After winning an Eastern Conference title and playing for an OHL championship in 2026, the Barrie Colts will certainly have a fresh look when they hit the ice next season.
Many of the familiar faces who played an integral role in helping them on their long playoff run, such as co-captains Cole Beaudoin and Kashawn Aitcheson, along with fellow NHL first-round pick Emil Hemming, will be gone.
While one might expect Barrie to take a step back after being one of the OHL’s top teams the last two seasons, not so fast, says head coach Dylan Smoskowitz.
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The Colts won’t be replacing three top NHL picks, but they won’t be starting from scratch either.
“There’s definitely some bright spots in our lineup next season in terms of guys who got so much great exposure to the highest levels that junior hockey has to offer, who we are really excited about and have full belief in them to take that next step in their careers and be very impactful players for us next year,” said Smoskowitz. “It’s easy to tell you that the team is going to take a step back, but going into last season, people thought that team was going to take a step back.
“You get to the conference finals and get swept by Oshawa, you don’t really know what is going to happen and know how it’s going to pan out. And you fast forward eight months, and you’re in the league championship. Until you get to camp and see what you have, and see who comes back and what other teams have, with this new world of NCAA and eligibility, you really have no idea.”
One thing Smoskowitz and his staff will look to continue is the strong winning culture the team had this season.
The coaching staff preached a message of “winning the day,” and the team bought into it, using it as a foundation for helping the franchise reach the OHL Championship Series for the first time since 2013.
“Culture will always be at the forefront of my mind and will be the No. 1 mission on my day-to-day basis, for as long as I coach,” said Smoskowitz. “Power-play is important, penalty kill is important, systems are important, and there is a lot of time and energy spent on all of those aspects, but culture for me is No. 1.
“You can’t possibly build anything to go and be a successful team without a strong culture. So, just as much emphasis we put on that this past season, we’ll continue to put emphasis and continue to put effort in on a daily basis, to maintain the culture and even build off of what we’ve already established here in Barrie.”
Here’s a look at who’s back next season and who is moving on and where.
GOALTENDING
Ben Hrebik was outstanding in Barrie’s run to the OHL Championship Series, and the goaltender has certainly earned some sincere consideration by NHL teams when it comes to the upcoming draft.
The standout has committed to play at Providence (NCAA Division I, Hockey East) next season, likely bringing his days in Barrie to a close.
However, the Colts should be fine between the pipes. Arvin Jaswal showed he’s ready to take over the No. 1 role after posting an impressive 18-3-2-1 record with a 2.45 goals against average and .922 save percentage in 24 games.
Hagan Bach looks ready to step into the backup role after practicing with the OHL team all season and playing with Collingwood in the OJHL. Bach helped the Blues make a run to Game 7 of the conference finals, winning the net away in the playoffs from 2025 Brantford Bulldogs draft pick Max Corovic, who was named the league’s top NHL prospect and top goaltender.
“We feel really good about our goaltending tandem,” said Smoskowitz. “They’re young, but they’re more than capable.”
DEFENCE
Barrie will lose Aitcheson, the OHL Defenceman of the Year, to the pro ranks (New York Islanders), but they could return a substantial portion of their blueline if things work out right.
New York Rangers draft pick Evan Passmore should be back for an overage season, along with rookie standout Cole Emerton, Justin Handsor, Teague Vader, and Ethan Armstrong.
Parker von Richter has committed to New Hampshire (NCAA Division I, Hockey East). Still, there is a chance the veteran could return for an overage season if he’s selected in the upcoming NHL draft and his new team believes a return to the junior ranks is what’s best suited for his development.
Rugged import Gabriel Eliasson signed with the Ottawa Senators and is expected to join the AHL’s Belleville Senators next season. Ottawa could send the blueliner back to Barrie, similar to what they did this season when they sent Matthew Andonovski back to Kitchener at Christmas time after starting the season in Belleville.
The Colts are excited about the signing of fifth-round selection Aiden Mowrey, who should step into a regular role next season after a successful stint with the Pittsburgh Penguins Elite U18 AAA program. The Colts are hoping the six-foot-four, 205-pound right-shot native of Wexford, Pennsylvania, will develop into a top, physical, in-your-face defender.
“The sky is the limit for Mowrey,” said Smoskowitz.
Barrie is also excited about signee Luke Howard. The six-foot-three, 185-pound Woodbridge native had eight goals and 36 assists for 44 points in 46 games with the Toronto Patriots and led the team on the back end with two goals and 13 assists for 15 points in their run to a Buckland Cup title and berth in the Centennial Cup.
Noah Barton, who got into some action this season, also had a solid year with the Newmarket Hurricanes and will challenge for a spot on defence.
“It’s going to be some really tough decisions for the staff, (general manager) Marty Williamson and I, but when you have that many options, coming off an appearance in the league finals and two years from a conference final, and you still have that many eligible returning players, you’ve got to give credit to Marty and how he’s constructed this team,” said Smoskowitz.
FORWARDS
With Beaudoin (Utah Mammoth) and Hemming (Dallas Stars) moving onto pro hockey, and overagers Brad Gardiner (Cornell, ECAC), Calvin Crombie (Robert Morris, AHA) and Mason Zebeski (New Hampshire) graduating and taking their talents to Division I college hockey in the United States, the Colts will be without five of their top six forwards from this season.
Carter Lowe, William Schneid, Joe Salandra, Jaiden Newton, Nicholas Desiderio, Eamon Edgar, Jonah McCormick and Luc Gauvreau are eligible to return, along with 2025 first-round pick Aleksandr Sementsov, who got into a handful of games while practicing with the team every day throughout the second half of the season.
Ben Wilmott is committed to going to Ohio State (NCAA Division I, Big Ten). Still, the big trade deadline acquisition is expected to be selected in this year’s NHL draft and similar to von Richter, the Colts are waiting to see if his new NHL team feels a return to the OHL is best suited for his development.
With five of the top six forwards gone, the opportunity will be there for others to step into bigger roles.
“These spots are totally up for grabs,” said Smoskowitz. “There can’t be a day that goes by this summer that you don’t take advantage of that time to get yourself mentally and physically prepared to go and earn that spot.”
Williamson has also been busy signing young talent up front. Toronto Patriots forward Tate Collins had 24 goals and 76 points in 51 games last season and then added nine goals and 15 points in their postseason run to the national championships.
The Colts added size and strength up front with the signing of White Plains, N.Y. native Phillip Shargorodsky. The six-foot-three, 200-pound winger had 12 goals and 34 points in 37 games at the prep level with Culver Academy (Ind.).
Barrie added some big offensive production with the signing of Sebastian Mogull. The six-foot-one, 181-pound native of Florida had 15 goals and 29 points in 27 games with Cushing Academy (Mass.).
“We’re jammed up with really exciting prospects, so it’s really good to have these options,” said Smoskowitz, who also credited head scout Shane Sullivan and his staff for the haul of talent.
The Colts will also bring in a new haul of talent from next month’s OHL Priority Selection, being held June 12-13 in Kingston. Barrie holds the 17th overall pick.
That’s followed by the Under-18 draft and the CHL Import Draft in early July.
SMOSKOWITZ WORKING TO IMPROVE AS A COACH
The Barrie head coach has been invited to take part in the Pittsburgh Penguins development camp this year as a guest coach.
“I’m really looking forward to learning from their guys there and seeing how they do it at the next level, which is obviously an aspiration of mine and a goal of mine,” said Smoskowitz. “My motto doesn’t change whether it’s hockey season or the off-season. ‘You’ve got to win the day.’ If you’re not getting better, then somebody else is. I plan to get better every day and then come back next season as a better and more improved coach.”
