The Saint John Sea Dogs and their fans are extremely familiar with junior hockey’s dreaded cycle. They have lived it plenty of times. Trevor Georgie and Anthony Stella have certainly put their finger prints all over this hockey club. The 2022 Memorial Cup Champions by all accounts had a very solid season a year ago. Obviously, there were some rough nights and a lot of lessons were learned. The Dogs fought hard to stay in games as much as they could especially in the 2nd half of the season. Georgie, Stella and the Dogs scouting staff did a very good job identifying key free agents, imports and have drafted well the last two years. Tons of questions remain surrounding the direction of the franchise over the next few years, but the main focus that the Sea Dogs coaching staff and brain trust need to address is “who will step up?”

When organizations fill certain voids with free agents it’s critical for them to identify which players are going to have an impact for the hockey club down the road and which ones will not. The other dilemma for teams that choose that path and go a little older is their willingness to inject young talent into that line up at the right times, at the right positions.
This isn’t like the wicked unprecedented rebuild of 2017, but the Sea Dogs organization need to identify their core group moving forward and provide them with the support they need to flourish. Another issue that arises when you take the free agent route and inject young talent is leadership and where that leadership comes from.
Obviously, we aren’t talking about the coaching staff. Personally, I think they have done an amazing job since the Memorial Cup victory providing structure, redefining their culture and style of play. The coaching staff needs to be commended for their efforts. That still doesn’t mean they aren’t under the gun when it comes to personnel decisions and pressure to perform. The Dogs are another year older and more experienced is paramount when it comes to the QMJHL, but they still have to find out who “their guys” will be this season and beyond.
Once they find “their guys” they will have to continue to find their identity as a hockey club. They will have to score and defend by committee this season. The ups and downs are to be expected, hell its junior hockey, that comes with the territory.
There’s a solid foundation in the Port City in which to build on, Stella and the entire coaching staff need to take that foundation to a entirely new level to ensure they continue to improve, grow and develop.
When you capture junior hockey supremacy, you need to understand what’s in store. It’s never easy,
The rebuild, or retooling, or you can call it whatever the hell you want to, it’s going to continue in Saint John and building a championship takes time.
Isn’t junior hockey fun?
“Who’s going to step up?”
Time will tell, but rest assured the braintrust in the Port City always make it intriguing.