Bandits explode out of gates for second Jr. C season

“Last year was an introduction for our team in this league,” notes Bandits coach Rick Julien, whose club started the 2009-10 season with five straight victories. “Now we know how it’s being run, (refereed) and played, so we’re moving on to the next level.”

The highlight thus far for the Bandits was a 6-5 victory, when they overcame a 5-2 deficit thanks to a tying goal with under a minute to play and then won a shootout that went nine deep against the East Ottawa Thunder – the Sandy Hill Arena-based team that knocked out Cumberland in the second round of the playoffs last season.

“We had a good run in the regular season, and then when we started playing in the playoffs, every team seemed to have stepped up a big notch,” Julien says, noting they’ve placed an added emphasis on a team approach this season. “There’s going to be a lot more guys supporting each other compared to last year.”

The Bandits have added eight new players to their lineup – about average for the league that welcomes players up to age 21 – including many Cumberland minor hockey grads, plus former Embrun defenceman Colin Lawlor, a veteran who joins his brother Chris with Cumberland.

The Bandits also said goodbye to the top-two scorers from their inaugural season – Andrew and Adam Newell, who moved on to play Jr. ‘A’ and Jr. ‘B’ hockey, respectively – along with Ryan Renaud, now in Jr. ‘B’ as well.

“We’re at the lowest level of junior, so any time somebody goes up, it’s very refreshing for our organization and we’re very happy about that,” Julien notes. “At the end of day, it just gives other kids a chance to play at this level – that’s the way we look at it.”

Despite the Bandits’ hot start, Julien expects that the competition will be tight throughout the league this year, noting last year’s bottom teams all seem to have improved.

“I don’t think anybody’s going to be running away with anything this year,” says Julien, whose team has won four one-goal games and the other by two. “The goal is always to be as competitive as possible. We’re all there to compete to get to the finals some way or somehow.”

Cumberland plays its home games almost every Saturday night until February at the Ray Friel Recreation Complex, with the next contest coming against Maxville this Saturday, Oct. 10 at 7:30 p.m.