Hi, this is Fred Wallace with ” Off The Wire “.
At some point in time there will be a contest to determine who’s the best Ontario Hockey League player from the Owen Sound Platers and Attack organization.
Personally, I’m not sure there’s a definitive answer to the search with almost a dozen candidates over a 30+ year span.
The discussion of Owen Sound’s best would have to include Brad Richardson who played 4 seasons in Owen Sound from 2001-2005 and recently signed a 1 year million dollar contract with the Nashville Predators
Remarkably, when I checked Brad Richardson’s career stats, he didn’t crack the top 10 in goals, assists or points.
Richardson had 87 goals, 4 shy of Ryan Christies’ 10th place standing.
Richardson had 126 assists, almost 20 less than Joey Hishon who sits 10th in franchise helpers
And in terms of points, the total is 213, 8 back of Dan Snyder for a 10th place position.
Of course, Brad Richardson’s Owen Sound numbers would have been vastly higher had he not been significantly injured in his 3rd season.
In a game against Kingston at the Bayshore on November 1st, 2003, Richardson hit the boards behind the Frontenacs net and never played again that year, his season, and his point total halted at 16 points in 15 games played.
Brad Richardson returned the next season and put up 97 points for Owen Sound and then departed for what is currently a 15 year run in the National Hockey League.
While he’s not a prolific point getter at the NHL level, he’s carved out an extremely lengthy career, all of which reminds me of something a veteran player with Colorado told me.
After Richardson’s rookie year with the Avalanche, I asked the vet how Richardson fared.
The vet’s answer was quick, stating, ” he does the right thing, we don’t have to worry about him on or off the ice. ”
So now after stops in Colorado, LA, Vancouver and most recently Arizona, former Attack forward Brad Richardson continues his NHL days, now with Nashville.
I’m Fred Wallace