Breadcrumb Trail Links
Published Jun 08, 2026 • 3 minute read
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OPENING LINES
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At this stage of the National Hockey League season — and a hotly contested Stanley Cup final between the Vegas Golden Knights and the Carolina Hurricanes — does anyone in the game look more stupid than the Toronto Maple Leafs? It was, of course, the Maple Leafs — who have not won a Stanley Cup since 1967 — who let homegrown super star forward Mitch Marner walk in free agency …
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Is there anyone who looks more out of place than NHL playoff television host David Amber? Is it just me or does Amber look downright uncomfortable while often wearing an idiotic smile on his face? …
If the first week of regular season play is any sort of indicator there should be plenty of excitement ahead in the Canadian Football League. There were three games played and the visiting team won all three as the Montreal Alouettes edged the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 30-27 in overtime, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers nipped the Calgary Stampeders 30-28 and the Edmonton Elks upended the Ottawa RedBlacks 29-21 …
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Way, way before I ever became a fan of the National Football League I followed the CFL on TV, as a grade school kid no less. My favourite team was Hamilton and my favourite player was Tiger-Cats quarterback Bernie Faloney …
Why do folks get upset with me when I write that so many young hockey players as young as 14 and 15 years old have been — and are — leaving Sault Ste. Marie to play and develop elsewhere? I guess some folks just can’t handle the truth. Kids have been leaving the ranks of the Sault Major Hockey Association in big numbers and with pretty good reason. And don’t blame the kids or their parents for wanting to leave town and play elsewhere. Last time I checked, this is a free world that we live in …
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OHL DRAFT CHIT CHAT
The 2026 Ontario Hockey League priority selections draft will be held on Friday and Saturday of this week in Kingston. And with so many player rankings out there and with so many factors in play, it is not easy to project who is going where, in which order, and in the first or second or even third round.
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There are insiders and outsiders who all have their rankings and while the top two or three picks may be already spoken for, how the entire first round will play out is matter of considerable debate.
Among the surefire high picks are forwards Tanner Adams of the Hill Academy, Kane Cloutier of the Vaughan Kings and Kash Kwajah of the Toronto Jr. Canadiens as well as defenceman Adrian Sgro of Vaughan. (Notably, Adams is originally from Timmins while Cloutier is the son of Danny Cloutier, a former OHL goalie with the Soo Greyhounds who later played in more than 375 games in the National Hockey League, mostly with the Vancouver Canucks.)
Of particular intrigue is forward Colin Kennedy of Sault Ste. Marie, who has spent the past two seasons starring with the Detroit Little Caesars AAA program. Some projections have Kennedy going within the top 10 picks of the first round while others have him going later.
Three of my favourite sleepers as potential second- or third-round picks are sizeable defencemen Max Lappan and Ivan Belikov of OHL Cup champion Detroit HoneyBaked and forward Cole Guizzetti of Upper Canada College.
The only knock on Guizzetti — who, like the aforementioned Colin Kennedy also left home in Sault Ste. Marie at age 14 to develop elsewhere — is his small size, at 5-foot-6, 155 pounds. But that aside, Guizzetti is very skilled, very smart and really strong.
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