XMA0319A2001
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PAGE 20 MONCTON WILDCATS COLLECTOR’S EDITION PLAYOFFS 2015 Willam Bower 26 Photo Daniel St. Louis POSITION: Centre BORN: 11/7/1997 HEIGHT: 6’00” WEIGHT: 180 BIRTH PLACE: Saint John , NB Bordering on Success When it comes to building a successful hockey program, you need to leave no stone unturned. When Roger Shannon joined the Moncton Wildcats as director of hockey operations in March of 2013, he knew that every team in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League was scouring Europe for the next big star. He also knew that in order to build a championship team he had to open up a new pipeline for players which turned out to be south of the border. ``Upon joining the Wildcats organiza- tion, our lack of first- and second-round picks in the annual midget draft was a concern,’’ said Shannon. ``Knowing we did not have the assets to acquire these from the other 17 teams, Danny Flynn, myself and the rest of our staff decided not to put all of our eggs in one basket and concentrate on Europe. ``We opted to put as much, if not more, emphasis on scouting and looking at the U.S. market and it became crucial to our success. Conor Garland, Zachary Malatesta, Will Smith, Cameron Askew and Liam Murphy are all high picks so the direction we took seemed to have paid off.’’ Moncton boasts five American players this season, the most of any QMJHL club. The Wildcats had eight players from the U.S. last season. ``When I was general manager of Lewiston, it was a daily requirement to try to educate the U.S. players as to what our game is all about and to what our league was all about,’’ said Shannon. ``Not only the on-ice product, but the off-ice product as well. ``I have had to erase a lot of myths about playing in Canada, the biggest being about education. Many believe that education is not taken seriously in junior hockey. However, the Moncton Wildcats organization makes education its number one priority.’’ Shannon also points out the close proximity to the U.S. based players makes it easier to evaluate the talent. There is no comparison that looking at the U.S. kids is easier than say going to Belarus or Moscow. Those trips require months of preparation. With kids from the U.S., we can see them more frequently and follow their progress.’’ So, what makes Moncton so attractive to players from the United States? ``I’d like to think its the hockey culture we have created and how our organization cares for our players,’’ said Shannon. ``Our goal is of course to bring a championship to Moncton, but we also feel a certain pride when our players get drafted to the pro ranks. ``Let’s face it, the more players we have who get drafted make it easier to recruit players to come here whether its by the draft or free agency.’’ To say that Shannon and his staff are excited about the playoffs would be an understatement. ``We have the ability to make some- thing special happen this spring,’’ said Shannon. ``We have assembled a cohesive unit who are firing on all cylinders and actually believe they can win every night. It’s going to make for excellant hockey when the playoffs come around.’’ ROGER WHITE MONCTON WILDCATS, PLAY BY PLAY ANNOUNCER
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Transcript of XMA0319A2001
Page 20 MONCTON WILDCATS COLLECTOR’S EDITION PLAYOFFS 2015
Willam Bower 26Photo Daniel St. Louis
Position: CentreBorn: 11/7/1997HeigHt: 6’00”WeigHt: 180BirtH Place: Saint John , NB
Bordering on Success When it comes to building a successful hockey program, you need to leave no stone unturned. When Roger Shannon joined the Moncton Wildcats as director of hockey operations in March of 2013, he knew that every team in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League was scouring Europe for the next big star. He also knew that in order to build a championship team he had to open up a new pipeline for players which turned out to be south of the border. ``Upon joining the Wildcats organiza-tion, our lack of first- and second-round picks in the annual midget draft was a concern,’’ said Shannon. ``Knowing we did not have the assets to acquire these from the other 17 teams, Danny Flynn, myself and the rest of our staff decided not to put all of our eggs in one basket and concentrate on Europe. ``We opted to put as much, if not more, emphasis on scouting and looking at the U.S. market and it became crucial to our success. Conor Garland, Zachary Malatesta, Will Smith, Cameron Askew and Liam Murphy are all high picks so the direction we took seemed to have paid off.’’ Moncton boasts five American players this season, the most of any QMJHL club. The Wildcats had eight players from the U.S. last season. ``When I was general manager of Lewiston, it was a daily requirement to try to educate the U.S. players as to what our game is all about and to what our league was all about,’’ said Shannon.
``Not only the on-ice product, but the off-ice product as well. ``I have had to erase a lot of myths about playing in Canada, the biggest being about education. Many believe that education is not taken seriously in junior hockey. However, the Moncton Wildcats organization makes education its number one priority.’’ Shannon also points out the close proximity to the U.S. based players makes it easier to evaluate the talent. There is no comparison that looking at the U.S. kids is easier than say going to Belarus or Moscow. Those trips require months of preparation. With kids from the U.S., we can see them more frequently and follow their progress.’’ So, what makes Moncton so attractive to players from the United States? ̀ `I’d like to think its the hockey culture we have created and how our organization cares for our players,’’ said Shannon. ̀ `Our goal is of course to bring a championship to Moncton, but we also feel a certain pride when our players get drafted to the pro ranks. ``Let’s face it, the more players we have who get drafted make it easier to recruit players to come here whether its by the draft or free agency.’’ To say that Shannon and his staff are excited about the playoffs would be an understatement. ``We have the ability to make some-thing special happen this spring,’’ said Shannon. ̀ `We have assembled a cohesive unit who are firing on all cylinders and actually believe they can win every night. It’s going to make for excellant hockey when the playoffs come around.’’
ROGER WHITEMONCTON WILDCATS, PLAy By PLAy ANNOUNCER
