Ottawa 67′s banking on defence: OHL Burning Questions

With the OHL season beginning this week, BTN is taking an early look at each team in reverse order of last season's standings.

Ottawa 67's

In 2011-12 — 40-20-5-3, 88 points; second, Eastern Conference. Lost 4-1 to Niagara IceDogs in conference final.

Final Dynamic Dozen ranking — eighth OHL, 24th CHL.

Drafted — D Cody Ceci (Ottawa Senators, first round), C Tyler Graovac (Minnesota Wild, seventh round).

Draft watch — C Sean Monahan was ranked third for the 2013 draft in a BTN survey of scouts conducted last month.

1. Could they have one of the East's deepest defence corps?

It is tempting to crack wise that the Barberpoles have morphed into Brampton East this season, aiming to win with stout defence and steady netminding while playing home games before a backdrop of empty seats. (Key difference: Ottawa's playing in a NHL building, but even a crowd of 5,000 in Scotiabank Place's lower bowl might feel sparse.)

Coach-GM Chris Byrne is shifting to a more defence-first foundation now that prolific Tyler Toffoli and Shane Prince have moved on to the pros. The 67's have made that abundantly clear by allocating an import and overage slot to Michal (Big Mike) Cajkovsky, who brings a physical presence to complement two-way defender Ceci and the overage Cardwell. Sophomore Mike Vlajkov rounds out what should be a good top-four at the back.

2. Will scoring by committee work?

The graduation of four NHL second-rounders (counting John McFarland, whose Ottawa stint was truncated by shoulder surgery) leaves Ottawa counting on Monahan and a cadre of veteran forwards. Graovac, when healthy, is a reliable No. 2 centre. Fellow 19-year-olds Remy Giftopoulos, Steven Janes and Ryan Van Stralen along with 18-year-old pest par excellence Brett Gustavsen will be expected to chip in goals and just generally be chippy when events warrant it.

Beyond Monahan, Ottawa's one to watch offensively is 16-year-old Andrew Abou-Assaly, although that's more for the seasons to come.

3. How will they draw at Scotiabank Place?

The big-league lockout might provide a short-term bump, but there is no playing down the challenge. Ottawa has relocated from the city centre of Canada's capital to suburban Kanata, which is less convenient for its fanbase. It also gave up many of its traditional Friday night and Sunday afternoon home dates in order to accommodate the Ottawa Senators. It's fair to say that owner Jeff Hunt has likely not faced such a tough selling job since he bought the team in 1998 when its crowds, so-called, had dwindled to fewer than 2,000.

The belief is Hunt will prioritize weekend game. A rough guess is that averaging 4,500 per game — a roughly 30 per cent drop but still above the league average — might qualify as an accomplishment. Keep in mind Hunt's not one to bet against; in the 1990s he restored a team people thought was dying, and he's betting on Ottawa CFL Team 3.0 making it too.

Neate Sager is a writer for Yahoo! Canada Sports. Contact him at neatesager@yahoo.ca and follow him on Twitter @neatebuzzthenet.