‘I’m proud of every player’: Sarnia Legionnaires staying positive despite 0-44 record in GOHL

Despite not winning a single game so far this season, the Sarnia Legionnaires are staying positive. CTV’s Brent Lale reports.

The Sarnia Legionnaires are on pace to make GOHL history but are trying to stay positive.

“Tonight is the night, and we always think that every single night,” said captain Owen Hey. “We come out and work as hard as possible and hopefully we can come out on top.”

Through 44 of 50 regular season games, they haven’t won a game or even forced overtime to earn a single point.

However, they are sticking it out and not giving up.

“Hockey is not just winning games,” said Hey. “It’s kind of building character and building people. It’s an honour to wear the ‘C’ (as team captain), so I try and mentor a lot of the younger guys and try and help them build each other as players, but also people.”

Over the past twenty seasons in the Western Conference, the fewest point total belongs to the 2014-2015 St. Marys Lincolns who recorded eight points.

The question is, how did a franchise who has been a consistent playoff team get to this point?

It started in the summer when head coach Brian Irwin left for a new job in Halifax and many veteran players decided not to return.

It left ownership scrambling for a head coach and they asked Mike Bondy to move from his role in player development to head coach.

Bondy and his new staff got a late start recruiting and were left with as many as 18 first-year players.

“It’s a work in progress and we knew it was going to take time,” Bondy said earlier this season in an interview with the GOHL. “Young players are learning on the fly and while the results aren’t exactly where we’d like them to be, we’re seeing progress each and every day through practice and learning the junior hockey game.”

Bondy has extensive coaching experience and owns a hockey skills development business.

He’s tried to establish a work ethic culture and that is noticeable by the Legionnaires opponents.

“Mike’s done a good job with them (Sarnia),” said Kelli Corpse, the London Nationals head coach and general manager. “The record aside, if you really sit down and watch video on them, they’re very strong in their own zone and they never quit. We played them the other night, and we didn’t deserve the win. They outworked us and we were fortunate to get a couple a couple good bounces, but they’ve done a good job over there.”

Corpse not only wants to give credit to the coaching staff, but the players, “It’s easy to give up and walk away every game, but they’re in every game and they’ve been working real hard.”

Bondy won a Jr. B title with Sarnia as a player, and he and assistant Dan Gibson won the title as coach and general manager with Strathroy in 2006-2007.

They could turn this franchise around, but it will take time for the inexperienced players to develop.

“I’m proud of every single player,” said Hey. “We’re all young but they’re coming out every single practice, every single game. My brother is on the team and he’s still doing the same thing coming out. I’m unbelievably proud of every single player on the team.”

Through 44 games, they scored just 75 times while surrendering 295 goals.

This month they have a one-goal defeat, and a pair of two-goal losses. They have six games remaining and while the schedule looks daunting, captain Hey believes in his group.

“We’ll win a game, I promise you that,” he said.