“If You Ain’t First, You’re Last.”
Ricky Bobby might have coined that famous phrase, but it might apply to the Moncton Wildcats right now. The real question is where do the Moncton Wildcats go from here? The Cats are first in nation. First in the conference, and only trail the Drummondville Voltigeurs by 2 pts for first overall in the QMJHL.
That’s pretty damn good, but it’s early and seriously how much stock does the junior hockey world place on the CHL Rankings?
From a marketing perspective this is a massive win for the Wildcats organization and all of the tireless work that goes into everything behind the scenes. That needs to be said across the CHL, marketing teams and social media content contributors for every organization need their props. They do amazing work trying to grow the game in their individual markets. To be honest, the CHL rankings might now hold water, but if it brings attention to the three leagues then it’s done its job. So, where do the Moncton Wildcats go from here?
There’s a big difference between cockiness, compliancy and confident swagger. The Moncton Wildcats are continuing to build towards what they believe to be something special this season, but there’s still a shit ton of work to do and a lot of questions to be answered before the Christmas break and subsequent trade period.
The Wildcats could use Ricky Bobby’s famous quip and take it to heart. There’s no question the Cats coaching staff will continue to keep the group grounded and hungry heading into the Christmas break, but one area of focus and intrigue could be TOI and how that is spread out.
Gardiner MacDougall is known for shorting things up and keeping a tight rotation within his top 9. As the season progresses it’s going to be interesting to see how the time on ice numbers fluctuate especially as the organization gets closer to the trade period.
The auditioning, feeling out process and chemistry building aspects amongst the forward lines may have currently subsided and are solidified, but you could bet your ass right now the brain trust are still studying, evaluating and projecting the current group while also studying the depth charts of other teams across the league.
It’s early and unfair to start speculating on potential trade targets or perceived holes within the Wildcat line up, but that’s part of the business and if a management group isn’t doing or trying to make the team better each and every day than there going to be late to the party it comes to pulling the trigger. That’s where time on ice becomes an interesting focal point for the group. There’s a big difference between using all four lines, keying in and capitalizing on your depth or showcasing players.
Again, it’s way too early to start building out a “wish list” or putting a 2nd half championship caliber ghost roster together, or is it? As one hockey lifer asked the other day, “I wonder how Mr. Irving getting used to being number one in the country?”
That’s a great question, but one would assume the championship expectations and aspirations are as high as ever and rightfully so, but again where do the Cats go from here?
- “Gardiner MacDougall Consistent”: The group is coming off a statement Quebec road trip, but they’re still working towards what I would coin as “Gardiner MacDougall Consistency” team. Now what the hell does that mean? Well, for instance, a “GMC” team, is relentless and ruthless in all three zones. The Cats are still working towards that, they still have an element of grit and in your face style to add plus better puck management to achieve that type of consistency, but you can definitely tell they’re getting close to that standard.
- The D Corps: The D corps are playing great and gaining more and more confidence, composure and consistency, but they will need to continue to get better and better. They are working towards a higher standard of play and they will undoubtedly get there. You see that standard was set with the hiring of Paul Boutilier. “Boots” works wonders with defencemen at all levels of the game and is a masterful communicator. Believe it or not the Cats D corps still have a lot more to give and contribute especially if they want to go where they want to go, but let me tell you one thing, this group of D have drastically turned things around from the playoffs a season ago to now.
“If you ain’t first, you’re last.”
The Moncton Wildcats are still 1st in many categories right now, but the main goal is being the last team standing hoisting a Cup in Rimouski.
FDS Sports Blog 