inside track: blast season a success
Ed O'Leary, Brantford Expositor - Wednesday, March 28, 2007
Brantford Blast fans shouldn’t have much of problem remembering Grant Ledyard as the former NHLer played parts of the Blast’s first three seasons in Major League Hockey.
Ledyard, who resides on the outskirts of Buffalo, would have looked good in a Blast uniform this season.
Only Ledyard or a Ledyard-type defenceman could have saved the Blast against the Whitby Dunlops.
Jim Baxter provided a calming influence on the Blast blue-line as the Brantford native has several seasons of professional experience under his belt.
Brantford fans should remember 2006-07 as a successful season.
The Blast didn’t even make the playoffs in their first three seasons and they were eliminated last season by the Dundas Real McCoys in the first round of the playoffs which is a league semifinal.
Petrolia Squires had the Blast walking the gang-plank in a semifinal this season. The Squires were up 3-2 but the Blast came back to win the series 4-3 despite the seventh game being played in Petrolia, a game Brantford won in double-overtime.
The Saint Clair Saints played well enough to have won at least a couple of the games but Blast goaltender Anthony Marshall simply put W’s on the board for Brantford.
The Blast will host the Allan Cup tournament next spring and, as hosts, they receive an automatic entry into the tournament.
It’ll be the 100th anniversary of the Allan Cup and ultra promoter Peter Ham, owner and president of the Blast, will put a Broadway show on Market Street.
Ham also realizes that the Blast had better be in the semifinal and championship games in order to fill the stands. Therefore, Brantford fans can bet their bottom dollar that next season’s Blast team will be stronger than the team they were cheering for this season.
There are plenty of rumors floating around about who’s coming to the Blast. The biggest one seems to be Real McCoys’ veteran centre Mark Jooris but Brantford fans can forget about that one. Jooris, according to Dundas general manager Don Robertson, is going stay with the Real McCoys.
There are also whispers about Paul Polillo coming out of retirement. Polillo has been coaching one of his son’s minor teams for the past two seasons along with Ron Hoover, another former Brantford Smoke star. There’s no doubt Polillo would have to go on a conditioning program if he were to rejoin the Blast but, if there’s a will, there’s way.
There were plenty of pleasant surprises up front this season.
Of course, Chad Spurr was simply fantastic after asserting himself midway through the season. The slick centreman from Hamilton became the best all-round player in the league as he demonstrated in the playoffs.
Spurr wasn’t the only newcomer to grab the attention of Blast fans. Left winger Ryan Healy also turned out to be a special player as he brought a strong work ethic at both ends of the ice. He was particularly effective in traffic and long the boards.
Late in the season, the Blast added veteran pro Jason Simon and former NHLer Steve Rice. Brantford fans can only hope both will return next season.
Simon, a heavyweight in any league he’s played, only had one fight while playing for the Blast but that’s simply because his reputation keeps the opposition honest when he’s in the lineup.
Simon also proved that he’s more than a fighter. He’s a diligent forechecker and strong along the boards.
Rice is the stablizing force up front. He came here this season just to see if he would like to come back next season and he answered that question with a “yes.”
Rice admits that he wasn’t in the best physical condition since joining the Blast but he’ll be in much 
better shape when he comes back to the squad after Christmas next season.
As for next season, let’s hope the Dunlops join MLH. There is a chance it could happen and a six-team league would be much more interesting than the current five-team loop.