Breaking down the Gens’ offseason acquisitions
With a number of holes to fill this offseason, Oshawa looks to the draft and amongst their own
By Chris Jones/The Oshawa Express
With the OHL season approaching, a slew of young and new players will be hitting the ice for Oshawa.
After finishing the season with a deep playoff run, the Gens lost some key players.
This includes the likes of goalie Kyle Keyser, forwards Anthony Salinitri and Brandon Saigeon. Some holes need to be filled, and the team is betting on new acquisitions to pick up the slack.
Here’s a look at some of the biggest acquisitions Oshawa made during the offseason.
Zachary Paputsakis – Goalie
Paputsakis comes out of Rockland, Ont., and was selected in the fifth round of the 2017 priority player selection by Oshawa.
He is 17-years-old, 6’3” and 185 lbs. and earned invites to the Generals 2017 and 2018 camps.
During the 2018-19 season, Paputsakis played for the Kimball Union Academy Wildcats out of the USHS-Prep league in Meridan, New Hampshire.
During the season he amassed a .923 save percentage, and a 1.81 GAA.
“Zach is a big goalie that will come in here and compete for the number one job,” said Gens vice president and general manager Roger Hunt. “There’s good and bad times to come to an organization and this is a good time for a goalie to be joining our team.”
He signed on the dotted line on April 10, shortly before the playoffs came to an end.
Brett Harrison – Centre
The London, Ont. native was drafted 16th overall in the 2019 priority player selection.
Measuring at 6’1” and 160 lbs., Harrison spent the 2018-19 season playing for the London Junior Knights, where he scored 42 goals and 21 assists for 63 points in 33 games.
The left handed shooter played in the OHL Cup last season, where he had two goals and an assist in three games.
He also participated in the OHL Gold Cup with Team Alliance. He was second on the team in scoring and fifth in the tournament with two goals and three assists in four games.
“This is always an exciting time—it’s the unofficial start to next season, signing players for the upcoming year,” said Hunt. “It’s no secret how excited we are to have Brett committed to be a General. He’s a dynamic play-making guy who can score. Everything we saw at orientation camp and OHL Gold Cup only reassured us what we saw all season long with Brett.”
It was announced Harrison had signed with the Generals on May 7, and will wear number 44 with the team.
Daniel Michaud – Centre
Standing at 6’2” and weighing 172 lbs., Michaud is from Belleville.
Michaud was drafted 23rd overall in the second round by the Generals in the 2019 priority player selection.
During the 2018-19 season, he played for the Quinte Red Devils Minor Midget AAA squad, where he scored 21 goals and 21 assists for 42 points in 36 games.
The left-handed centre participated in the OHL Cup where he scored more than a point per game with five goals and two assists in five games.
At the OHL Gold Cup, he recorded a goal and two assists in four games for team OMHA White.
“With the signing of Daniel, it is another opportunity to get another big centreman into our line up. You can never have too much strength down the middle,” said Hunt.
“As the season went on and the more our scouting staff watched Daniel, he continued to impress and continued to get better throughout the playoffs and into the OHL Cup,” adds Hunt. “We are looking forward to having him in our line-up come September.”
Michaud will wear number 29 with the Generals.
Daniel Walker – Left Wing
Looking for some size up front, the Generals brought in Walker in a trade with the North Bay Battalion.
Coming out of Val Caron, Ont., Walker has spent three seasons with the Battalion.
In the 2018-19 season, he had six goals along with three assists in 44 games for North Bay. He also accrued 129 penalty minutes.
In eight total playoff games, Walker has a goal and two assists.
Oliver Suni – Forward
The Finnish born forward was taken in the first round of the 2019 CHL import draft held in June.
He officially signed on with the Gens in late July.
The 6’2”, 172 lbs. forward was born in Kempele, Finland.
In 23 games with the Karpat Oulu B in Finland, Suni tallied 19 goals, 17 assists, and 36 points.
He also participated in the U17 World Hockey Challenge racking up three assists in six games.
“We are very happy to have a top, young prospect such a Oliver to join our team,” said Hunt. “Oliver will come to us with international experience and will look to make an impact here on North American ice heading into his NHL draft season.”
He will wear number 19 with the Gens.
The Generals first home game is on Sunday, Sept. 29 against the Frontenacs at 6:05 p.m.