This year's Walkerton Capitals want to make a statement.
Building a hockey team is a process, one that also has to be balanced with staying competitive.
For the Capitals, 2023-24 was a vast improvement over the previous season.
The team went from 18 to points up to 40 and this year they are looking to climb a little higher.
“Last year was definitely a step in the right direction, and kudos has to go out to the staff and players,” said General Manager Jordan Turcotte. “They’re the ones putting the work together on the ice.”
Now with a mix of returning players, new additions and first time junior skaters, Turcotte feels they are pushing forward.
One of the biggest questions however, was how they would fill the void in net after Vance Meyer ended his junior career. He was the workhorse, appearing in 30 games.
The answer is 19-year old Noah Lundgren (Owen Sound). He is entering his second season as a junior goaltender, and finished with a 9-4-1-0-0 record with a 2.87 GAA and .906 save percentage in 23-24.
Meyer is staying with the team, as the goaltender coach, and is there to support Lundgren as well as Talan Hope (Elmwood).
The Capitals also lost Graham Gateman (Shallow Lake), who played his final year of junior last season.
But Turcotte was able to put a couple of new names in Capitals jerseys, players that he expects to lead and add to their playbook as well.
Walkerton landed Patrick Brown (Holstein), who played with the Hanover Barons last season. He finished with 27 goals and 66 points on the championship winning team.
Turcotte also bolstered the blueline with the addition of Darcy Scott (Walkerton).
“When those guys step foot into a locker room, they garner some attention,” said Turcotte. “Those two are certainly going to be relied on in the dressing room, from leadership, scoring, to the structure, just guys to lean on.”
Younger additions to the team include Logan Klages, who played Wiarton minor hockey. Alex Grein, who skated with the Saugeen Valley Steelheads, defenseman Owen Breen (Pinkerton) and Riley Foster (Saugeen Shores).
All described as hard working and ready to play by Turcotte.
As for returning players, the group will include two overagers, Owen Troyer (Drew) and Chase Lorenz (Hanover).
Both were part of the leadership team last year, on and off the ice, along with Marcus Ptok (Owen Sound).
And two young defenders will skate with the club for a second year, Josh Johnston (Owen Sound) and Nate Doran (Meaford).
“I can see it from June skates to the August skates, how much they’ve grown in size and skating ability and just overall smarter hockey players after playing a year of junior,” stated Turcotte.
The Walkerton Capitals never really stopped for a break after last year’s first round playoff exit against Fergus. Texts were sent, calls were made, and there was a whole lot of skating from then until the end of August.
And there were new standards set.
“That was something that I said from day one,” stated Turcotte. “That's what we are ultimately trying to create as a staff, we want the buy-in. We want the right guys for the right reasons.”
The Capitals will be led by Kevin Wallace, who will step into his first full season as a head coach, after being an assistant coach last season.
Rory Chappelle returns as an assistant, and he is joined by Jordan Lang and Jake Ireland. Both former junior players.
“I am hoping this year’s hockey team can generate even more buzz than we did last year. We had phenomenal support from sponsorships and fans. And we want to build on that again this year,” Turcotte summarized.
The Walkerton Capitals start their regular season on the road with games in Wingham Friday night at 8 p.m. and in Mount Forest Saturday night at 8 p.m.
The Capitals first home game is scheduled for Friday, September 20 at 7:30 p.m.
For a full breakdown of the Capitals and their roster for the upcoming season, check out the interview with GM Jordan Turcotte here courtesy of Instigating with Clarkey and Drury: