Niagara Icedogs 2024-25 Season Thread, Part IV

[frontsfan67]

I see on the IceDogs Twitter page that they have released the roster for Saturday’s Rookie Camp. Two names missing are 1st round pick Ryerson Edgar and 4th round pick Michael Tang. That means that out of the first 4 rounds, only 3rd round pick Caden Bell is reporting at this point.

#SellTheTeam

tang was expected not to come as he just committed to a team in the USHL but really weird and something to keep your eyes on about with Ryerson Edgar not showing up. Could be due to school/exams or could be some other reason.

bell will be great but I think it’s hilarious you guys of all teams draft him who is complete offence and you guys needed a defensive defenceman for the next couple of years.

Maybe they figure pick the best available player and figure out the rest of the stuff later? (Same with tang round 4)

 

[Dogs Enthusiast]

Maybe they figure pick the best available player and figure out the rest of the stuff later?

My guess that is exactly what happened. Doesn't seem like a terrible decision. Kind of "swing for the fences" and hope for the best possible outcome.

I do hate that we are in this position to begin with. Playing junior hockey in St. Catharines should be a desirable place to go. Given the modern facility, the proximity to the GTA and the USA, the University and College, knowledgeable fan base etc..

 

[frontsfan67]

If Edgar doesn’t show I wonder if the fronts try and swing a trade with you guys. We give you Battaglia. You give us Edgar and lots of picks

Come deadline time you guys might be in on Battaglia anyways. Who’s to say a deal can’t be made then?

*just speculating- nothing more*

 

[Millpond]

If Edgar doesn’t show I wonder if the fronts try and swing a trade with you guys. We give you Battaglia. You give us Edgar and lots of picks

Come deadline time you guys might be in on Battaglia anyways. Who’s to say a deal can’t be made then?

*just speculating- nothing more*

1st rd defected players can't be traded for players.

 

[frontsfan67]

1st rd defected players can't be traded for players.

Damn forgot about that. Good catch

 

[Dogs Enthusiast]

Brandon Caputo just posted this.

Spoke with Niagara #IceDogs GM Wes Consorti who stated "there is no concern" on the absence of F Ryerson Edgar, their 2025 #OHL first round pick, at this weekend's Rookie Orientation Camp.

"This is just part of the process" Consorti added & is NOT a commitment issue. #DogCountry

Sounds a little optimistic. Or unwilling to admit there is a problem. Your choice.

 

[dogs777]

Brandon Caputo just posted this.



Sounds a little optimistic. Or unwilling to admit there is a problem. Your choice.

What are people expecting him to say? He’s not going to actually come out and say publicly that they have no shot of getting him to come

 

[the dog]

Part of process is to show up at camp wes

 

[Sam14]

My gut feeling…the John Walters - IceDogs relationship was damaged after the mistreatment of his client Nick Frasca.

Unless someone can confirm otherwise, this draft may have confirmed a fracture in the Walters – Darren relationship, a relationship that was quite obvious the last few Priority Drafts.

 

[Sam14]

Brandon Caputo just posted this.



Sounds a little optimistic. Or unwilling to admit there is a problem. Your choice.

The Ryerson Edgar situation is the least of Wes and Darren's problems. As long as the IceDogs have new ownership, what happens with Edgar is really not that significant. New ownership is far more important.

 

[Sam14]

The evening before the draft, the IceDogs were scrambling to find a player at the top of draft board willing to sign in Niagara. We can only hope the IceDogs were advised by Crawford to draft the BPA for an incoming new owner and let them deal with the mess they created.

 

[Millpond]

Damn forgot about that. Good catch

Also, once a team declares a player defected, they receive a compensatory 1st rd pick in the next draft.
However if in that draft they declare another pick defected, they DO NOT receive a subsequent compensatory player .

 

[Millpond]

Brandon Caputo just posted this.



Sounds a little optimistic. Or unwilling to admit there is a problem. Your choice.

Hmmmm. What process...

 

[frontsfan67]

Also, once a team declares a player defected, they receive a compensatory 1st rd pick in the next draft.
However if in that draft they declare another pick defected, they DO NOT receive a subsequent compensatory player .

Knew that just had a moment lol

Wish it was like the dub and Q where you could trade draft picks and all that. As the years go by it makes less and less sense why OHL teams can’t do that.

This would be an example- if it was in rules a team like Kingston could be one to work with Niagara for Edgar and you guys may already be pursuing Battaglia or some other scoring 19 year old this coming year as it is. Stupid that teams have to wait when in other leagues they don’t.

 

[dogs777]

The evening before the draft, the IceDogs were scrambling to find a player at the top of draft board willing to sign in Niagara. We can only hope the IceDogs were advised by Crawford to draft the BPA for an incoming new owner and let them deal with the mess they created.

I wouldn’t give crawford that much credit I don’t think the league would think of something like that as for a sale we can only hope that the league is smart enough now to get something done

 

[Howard]

The evening before the draft, the IceDogs were scrambling to find a player at the top of draft board willing to sign in Niagara. We can only hope the IceDogs were advised by Crawford to draft the BPA for an incoming new owner and let them deal with the mess they created.

I don’t think anyone should assume the OHL is involved anyway at this time with giving guidance or suggestions to the Dogs. That wouldn’t occur until the results of the investigation are made public.

On another note…does anyone else notice when they look at Wes there seem to be strings attached?

 

[dirty12]

Knew that just had a moment lol

Wish it was like the dub and Q where you could trade draft picks and all that. As the years go by it makes less and less sense why OHL teams can’t do that.

This would be an example- if it was in rules a team like Kingston could be one to work with Niagara for Edgar and you guys may already be pursuing Battaglia or some other scoring 19 year old this coming year as it is. Stupid that teams have to wait when in other leagues they don’t.

I would not mind teams being able to move up or down the first round in the April pick trading window. But I really like that every team picks in the first round and has the defect rule as insurance or to exploit.

 

[knowescape]

Part of process is to show up at camp wes

Wes knows that, because he's 100% the GM not some sort of marionette.

 

[SELLTHETEAM]

I don’t think anyone should assume the OHL is involved anyway at this time with giving guidance or suggestions to the Dogs. That wouldn’t occur until the results of the investigation are made public.

On another note…does anyone else notice when they look at Wes there seem to be strings attached?

More of a hand up the a-noose type of puppet, no?

 

[Sam14]

With the deafening silence, no clue what “part of the process” means unless related to information circulating that May 4th the finding of the investigation are disclosed to the IceDogs, not sure if that also means the public.

 

[knowescape]

With the deafening silence, no clue what “part of the process” means unless related to information circulating that May 4th the finding of the investigation are disclosed to the IceDogs, not sure if that also means the public.

View attachment 1019859

It's always been part of the Branch-era OHL to virtue-signal and publish a sanitized version of their findings. I doubt this time will be any exception, except for their own culpability. That's right, the OHL bears fault in this mess as well. How so? I'll explain.

They knew from their first investigation that DD was less than stellar at upholding the OHL value system when he quickly shared the insider information despite being asked nicely not to. So, the OHL knew he valued himself over the interest of the league and the players on his team. For that, he was fined and sanctions were placed against him. This is nothing new, we all know this part, so why does the OHL have skin in the game this time around? Well, different than the first investigation, the OHL knew that DD was not a rule-follower, yet they did nothing to monitor him.

That's right, the team's GM functions, which DD was prohibited from performing, were left on the honour system. No one investigated, no one double-checked, and seemingly no one cared that despite their objections, DD remained in the functional role as GM. Were they unaware? Mislead? Or just wilfully blind? Did they touch base with DD, staff or players in the interim to make sure things were still kosher - or did they just turn a blind eye until the complaints finally came in? It isn't "okay" to advertise yourself as a benevolent league, with all sorts of attention to player wellness and adhesion to a code of conduct, when you wilfully avoid the realities of the situation in Niagara.

So great, the investigation will invariably conclude that DD never stepped down from the GM role and continued to ignore OHL policies. It would be disingenuous if at the same time they didn't also acknowledge they dropped the ball, err... "puck" in failing to safeguard their franchise somehow, when they knew better. Be interesting to see how they address or fail to address their own culpability.

Niagara is watching you OHL, will you step up and redeem yourself to the players, staff, families and fans here?

 

[BobbyStokers9713]

Rumors going around that in addition to Edgar not showing up for media as most first round picks do on draft day or a day later and being a no show at development camp, he didn't even pick up the phone when he was drafted. This kid is as good as gone and I don't blame him one bit.

 

[Sam14]

Rumors going around that in addition to Edgar not showing up for media as most first round picks do on draft day or a day later and being a no show at development camp, he didn't even pick up the phone when he was drafted. This kid is as good as gone and I don't blame him one bit.

More than just a rumour. You can file that as a fact. Several members in the organization reached out to him that evening and Edgar replied to no one.

Although, he may be waiting for the findings of the investigation (specifically a new owner) before making any decision on his future or maybe he’s already decided he wants to play for London

 

[knowescape]

Rumors going around that in addition to Edgar not showing up for media as most first round picks do on draft day or a day later and being a no show at development camp, he didn't even pick up the phone when he was drafted. This kid is as good as gone and I don't blame him one bit.

I wonder what the source of these rumours are - the team, or someone connected with Edgar.

If I were Edgar's agent, I would have already confirmed with the team that his client will not report. I would then follow it up with my own social media post giving a public rationale why Niagara is not the best match for Edgar. It would be pretty easy to state that with the present OHL investigation into the team coupled with its relevant recent history, Edgar is seeking a more stable franchise.

 

[BobbyStokers9713]

I wonder what the source of these rumours are - the team, or someone connected with Edgar.

If I were Edgar's agent, I would have already confirmed with the team that his client will not report. I would then follow it up with my own social media post giving a public rationale why Niagara is not the best match for Edgar. It would be pretty easy to state that with the present OHL investigation into the team coupled with its relevant recent history, Edgar is seeking a more stable franchise.

To be fair- It is entirely possible he has already done the first part and the icedogs currently don't have a way to spin that positively.

As for the second part, he probably doesn't need to yet. Plenty of time to figure out a trade elsewhere and is also probably having conversations with other teams behind the scenes (his agent obviously).