OHL Debut

Well Willy (as the team calls him), played in his first OHL game in Kitchener, Ontario last Thursday and looked great. He was put in in the third period when the starting goalie allowed his sixth goal. Though he only had 12 shots and let in two goals, he looked really good, stopping a two on none and a two on one back to back. He made some great saves and there were approx. 45 scouts in the stands. The building was sold out and he was so pumped to be in his first game. He did not appear to be nervous, looked strong in net and loved every minute of it. He is currently still in Erie and will be there for at least a week, maybe more and will practise with the team and attend the next two games. Whether he will be in net at all remains to be seen, but the Erie fans are anxious to see him play.

Its Official.....

Devin signed on the dotted line in Erie and is now on the roster as an Erie Otter. He played his first OHL game on Friday, well was in the warmups as backup goalie for Tyson Teichman, but was on the bench for the game and loved every minute of it. He has his own locker stall with his jersey, which is 29, the same number he is on the Metro Jets. I am assuming he will use this number from now on. He will continue to play with the Jets but can be called up to play by Erie for up to 10 games this season. As you probably know, he is so very excited as this has been his dream to play in the OHL as a stepping stone to the NHL. He is eligible for the NHL draft in 2014.

An Erie Otter

Well we finally received the call today and we are on our way to Erie to sign the contract. They will hold a press conference following the signing and Devin gets to be the back up in their home game tomorrow night. Its finally coming together and taking shape. Devin has been playing very well in the Junior league, has helped the team win eight of their eleven games, losing only twice so far. He is getting riddled with shots, has the most in the league next to Battle Creek. His coach is worried that they will be taking him to Erie early, wants him to play for the Jets this year. Which is what he will likely do; however, he can be called up to Erie anytime once he is under contract. Unless something goes wrong with the signing, Devin will officially be an Otter by this time tomorrow. Will keep you posted.

Metro Jets

Well the Jr.season has begun and Devin has adjusted to the size and speed quite well. As promised he has played four of the five games so far and won every game. He looks great in net and holding his own against the bigger, older kids. He loves the team, loves his coaches and the team seems to be gelling well together. We are still in negotiations with the Erie Otters and are hoping it gets resolved soon, as Devin needs new equipment and they will provide him what he needs. Hopefully the team will continue to improve as a MI team has never made the playoffs.

Otters Training Camp

Well the training camp is over and Devin made a great showing. He hung in there with the rest of the older goalies, played well, played strong and reaped the benefits. He will be signed to a five yr. contract which will include alot of benefits including a four yr. college scholarship to the University of his choice. Though he will not play with the Otters until next yr., he will be on the Junior team Metro Jets, play every game and will have his own OHL goalie coach. He will be groomed and developed to become the starting goalie for the Erie Otters in the future. It was a win, win situation for him considering he is only 15 years old and can now live one more year at home before he heads out on his own to reach his dream. We are all very excited and he cannot wait for the season to start so he can begin his development and make the Erie lineup next year.

Five Nations Tournament....

Well the tournament is over and USA went undefeated. They beat the Cheq Republic 3-1 in exhibition, both goalies played and Devin got a shutout. They then beat the Cheq's again 5-1 and beat the Germans 4-2, though Devin did not play in those games. When USA played Slovakia they again put the other goalie in; however, he allowed 4 goals in 17 shots and was pulled in the third period tied 4-4. Devin went in in the third period and got a shutout, giving USA the win 6-4. This clinched the gold medal and Devin again played against Switzerland the next night, allowing one goal and the US went undefeated winning 5-1. It was an awesome tournament, Devin played great and showed great character in having to sit the bench through the first two and a half games. He was commended for this and the fact that he came in cold in the third period of game three not having played for several days and getting a shutout. He ended up saving the day and contributing to the gold medal. It was such a great experience for him and we are extremely proud!

Five Nations Tournament

Well only two weeks until the international tournament and Devin received his stuff from USA hockey today. He leaves next week for Ann Arbor and will be down there from the fourth through the thirteenth. They will get lots of practise time in before the games start. Devin has been working with his trainer almost daily and going to drop in hockey in Midland for ice time. He will be well-prepared for the games. After the tournament Devin heads to Erie, PA for the Otters training camp. "LET THE GAMES BEGIN!"

OTTERS SUMMER CAMP

Well the summer camp weekend is over and once again Devin showed his stuff. There were six goalies and he shined, on Saturday he was the only goalie who didnt allow a single goal. He looked really good and not out of place, keeping up with the #1 goalie for next year. Two days after the camp the owner called Clarence and told him they were very impressed with Devin, made the right pick in the draft and were considering him for the backup goalie for next year. Said they wanted to bring him on board to develope him and have had feedback already from NHL teams. It is likely he will go to Erie if he does well in the training camp, as we also found out that the 5 nations tournament consists of those kids who did not make the ntdp. How this is possible I have no idea, he is ranked #1 in the country right now. Either politics has reared its ugly head or he was not meant to play there and he is not upset in the least, he wants to play for Erie. Having watched the camp, he is as good as the #1 goalie.

ROCHESTER NY

Well the week at Rochester ended with Devin on top of the goalie leader board with 4 goals against in 6 games. He had a .945 save % and a 1.33 goals against average, awesome considering these kids were the best in the country. He was on a very good team this year and they ended up winning the championship, beating an undefeated team 9-3. He played outstanding and was the talk of the camp. His coach for the week was the assistant coach for the Colorado Avelanche and Devin was told by him that he would either be playing against him or for him one day, that he had a great hockey future. To top the week off, Devin made the 5 nations tournament in August. He will go to Ann Arbor for two weeks of practice and then a tournament. He will represent the USA against switzerland, germany, the cheq republic and slovakia. From this tournament the final roster for the NTDP will be picked. Devin was also told by the assistant goalie coach for the NTDP that he was an amazing goalie and that he was better than the past several goalies in the NTDP for his age, (and two of those went on to get drafted into the NHL).

Drafted By The Otters

Well the OHL draft came and went and our Devin was drafted by the Erie Otters of PA in the fifth round. There were 15 rounds and he went 98th overall, not bad considering they took over 300 kids. He was the 3rd american to be picked in the draft and he went one pick from the Saginaw Spirit. This past weekend we went to a introduction camp for two days and Devin had to compete in off ice workouts. He did an awesome job and was right up there with the Veterans on the team. He goes back in July for on-ice training and then they have the training camp in August. Given his age and late birthday, he may play AAA one more year here; however, it will depend on how well he does the next two camps. In the meantime he goes to Rochester NY for Selects and it will give him ice time prior to Erie. He is also working out with a personal trainer three days a week and you can tell, he is very athletic. The coaches at Erie commented on how athletic he was for a goalie and made the remark that they dont have many goalies who can come in as high as Devin did. Will keep you updated.

Three-peat

Well we received the email today that Devin made it to Rochester, NY for the third time in as many years. We figured he would go, given he made such a great showing at Selects in Taylor, blowing the other seven goalies out of the water. Though we only lost one game, 3-0, Devin only allowed one of those goals and when we played the team for the championship, we beat them 6-2 and Devin got a shutout. His camp in Rochester is June 24th-30th and there the NTDP will get another look at him. They pick a team from Rochester to go to Sweden or Russia for an international tournament, after which they pick the final USA team. Not many kids in MI even make it to Rochester, let alone get there three years in a row.
On June 3rd through the 5th Devin has been invited to the Erie Otters OHL team where they will hold a press conference, he will meet the coaches, see the arena, skate and complete off ice. This works out well as he keeps his NCAA eligibility as long as he doesnt stay longer than 48 hrs. This will give us a chance to see what kind of fit this would be for Devin. It is amazing what he has accomplished in his 15 yrs.

Drafted

News flash! Devin attended the select camp in Taylor, MI this past weekend. This camp selects the best 16/17 y.o. in MI to attend the Rochester, NY camp. Well he had an awesome showing and blew the other goalies out of the water (there were eight). He got two shutouts and only allowed 3 goals in 4 games. We are now waiting to see whether he made it to Rochester, they will let us know in a few days. If he didnt make Rochester, the only reason would be the other news we received this weekend. Devin was drafted by the OHL to the Erie Otters. He was only the third american player picked in the draft, went in the 5th round out of 15 rounds and was the 95th player picked over all. We are now in the process of weighing all of his options and determining where he will fit in the best and what will be best for him. This will make him ineligible to play college hockey, though they are offering a scholarship. We will keep you posted; however, if Devin has his way he will go to PA.

Hockey Update

Well the NTDP camp is over and Devin did not have a great showing. He was so worried about how the other goalies looked that he did not play his normal aggressive self, though he still looked good in net. (He is more athletic and faster than any of the other goalies, just wasnt aggressive enough, according to the goalie coach.) At this point we have no idea if he made it or not because most kids were told right away they did not make it and Devin was not. The only thing the coach told him was he "probably didnt make it; however, all the coaches will sit down together and discuss it." And they have yet to post any roster. So he is playing up for spring in the U18 division with his old coach. We just want to make sure he plays at a higher level, regardless of where. Next weekend he goes to Selects to see if he can make it to Rochester again and it is also the OHL draft on Saturday. He is supposed to be drafted, then we have to make a decision where he will be heading, whether it be OHL or the college route. (He has been offered a scholarship from the OHL team that wants him and its right here in Saginaw; however, he will be ineligible to play hockey for Div 1 teams. Lots to think about and until the draft is over, no decisions have to be made. Wow, we have a week.....LOL Its been crazy, Clarence phone is ringing off the hook from USHL teams, OHL teams and scouts. Will keep you posted.

A Sad Ending....

Well the team imploded from the inside out and we lost both our state final games to Honeybaked and Compuware. Devin was in net for both and did not get any help from our "D", allowing nine goals in two games. We didnt think we would be able to beat HB; however, we were hoping to beat CW and of course we only scored two goals in two games. Devin was extremely frustrated due to a ton of odd man rushes in which the "D" should have taken the passer but took the shooter, leaving Devin to tackle them both which is an impossiblity. That, penalties and no offense was a recipe for disaster. Needless to say our year is over and not soon enough for me. It was bad enough that we peaked way too soon and then had major unrest in our ranks, but we went into the state finals as the Michigan Warriers, not the Motor City Metal Jackets. Problems within the organization the week before the finals caused us to leave the Jackets. Not a good way to go into a tournament. The good news is, Devin received his invite to the NTDP 40's camp for March 20-24th. There they will pick the National team for next year. I hope our showing at states did not hurt his chances for the team, they are only picking two goalies out of four invites. Rumor has it that they have already committed to one goalie so that narrows our chances even more. I will keep you posted.

NAPHL Championship

Well what should have been the Motor City Metal Jackets crowning glory ended on a sad note. Tied for first when we began the weekend, we ended up in 7th out of 8th place. The only bright side of this was that Devin had his best weekend by far and stood on his head to keep the team in the running. Once again penalties reared their ugliest head yet. Game 1,instead of putting Devin in to start, coach started the other goalie. He allowed three goals and we lost that game. Game 2 Devin started and it ended with a tie of 1-1, even with 12 penalties, so we went into a shootout. We scored 2 and Devin didnt allow a single goal so we won that game. Game 3 was a must win if we had any chance of moving on. The game was a joke! We had more penalty minutes than game time with 72 minutes total. Devin stood on his head, killing off 12 minutes of 5 on 3 and the game was 0-0 until 7 minutes left in the third period. And what else, they score on a power play. Shortly thereafter they score again (one Devin said he should have gotten), we pull him and they score an empty netter. So in all those power plays the other team had, including three or four 5 on 3's, he only allowed two goals and we scored zip. He played awesome!! Now I will say reffing was bad, there were several penalties not called in our favor that were blatent; however, the other 50% was stupidity on our part as usual. The fourth game was a consolation game and Devin was in again, this time getting a shutout and we won 2-0. Now its on to states and we play Honeybaked, Compuware and either the Detroit Falcons or Lansing Capitals. If we play like we did this weekend we will get killed, if we come to play and dont take stupid penalties, we can hold our own. At the end of March is the 40's invite and we will have a better idea whether he makes the National team. Keep your fingers crossed.

January Showcase

Well the January showcase is now behind us and though we did well, Devin only got to play two games again. He lost the first due to stupid penalties again and we won the other four. We are now tied for first place and move on to the championship in February. Only the top eight teams move on, the last six play consolation games. We have our schedule and they are breaking down the top eight into two groups of four. The four teams in each group play each other and the top two move on to the semi finals using crossovers. The two winners from that group play for the championship. If our team plays smart and holds the penalties down, we have a good shot to go all the way. It will totally depend on how the team comes to play. Our teams are the Las Vegas Storm, the Thunder and Omaha. I will keep you posted on the outcome. Though Devin has had a few losses the past two showcases, he is playing really well. The team has a tendency to play more offensively when Devin is in net, which allows breakaways and scoring. They play more defensively with the other goalie. In March we play the top 5 AAA Michigan teams for states, then the season is pretty well over, it went by fast. We still havent heard anything on the NDTP invite so I have no news there.