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Sarnia Sting (OHL, 2012-13)

2012-13 Regular Season:
Sting vs. Brampton Batallion

      OHL hockey arrived in the Blue Water area when Robert and Dino Ciccarelli purchased the Newmarket Royals and relocated them to Sarnia, Ontario, renaming the team "Sarnia Sting". After playing it's first four seasons at Sarnia Arena, the Sting moved in to the new 5,500-seat Progressive Auto Sales Arena, located on the campus of Lambton College.
     The 2012-13 season was the eighteenth season of operation for the Sting. Former London Knights assistant Jacques Beaulieu was in his second season as head coach and general manager. Sarnia finished in third place in the Western Division with a 35-28-5 record, 18 points behind first place Plymouth. The Sting drew 3,282 per game that year, about middle-of-the-pack in the OHL.
     The Sting scored the sixth-most goals in the OHL that season with 247. Leading the way on offense was center Charles Sarault, who scored 22 goals and 108 points. Leading the way in goals was left wing Reid Boucher, who had a career year in scoring with 62. A fourth round pick in 2011 by the New Jersey Devils, Boucher has played in the NHL with the Devils, Canucks and Predators. Right wing Nikolai Goldobin was second, with 38 goals. Goldobin would be drafted in the first round by San Jose and has played in the NHL with the Sharks and Vancouver Canucks.
     The highest draft pick on the Sting's roster was center Alex Galchenyuk, who was picked #3 overall by the Montreal Canadiens in 2012. In his final season in Sarnia, Galchenyuk scored 27 goals and 61 points in just 33 games. Alex has since bounced around the NHL with Montreal, Pittsburgh, Arizona, Minnesota, and now Ottawa, never really living up to his high draft position.
     On defense, the Sting allowed the seventh-most goals in the league, surrendering 254. JP Anderson played the most games by far that year, appearing in 53 games, racking up a 26-21-5 record, a 3.31 GAA and 1 shutout. His backups were Knick Dawe, who had a 6-5-0 record and 4.64 GAA in 13 games, and Brodie Barrick, who went 3-2-0 with a 3.25 GAA in 8 games. None of the Sting's three goaltenders were drafted, although Anderson played several years in the ECHL. Anderson drew the nod in the postseason that season.
     Sarnia drew the Plymouth Whalers in Round one. Plymouth was traditionally one of the stronger teams in the OHL, and this season was no different, as the Whalers were 42-17-9. Except for a close 3-2 win in Game 2, the Whalers easily swatted the Sting in four straight games. Plymouth outscored the Sting, 24-8 in the process (though nearly half of those 24 goals came in the 11-2 Game 1 blowout).
     I got this program when my brother and I went to a Sting-Brampton Battalion game during Christmas Break. This is the first (and so far only) Sting game I've been to. Brampton won, 3-2, in front of 3,237. This was during the World Junior Tournament, so top players like Alex Galchenyuk didn't play that night. During the game, the Sting had a Canadian Olympic Gold Medal-winner signing autographs (can't remember what sport). 
     This program is kind of a disappointment, even for only $2. While teams like Saginaw, Flint and Plymouth have put out very nice, color programs, this Sting program is similar to the programs you can find at high school sports. It's 13 pages, all in black and white. There are two articles in this program. One is about Galchenyuk being named CHL Player of the Week. The other is about how OHL teams collected over 52,000 teddy bears during the holiday season for needy families.
     Local advertisements include Jim's Carpet Warehouse, Harvey's, Giant Tiger, Stoke's Grill & Bar Inland, and City Centre Car Wash. There are also two Sudoku games on the back cover, a first in my collection!


     Reference:
Ontario Hockey League Season Statistics: 2012-13, from hockeydb.com
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