The top players from across Ontario are at Rotary Place in Orillia this weekend for the Ontario Minor Hockey Association (OMHA) and Eastern AAA Hockey League (ETA) U16 AAA Showcase.
The event gives the highest level of OMHA U16 athletes the opportunity to play in front of Ontario Hockey League (OHL) scouts ahead of the Priority Selection draft April 21.
For Devun Colebrook, captain of the North Central Predators, the showcase provides an opportunity to play on home ice as he lives near Rotary Place.
“We usually play in Rama, so I’m really excited for this weekend,” he said. “I haven’t played a real game here in about seven years.”
Colebrook grew up playing with the Orillia Minor Hockey Association at Rotary Place before he graduated to the North Central Predators program.
“I have my brothers and my parents here watching today,” he said. “I’ve been looking forward to this.”
The Orillia Secondary School student says this weekend presents a big opportunity for him and his teammates.
“I love having this in my hometown,” he said. “My friends have been talking about it at school. It’s nice to see.”
While Colebrook, 15, is excited to play in his hometown, he knows he is also performing in front of scouts who could help him get to the next level.
“We want scouts to notice how we play as a team and not as individuals,” he said. “We are going to play our game as we always do.”
Rich Foshay, vice-president of hockey operations for the Predators, says the 13 teams involved with the showcase will play two games each this weekend.
“These games count for our standings,” he said. “We are in the home stretch of our season, and playoffs start in about a week’s time.”
While teams are jockeying for position in the standings before the playoffs, Foshay says the bigger picture is the players being scouted.
“Pretty much every OHL club has representatives here,” he said. “This is a great chance for them to take a peek at these kids just as they are going into the playoffs.”
He says OHL scouts have been praising Orillia as the host city for the event this year.
“We’ve had a number of officials from different centres say this is the perfect facility for this event,” he said. “Some have said they wish we would host this event here every year.”
The Predators worked with the OMHA and the ETA to put on the event this weekend, and many local partners stepped up to help make it happen.
“We are very grateful to the Orillia Minor Hockey Association and Orillia Figure Skating Club for allowing us to use the facility during the prime time of Saturday and Sunday,” Foshay said.
The showcase is free to attend, and the full schedule can be found here.
“We want people to come out and watch,” Foshay said. “From Steven Stamkos to Corey Perry to our own Aidan Dudas, who played on Canada’s national junior team, they have all played in this showcase. It doesn’t get any better than this.”
He says the athletes in this weekend’s showcase are the ones who will go on to play in the OHL and, for some, the NHL.
