With only three weeks away from puck drop in the Ontario Hockey League regular season, training and development camps are underway for the three northern teams: North Bay Battalion, Soo Greyhounds and the Sudbury Wolves. Nearly 30 hopefuls were shredding the ice Wednesday morning, looking to crack the lineup as development camp ended with a scrimmage. Following medical and fitness tests, 15 forwards, 10 defencemen and four goaltender prospects were skating. Returning players like Cam Warren are looking to impress the Battalion brass, coming off a gold medal win at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup. “It’s great being with all the guys and stuff again and being able to be back as a team,” Warren said. The Troops’ front office changed the way its prospects and returning players train, adding a separate development camp before main training camp. That camp started on Wednesday evening and runs until Friday. “We had a virtual orientation with the guys,” said Battalion GM Adam Dennis. “We kind of set them up with all the need-to-knows, including a virtual tour of North Bay, just being mindful that they were going to be down here in two months.” Dennis said he feels spoiled to have a deep and talented roster, even after the team’s four top scorers from last season moved on. The main camp features five of the club’s 17 picks in the OHL Priority Selection in June, all born in 2010. “I’m starting to find some chemistry. I think that may sound bleak for others coming in, but we’re fully coming with eyes wide open,” he said. “We’ve seen some guys that are going to push for sports.” A total of 41 veterans and prospects hit the ice Wednesday as the development camp ended, and the main training camp began. In total, 14 participants are considered veterans from the Battalion’s 2025-26 season, including all three import forwards Evgeny Dubrovtsev and Arseny Pronin and defenceman Alexander Karmanov. “I want to see who’s working. I want to see who’s working through things, maybe a little adversity,” Battalion head coach Ryan Oulahen said, adding that he looks for both performance and attitude. “You can tell when maybe a shift doesn’t go great. Does he try to extend it and create more problems or does he simplify?” Meanwhile, camp is underway at the GLF Memorial Gardens in the Sault and the Sudbury Wolves are also on the ice looking to build on last season. “There are spots open and to be earned,” said Andrew Desjardins, the Wolves’ assistant coach. “We want to see these guys bring their top game and make decisions hard for us.” Last season, all three northern teams made the playoffs. The Wolves were bounced in the first round, and both the Troops and Hounds were eliminated in the second round. “The guys that have returned, they’re showing some good leadership out there,” Desjardins said. That means high expectations turn to motivation with a new OHL season right around the corner. “The sky’s the limit for us,” Warren said. “There are a couple of new guys. But a lot of familiar faces that everybody’s used to are here.”
