Rangers Report

Doyle, Rogers part ways

There will be a new voice calling the shots on TV during Kitchener Rangers games this season.

Rogers has split with announcer Gary Doyle after five years and promoted colour commentator Ryan Kovarik to take his place.

"They called me a couple of weeks ago from Rogers TV and said 'we've been mandated to save money, so we're moving forward without you,'" said Doyle. "There was no offer to stay."

Doyle worked Rangers games on the radio for 15 years alongside retired play-by-play announcer Don Cameron, before moving to the TV side.

"The Rangers have been a huge part of my life," he said. "I'm really going to miss it, because I love doing it."

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Rangers cut 14 players

The following players were cut from camp today:

Goaltenders: Connor Hasley and Jacob Hearne

Defencemen: Domenico Argento, Shane Donovan, Jesse Masterson and Chase Spencer

Forwards: Reece Bolton, Kobe Desmond, Graham Dickerson, Holden Doggett, Tyler Flack, Ryan O’Hara, Brayden Patricia and Alexander Trenton

Backup job up for grabs

Wanted: a backup goalie.

There is no official job posting on East Avenue, but the Kitchener Rangers are on the hunt for some help in net.

Hip injuries to veteran netminders Luke Opilka and Chris McGonigle mean the starting gig will fall to 18-year-old Luke Richardson.

The Barrie native is the most battled-tested option left. With 24 games over parts of two seasons under his belt, he will get every chance to prove he can be the leading man when the pucks drops next month.

But the backup role? As of now, it's up for grabs.

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Argento hopes to find home at the Aud

Domenico Argento has seen his fair share of hockey rinks.

The Montreal native has played for nine teams belonging to five different leagues across four provinces in the past two years alone.

He's represented the Mooseheads, Montagnards, Cataractes, Cougars, Tigers, Hawks, Cobras, and Islanders.

Now he's a Ranger, at least for three more days, at the minimum.

The six-foot-three, 210-pound free agent defenceman is one of more than 40 players participating at Kitchener's training camp, which began Monday with fitness testing and wraps up Thursday.

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Camp notes:

- Goalie Chris McGonigle continues to work with goalie coach Kain Tisi but the team is moving him along slowly after he had hip surgery.

- Joseph Garreffa was the biggest standout from the morning scrimmage. Players just chasing him all over the ice. Picked up a pair of goals too. He looks great. Swedish forward Rickard Hugg also made a good first impression.

- There is a real sense of excitement for the season ahead. Yeah, every camp is hopeful, but this feels different. Players have high expectations and have a healthy amount of confidence.

- Think big moves don't get noticed? Think again. Every player I've talked to in the past two weeks has mentioned how happy they are to have Logan Stanley on the squad. And all the comments were unprompted. GM Mike McKenzie's big acquisition has certainly registered with the players.

Training camp roster

Goalies:

Signed: Luke Opilka, Luke Richardson, Chris McGonigle, Lucas Pfeil
Picks: Connor Hasley
Free agent: Jacob Hearne

Defencemen:

Signed: Doug Blaisdell, Kyle Gentles, Connor Hall, Grayson Ladd, Alex Peterson, Logan Stanley, Giovanni Vallati
Picks: None
Free agents: Domenico Argento, Shane Donovan, Jesse Masterson, Chase Spencer

Forwards:

Signed: Connor Bunnaman, Cole Carter, Riley Damiani, Joseph Garreffa, Matt Gordon, Eric Guest, Jake Henderson, Rickard Hugg, Adam Liska, Adam Mascherin, Nick McHugh, Greg Meireles, Mike Petizian, Liam Peyton, Dylan Seitz, Jonathan Yantsis.
Picks: Kobe Desmond, Graham Dickerson, Ryan O'Hara, Brayden Patricia, Carter Tresoor
Free agents: Holden Doggett, Tyler Flack, Alex Trenton

Brownie points:

- Goalie Chris McGonigle is back on the ice but will likely sit out training camp as he recovers from hip surgery. The team doesn't want to take any chances by rushing him into action.

- Rangers headed to NHL camps: Connor Hall (Pit), Logan Stanley (Wpg), Greg Meireles (Stl), Luke Richardson (Bos), Rickard Hugg (Wpg) and Connor Bunnaman (Phi). Luke Opilka (Stl) and Adam Mascherin (Fla) will miss their respective pro camps due to injuries.

Rangers duo turns prizes into pizza

First they filled the nets, now they're filling bellies.

Kitchener Rangers forward Adam Mascherin and former teammate Jeremy Bracco will be helping the less fortunate by offering up a pizza dinner at Ray of Hope this Friday.

The duo managed to secure almost $500 dollars worth of pizza by saving the gift cards they received as a prize for being named one of the three stars after home games at the Aud during the past two seasons.

That dough will translate into a hot meal for about 250 individuals and families struggling to make ends meet.

"First of all, I don't think we need to be eating any pizza, so we thought it would be a nice gesture," said Mascherin. "It's something we thought a lot about and figured it would be a good idea to give back."

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Crease up for grabs

The Kitchener Rangers have an immediate opening in net.

Veteran goalie Luke Opilka was set to man the crease but is expected to be sidelined until December after undergoing hip surgery on Saturday in Missouri.

It's the second hip surgery for the St. Louis Blues' fifth-round draft pick in just more than a year.

"First and foremost we're hoping for Luke that his quality of life isn't affected," said Rangers general manager Mike McKenzie. "Hockey becomes secondary when you go through that stuff. But it's tough. We were hoping to have him back in our net."

Opilka has been bothered by a nagging left hip off and on for more than a year, but it flared up while working out with the Blues earlier this summer. When doctors took a closer look, they discovered a torn labrum.

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Burns moves on

The Kitchener Rangers have cut ties with overage defenceman Andrew Burns.

The 20-year-old had five assists in 29 games with the Blueshirts after coming over from the Windsor Spitfires as part of the Jeremy Bracco trade last January.

The Oakville native missed the playoffs with a hand injury.

The Rangers now have three overagers on their roster - D Doug Blaisdell, F Jake Henderson and G Luke Opilka.

Opilka is out after having hip surgery and not expected to return until December.

The Rangers could still add one more OA because of that injury but plan to start the season with the two healthy veterans already under contract.

And just like that, Kitchener now has a manageable seven d-men on the squad.

Key dates

It all starts Monday.

Yes, we're back at it for another season. Here are the deets you need to know.

Monday, Aug. 28: Training camp kicks off with practices at 7 and 8 p.m. at the Aud.

Tuesday, Aug. 29: Scrimmages at 10 a.m. and 7 p.m. at the Aud.

Wednesday, Aug. 30: Scrimmage at 10 a.m. at the Aud.

Friday, Sept. 1: Rangers vs North Bay at Buffalo's HarborCenter at 4 p.m.

Saturday, Sept. 2: Rangers vs. Peterborough at Buffalo's HarborCenter at 4 p.m.

Sunday, Sept. 3: Rangers vs. Erie Otters at Buffalo's HarborCenter at 7:30 p.m.

Wednesday, Sept. 13: Rangers vs Mississauga at Westwood Arena at 1 p.m.

Friday, Sept. 15: Rangers at Niagara at the Meridian Centre at 7 p.m.

Saturday, Sept. 16: Rangers host Niagara at the Aud at 2 p.m. 

Roberts dealt to IceDogs

The Kitchener Rangers blue line is a little less crowded.

The Ontario Hockey League team cleared up a log jam in the back end by trading 18-year-old defenceman Elijah Roberts to the Niagara IceDogs for three draft picks Wednesday.

In return, the Rangers received a second-round selection in the 2020 OHL draft as well as third round picks in the next two drafts.

"It's always tough to see guys go," said Kitchener Rangers general manager Mike McKenzie. "There is only so much opportunities and ice time for guys. We had to try to manage that a bit."

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There is no update on second round pick Michael Vukojevic though, with the Roberts move, landing in Kitchener suddenly becomes a bit more enticing for the top rated defenceman.

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Been getting asked a lot about the Rangers' OA situation. They have four candidates that can return - F Jake Henderson, D Andrew Burns, D Doug Blaisdell and G Luke Opilka.

The latter is St. Louis Blues property and NHL draft picks rarely return to the OHL for an overage season.

That said, it's different with goalies since pro teams only have a certain number of slots within their organization and minor league teams to fit their netminding prospects (teams aren't going to hinder development by sending a prospect to a minor league team to be a backup and not play much).

Sources have told me that the Blues want Opilka back in Kitchener next season. So barring any kind of injury to another goalie in their system or a phenomenal rookie/main camp, expect Opilka to be back at the Aud.

The St. Louis native only played in 31 games this past season due to injuries.

UPDATE: Well this would help explain the chatter about Opilka returning to Kitchener.

Blues goalie prospect Luke Opilka had successful hip surgery and will be sidelined until December. https://t.co/jVfbvkAZsg #stlblues

— St. Louis Blues (@StLouisBlues) August 19, 2017

 

Cup comes home

For a day, it was Stanley's Cup.

Waterloo native Logan Stanley got to trot the Memorial Cup around the region for one day as part of the Windsor Spitfires' extended celebration tour that had the junior hockey crown visit various hometowns of players on the team.

It's the first time a Canadian Hockey League club has taken the trophy on a road trip.

Friday, the polished 99-year-old prize made a pit stop at the Edelweiss Tavern, the Daily Grill and Depth Training in Waterloo before ending up at the Stanley stead.

Depth Training holds a special place in Stanley's heart. It's where he worked to return to the ice — ahead of schedule — after suffering a serious knee injury that knocked him out of action for the second half of this past Ontario Hockey League season.

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Stanley beefs up blueline

Logan Stanley is coming home.

The Waterloo defenceman was traded by the defending Memorial Cup champion Windsor Spitfires to the Kitchener Rangers Tuesday for four conditional draft picks.

The Rangers will part with two second round picks (2023, 2024), a third (2023) and a fourth (2020) as long as Stanley — a Winnipeg Jets prospect — suits up at the Aud this season.

"It's huge for us," said Rangers general manager Mike McKenzie, who will only lose a 15th round selection should Stanley stick in the pros.

"He's a big guy back there and he's going to bring an extra element and presence to our back end."

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Rangers pull trigger on Stanley deal

The Kitchener Rangers just got a lot bigger on the blue line.

The club has acquired defenceman Logan Stanley in a deal with the Windsor Spitfires for two 2nd round picks (2023, 2024), a 3rd (2024) and a fourth (2020) as long as he suits up for one game with the Rangers. If not, Kitchener sends a 15th rounder to Windsor.

The swap was first reported in The Record on April 10. At the time, Rangers management denied any knowledge of the deal.

Stanley hails from Waterloo and grew up watching the Rangers.

He’s listed at 6-foot-7 and 231 pounds and brings instant size and leadership to a Rangers defensive unit that is dealing with the departures of veteran rearguards Frank Hora and Dylan Di Perna.

Stanley, a first round draft pick by the Winnipeg Jets (18^th overall 2016), had 17 points in 35 games for the Spitfires last season.

He missed the second half of the campaign and the playoffs after suffering a knee injury that required surgery this past January.

The 19-year-old wasn’t expected to be back for the Memorial Cup but returned ahead of schedule and helped the Spits hoist the trophy on home ice.

Stanley had a goal and an assist in four Memorial Cup games and stood out as a leader in the back end.

The Waterloo minor hockey product will now anchor the Rangers’ blue line which also includes Connor Hall, Doug Blaisdell, Giovanni Vallati, Elijah Roberts, Andrew Burns, Kyle Gentles, Alex Peterson and Grayson Ladd.

Rangers ink fifth round pick

Michael Petizian won't have to go far to learn from one of his hockey heroes.

The newly signed Kitchener Rangers forward could be playing alongside him next season.

"It's a funny story," said the team's fifth-round draft pick, who made his commitment to the club official by signing an Ontario Hockey League standard player agreement Wednesday at the Aud.

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Rangers add to draft pick stockpile

In the end, the Kitchener Rangers received a good return on their investment.

The Ontario Hockey League team turned holdout prospect Merrick Rippon into a trio of draft picks by trading the 17-year-old defenceman to the Mississauga Steelheads Tuesday afternoon.

And the team was paid handsomely, netting second round picks in 2018 and 2021, as well as a conditional second, third or fourth round selection in 2023.

"We feel pretty good about it," said Rangers general manager Mike McKenzie, adding that the trade conditions are related to next year's NHL draft. "Second round picks are extremely valuable. We're happy with what we got back."

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***

It appears the Rangers aren't slowing down in August. Expect another move today.

UPDATE: Kitchener has signed 2017 fifth round pick F Michael Petizian.

Rippon sent to Fish

Kitchener Rangers prospect Merrick Rippon has been traded to the Mississauga Steelheads for three draft picks.

The Rangers selected Rippon in the second round of last year’s OHL draft but the Ottawa defenceman did not report to the team for personal reasons.

Rippon was committed to Providence College in the NCAA but had  since expressed a desire to play in the OHL.

The 17-year-old was the CCHL’s rookie of the year this past season and some scouting services have him rated to go in the early rounds of next year’s NHL draft.

Kitchener receives two second round picks (2018, 2021) and a conditional second, third or fourth in 2023.

The team would not release the details on the conditions other than to say they will only get one of the picks and that the conditions are NHL draft related (I'd assume the higher Rippon goes in draft, the higher the compensation for the Rangers).

This is GM Mike McKenzie's first trade and he's done well by turning a no-show into three high draft picks.

The Rangers now have three second round picks in next year's OHL draft.