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Balazs aim to impress in Saginaw

Tillsonburg's Brandon Balazs is looking to impress next season after being drafted by the Ontario Hockey League's Saginaw Spirit earlier in April.

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It was already a banner day for Tillsonburg’s Brandon Balazs when Saginaw Spirit GM Dave Drinkill called him April 4.

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Moments earlier, Balazs had been selected 198th overall in the Ontario Hockey League draft.

The 16-year-old began his morning tuning into the draft online when his name was called out in the 10th round.

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“I was in the kitchen. My dad saw it on TV, got up, came in and said ‘congratulations.’ That’s when I knew I got drafted. It was pretty exciting. As soon as it happened, my phone was dinging, dinging, dinging. It was pretty cool having my family come by in a car line, honking. That was pretty cool they set that up for me. The support for me was pretty awesome.”

Balazs was one of five Brantford 99ers AAA minor midget players drafted and the second Tillsonburg-area player after Beau Jelsma went in the third round to the Barrie Colts.

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Balazs said he went “about where he expected” in the 15-round draft, which annually sees 300 players selected.

He had been interviewed by OHL teams before the draft, including Saginaw, towards the end of the Brantford’s season, so he knew he was on their scouting lists.

“It was basically wide open. I wasn’t thinking about any one team. I was just looking at it, waiting.”

Then came the announcement, quickly posted on the Saginaw’s Twitter and Instagram and then Drinkill’s call.

“He called and said, ‘Congratulations, I’m looking forward to meeting you.’ He said they had me picked for that area and didn’t know if they were going to get me. And they said it worked out.”

Glendale’s Brandon Balazs, left, seen here playing high school hockey was drafted by the Saginaw Spirit in the 2020 Ontario Hockey League draft.(Chris Abbott/Tillsonburg News)
Glendale’s Brandon Balazs, left, seen here playing high school hockey was drafted by the Saginaw Spirit in the 2020 Ontario Hockey League draft.(Chris Abbott/Tillsonburg News)

Balazs began his minor hockey in Tillsonburg and switched to the Brantford AAA system for minor peewee.  He played for the past five years with the 99ers and had a stellar 2019-20 minor midget season.

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He finished as the team’s top goal scorer with 23 goals and 12 assists in 32 games. He racked up another 14 points in 11 Hockey Alliance league playoff games.

“I feel like I improved quite a bit after last year. It was a heavy workout summer for me and I did a lot of power skating.”

The 99ers minor midget team – which included Tillsonburg players Tyler Bouck, Hayden McLean and Jelsma – had five players selected in the OHL draft. Ingersoll’s Gavin Bryant, Simcoe’s Ryan Vannetten and Brantford’s Luke Bibby were the others picked.

The Grade 10 student at Glendale high school didn’t talk to many scouts early in the season but knew they were “out there.”

“There’s always pressure. They’re watching you and they want someone who will fill a spot on their team. They’re trying to put the best guy in there, and you’ve got to work hard against everyone else.”

He’ll now begin preparing for the upcoming OHL season, if it starts on time due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He said he’ll be training with Tillsonburg local and former OHLer Luke VanMoerkerke and on his own to give himself a shot for a roster spot.

“I want to go in there and show them what I have, what I have to give. I just want to push myself, work as hard as I can – and try to make the team.”

cabbott@postmedia.com

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