Falcons ready to fly high

The St. Catharines Falcons have set the bar high this season, believing in order to be big, you have to think big.

“I think we’re very excited with our goaltending and the depth of our blueline and with the depth in our forwards and, as a result, the ultimate goal is a Sutherland Cup and that’s what we’re playing for,” Falcons coach Tyler Bielby said. 

In addition to the aforementioned depth, Bielby has also been impressed with the attitude displayed in training camp and pre-season.

“These young men are showing up to get better every day and we as coaches are excited to work with them,” he said. “The first thing was their willingness to compete off the puck which impressed me, especially for a group of young guys. They are very committed to playing the game the right way and that translated very well into our defensive zone coverage in pre-season. As a coach, to feel good about their commitment off the puck this early, it’s just so positive.”

Bielby isn’t quite sure yet if the Falcons will be a team to run and gun and fill the net, or a more traditional defensive-minded squad.

“It will definitely take a little while to straighten out exactly what it’s going to look like,” he said. “We think we’re a young team — maybe younger than times in the past — but an extremely hard-working team with a lot of willingness to learn. That’s shown day in and day out at the arena and has been for the better part of six weeks now.”

The Falcons appear set in goal with former Ontario Hockey League backstop Andrew MacLean and Josh Johnson.

“I couldn’t be happier,” Bielby said. “It starts with two incredible young men as far as their character traits go and they’re both just really good at stopping pucks. I’m very happy and confident with the duo we have going into the season. I know they’re going to support each other and give us an opportunity to win on any given night.”

Bielby likes the club’s mix on defence headed up by captain Joe Colasurdo and fellow veteran Jonah Boria. Toss in newcomer Jordan Schanbacher and rugged Dylan DiTomaso and the Falcons have a good mix on the blueline.

“We think we have a good balance back there of guys who can help us on the offensive side of the puck but also guys who can be true defenders and take care of their own end,” Bielby said.

Trent Glenney, Kyle Glenney and Michael Santini are three familiar returning names up front and Bielby said sorting out the talent will be a work in progress to start the season.

“I think at the beginning we’re going to be by committee,” he said. “We’re really excited with some of the young guys we found in pre-season. For the most part I sent four guys over the bench and everybody found ways to contribute at different times.”

Former Southern Tier Admiral Chris Reid had a good pre-season while Michael Feldbloom, a 19-year-old Thornhill native, displayed one of the best releases in the league. Other newcomers of note are Matt Stranges from the Admirals and Nathan Robertson, a diminutive winger from Elmvale, Ont.

“We’re going to be balanced in our 12 forwards and make sure we’re trying to wear teams down,” Bielby said. “We have a lot of new faces.”

The Falcons gave Bielby a look at their potential with a strong pre-season, although the third-year coach was quick to point out those efforts don’t mean anything come the regular season.

“I’d prefer to take eight pre-season wins than eight pre-season losses,” he said. “However that was something (assistant) coach Greg (Jambrosich) touched on after our last game against Niagara Falls. This is behind us and now we play for two points. It’s a different season. The stakes are higher and it will be a little bit different than what the boys are used to so far.”

The Falcons were slated to open the Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League season Friday at home versus the Caledonia Corvairs, but that game has been cancelled and the Falcons awarded the two points when the Corvairs could not ice a team with all players double vaccinated.

The Falcons will now open Saturday in Fort Erie followed by a game in Thorold Monday.

Goaltenders

Andrew MacLean 

Josh Johnson 

Defence

Jonah Boria 

Joe Colasurdo (C)

Robbie Maulucci 

Josh Riley 

Dylan DiTomaso 

Jordan Schanbacher 

Cal Reesor 

Forwards

Chris Reid 

Nate Shirton 

Michael Santini (A)

Trent Glenney (A)

Lucas Staresinic 

Nathan Robertson 

Michael Feldbloom 

Matt Stranges 

Wyatt Gibson 

Mitch Armstrong

Owen Simpson 

Jagger North 

Kyle Glenney 

Aiden-James Cupelli 

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