Hockey club may register best season with Native players

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Now there are two Native players on one of Canada's most talked about junior hockey franchises.

Nathan O'Nabigon is a third-year left winger with the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) franchise. The club's roster also includes rookie defenceman Ian Maracle.

They both play for the Mississauga-based IceDogs team.

The IceDogs finished at the bottom of the standings in the 20-team OHL during their first four seasons of operations. Yet the club made plenty of headlines.

That's because the IceDogs had Don Cherry, perhaps the most recognizable face in Canadian hockey, in their corner. Cherry, who is legendary for his Coach's Corner segment on Hockey Night in Canada broadcasts, was previously an IceDogs' co-owner and director of hockey operations. He also served as the team's head coach last season.

He sold his interest in the team during the off-season. The new owner is Nick Ricci. The colorful Cherry is now listed as a consultant with the IceDogs.

With Cherry out of the picture, there will be no criticisms that the IceDogs have a coach who is not fully committed. Cherry missed numerous games last season because of his other hockey responsibilities, including a three-week stint providing commentary on the Salt Lake City Olympics.

O'Nabigon joined the team midway through the 2000-2001 season. He was acquired in a trade from the Michigan-based Plymouth Whalers.

The Ojibway player from Longlac is rather pleased to be part of this year's club. The IceDogs, who registered a franchise-high 11 victories (in a 68-game regular season schedule) last season, are expected to have their best campaign yet this season.

The Mississauga team won five out of its first 16 games this year.

"It's totally different this year," O'Nabigon said. "We have everything now. We have the management, we have the coaching and all the players are on the same page. Pretty soon we're going to step it up and start moving up."

This year the IceDogs are being guided by coach/general manager Steve Ludzik, a former pro player who also coached in the National Hockey League with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

O'Nabigon is a 19-year-old forward who is 6-foot-2 and weighs 198 pounds. He has twice been bypassed by all clubs in the NHL entry draft. But his ultimate goal remains to one day earn a pay cheque by playing pro.

"I definitely want to play pro hockey," said O'Nabigon, who has one season of junior eligibility remaining after this year. "I'll just wait to see what happens."

This season, O'Nabigon scored two goals and had one assist in his first 14 games.

Ian Maracle, a 200-pounder who is almost 6-foot-4, is being slowly brought along by the IceDogs this season. He dressed for eight of the club's first 16 games. He had one goal in those appearances.

Maracle had been chosen by the IceDogs in the second round, 35th over-all, in the 2001 OHL priority selections draft. He played seven games in Mississauga last season.

But he spent the majority of the season playing Tier II hockey with the Wellington Dukes of the Provincial Junior A Hockey League.

Maracle helped the Dukes advance to the league final of the then 36-team league. But the Brampton Capitals defeated Wellington 4-2 in a best-of-seven championship series.

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The 17-year-old Iroquois believes playing in a junior league last season with competitors as old as 21 has helped his transition to the OHL this year.

"It helped a lot and got me prepared for this year," said Maracle, who during the off-season lives on the Tyendinaga First Nation near Belleville.

Maracle, who is still growing, is expected to plateau out at 6-foot-6, which would make him an attractive pro prospect. He's hoping to graduate to the NHL someday, and ideally he'd be suiting up for the Edmonton Oilers, his favorite pro franchise.

"They always work hard," he said of the Oilers. "They're always in forechecking and moving the puck around. They're not a team that likes to trap. It's just great hockey to watch."