and take it from there.”
On-ice workouts officially started for the Greyhounds on Monday with practices at the GFL Memorial Gardens as part of a development camp for new players.
The camp includes players selected in the past three OHL drafts along with a number of free agents.
Raftis said this week’s development camp coming right ahead of training camp was in part due to a lack of potential dates to have it after the OHL Priority Selection in June.
“With the timing of the draft, it put us in a spot where it was tough because USA Hockey camps were starting, Hockey Canada had the Under-17 camp, so we kind of ran out of weekends,” Raftis said.
Raftis added that a development camp happening in May tend to be “a little more laid back” while having it in the days leading up to main camp give the players a chance “to give (the players) a little bit of a chance to get their feet wet.”
“It’s tough when you jump in and you have guys that are NHL picks,” Raftis added. “This year, with having a new coaching staff, it’s important that they’re trying to learn everybody here so the more time you could have with them, it’s beneficial that way.”
Absent from the development camp were forward Alec Walker, a fourth round pick by the Greyhounds in June and defenceman Evan Pahanich, a fifth round pick in the 2025 draft.
Both players are currently playing with St. Andrew’s College as the team competes in a tournament in Germany.
Raftis said both players are expected to be in the Sault by the weekend.
Notes: Working with the goaltenders this week in camp are a pair of familiar faces in OHL circles. Nick Grainger, a long-time goalie coach in the Brantford Bulldogs organization and former OHL netminder Mario Culina have been brought in by the team. Former goalie coach Mark Visentin left the club during the summer to pursue a pro opportunity.