OHL 2017-2018 Season Preview: Western Conference

East look to get back on top after Western Conference wins league championship

Windsor Spitfires

Division: West Division
Coach: Trevor Letowski
2016-17 Record: (41-19- 5-3)

Key Additions:

Kirill Kozhevnikov (46th pick in CHL Import Draft)
Nathan Staios (17th pick in OHL Priority Draft)

Key Departures:

Mikhail Sergachev (Tampa Bay Lightning)
Jeremy Bracco (Toronto Marlies)
Logan Stanley (Manitoba Moose)
Logan Brown (Winnipeg Jets camp/ traded to the Kitchener Rangers)
The Windsor Spitfires had a very interesting run last season. They established themselves early on as a force to be reckoned with in the OHL’s Western Conference, thanks in large part to their stellar defence corps, which included Mikhail Sergachev, Logan Stanley and Sean Day.

Despite having some good offensive prospects like Gabriel Vilardi and Logan Brown, Windsor decided it needed a boost up front.
About halfway through the season, the Spitfires acquired Jeremy Bracco from the Kitchener Rangers, who had been dominating the league to that point. With the added production from Bracco, the Spitfires locked up a playoff spot, finishing second in the West Division and fifth in the
conference.

After jumping out to a 3-1 lead over the London Knights in its first-round playoff series, Windsor lost three straight games and was eliminated from championship contention. However, its season was not over. Being the host city for the Memorial Cup, Windsor was one of the four teams competing for the title of CHL Champion. As the only team to not win their respective league’s title, the Spitfires were seen as the underdog of the tournament.

But they turned some heads when they went 3-0 in the round robin and earned a buy into the championship match. Facing off against the OHL Champion Erie Otters, Windsor completed the Cinderella story, winning 4-3 and collecting the third Memorial Cup in team history.

Top Players:

Gabriel Vilardi (C) – 49 GP / 29 G / 32 A / 61 PTS / 12 PIM / +13
Aaron Luchuk (C) – 59 GP / 28 G / 31 A / 59 PTS / 14 PIM / +9
Kirill Kozhevnikov (C) – 46 GP / 10 G / 16 A / 26 PTS / 71 PIM / +5 – w Khanty Mansiysk (Rus.
Jr.)
Nathan Staios (D) – 16 GP / 5 G / 11 A / 16 PTS / 32 PIM – w Vaughan Kings (Minor Midget
AAA)
Michael DiPietro (G) – 51 GP / 2.35 GAA / 0.917 SV% / 6 SO

Gabriel Vilardi is the highest scoring player returning from last year’s Memorial Cup championship team. After being taken 11th overall by the Los Angeles Kings in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft, Windsor will be counting on Vilardi to lead the way for the team on offence. Aaron Luchuk is entering his fifth season with Windsor. Last year he put up a career-high 60 points, and with the departure of several key pieces, the Spitfires will need the over age player to take another step forward.

Kirill Kozhevnikov makes his North American debut this year, after agreeing to join Windsor, who selected him 46th overall in the CHL Import Draft. Going undrafted in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft, Kozhevnikov needs to have a big year if he wants to hear his named called the second time around. Nathan Staios, son of former NHLer Steve, was Windsor’s first-round pick in the OHL Priority Draft this year. Smaller and more skilled than his father, Staios will be relied on to play a lot of the minutes following the departure of several defencemen from last year’s team.

Michael DiPietro was arguably Windsor’s best player in the Memorial Cup. He was so good, in fact, that the Vancouver Canucks selected the undersized goalie in the third round of the 2017 NHL Entry Draft. His .917 save percentage was good for second in the OHL last year, and
Windsor will need more of the same if the want to return to the playoffs this year.

The first time the Spitfires won the Memorial Cup, they followed it up by winning it again the next year. This time around, thanks to several key pieces of last year’s time graduating to pro hockey, history seems unlikely to repeat itself. However, if Vilardi and DiPietro can have
dominant seasons, then you never know what might happen.

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Posted: Sep 23 2017 6:53 pm
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