"Anything short of a championship this year is considered a failure."
Those are the words from Walkerton Hawks GM Steve Barrett, as the Hawks come off their bye week to enter the Pollock Division playoff fray. The Hawks earned 1st place in the loop again, with 57 points, 10 better than 2nd place Mitchell. Walkerton lost in the finals last year to Kincardine, who were put out in the 1st round by Walkerton's first opponent this year, the Hanover Barons. Barrett believes this might be the deepest team the Hawks have had in years, maybe ever. If that's the case, and there's plenty of evidence to back it up, we just might see another championship banner get lifted in Walkerton.
Looking up front, there's no bones about it; this is the deepest, most balanced offense in the Pollock Division. Walkerton had 5 players post 40 points or better, one of whom was a D-man, and they were again paced by the dynamic brotherly duo of Lauchlin and Spencer Elder. Lauchlin, a former MVP and last year's scoring champ, put up 47 points, good for 4th in the loop, while Spencer tied for 5th with 45. Reid Simmons and Jordan Caskenette each tied for 9th with 40. 11 Hawks had 20 or more points, and an astounding 17 had double-digit totals. Simply put, this offense is scary, deep, and experienced. It will take heroic efforts from any opponent on D and in net to stop this team from filling the net. Factor in the young Maverick Petrie, who won a Cherrey Cup as an AP call-up with Stratford last year, and there's plenty of sand paper and gritty elements to this team, too.
On the blueline, Walkerton arguably has the best 1-2 punch in the league. Josh Hopkin turned in an excellent year, putting up 42 points from the back end. He is complimented by Josh Deyell, who was the defenceman of the year last season, and he turned in another great year, supplying 25 points and all-around rugged ability in his own end. Deeper on D, the Hawks love the physical tools brought by Brendan Welsh, who put up 29 points, making this blue line by far the most potent unit offensively. You can argue other D corps play better shutdown D at times, but there's no argument here when it comes to offensive punch for the blue line; no one comes close. Add in the solid play from the likes of Jesse Schmid, Carter Franks and Cole Walker, who all had double-digit offensive totals, and this blue line has very few weaknesses.
In net, the strength continues, as the Hawks have been thrilled with the play of 17-year-old Ryan Winter. Winter played nearly 1,600 minutes, and in 27 appearances had 21 wins, a 2.24 GAA and a solid .914 save percentage. If not for the presence of league MVP Mathieu Oullette of the Patriots, Winter would have been goalie of the year for certain. Winter is capably backed up by Kallen Macumber, who had 8 wins in 11 appearances and played the bulk of the year battling a nagging shoulder issue. If for some reason Winter falters, or gets hurt, the Hawks know they'll be just fine in the crease with Macumber.
For more on the Walkerton Hawks and their upcoming playoff push, listen to GM Steve Barrett:
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