Rocky starts to seasons are a big part of rebuilding a hockey team.
The Upper Canada Patriots and the Dixie Beehives have been no exception.The Patriots and the Beehives, local entries this season into the Central Canadian Hockey League's (CCHL) tier 1 loop, are both struggling to find ways into the win column this season. Twenty-two games in, the Patriots are in eighth in the West loop with a 4-13-0 record, while the Beehives, with 21 games under their belt, sit in last place in the eleven-team West heap.Both squads have undergone some major changes, including coaching changes, in their respective bids to redefine themselves in the CCHL this season.Both clubs are showing signs of improvement of late."We're coming together nicely, I think," said Patriots' new head coach Mike Galati. "We were in dead-last a month ago, so I think we're now heading in the right direction."Galati, who played three years of Major Jr. A with Guelph and Owen Sound after competing in Europe for a decade, bolstered the line up this season with several new additions, including Jeff Shilling and Joey Gagliese in trades with St. Michael's Buzzers. He has since added Erlich Doerksen and Matt O'Neill at the blueline - both are from the Ontario Provincial Jr. A Hockey League Bramalea Blues. "We're just starting to put all the pieces together, we could be adding more in the next couple weeks," he said.Making the playoffs is the team's "ultimate goal" this season after finishing in last place last year. "If we make the playoffs, anything can happen."The Patriots, currently in its second season, but its first playing out the Mastercard Centre for Hockey Excellence (Lakshore Lions Arena), is an even 5-5-0 under Galati."October was a good month for us," he said. "If you think about it, we're now a point out of a playoff spot. So, making the playoffs is a very realistic possibility for us."The Dixie Beehives, which played its home games out of Weston Arena last season and has since moved into Canlan Ice Sports Etobicoke, is taking a very different approach than Upper Canada to rebuilding its program. Instead of tinkering with the lineup and purchasing some players to fill a few gaps, management is determined to build around the players it has chosen to start the season.The team, which has its roots in Mississauga, is hoping the move to the new arena will bring a new chapter to an old tradition. "We're trying to move the organization into a new era, but still keeping the values and traditions of those that made the name," said Beehives coach and GM Louie Gialadakis, pointing out the organization's banners are now hanging at its new home.Management has made very few changes to the lineup after shaking things up dramatically to start the season. The team, perhaps one of the youngest junior A squads in the country with few senior members, is currently 5-14-1 and opened the season with just three returnees. "We examined the players that we had and we realized that we had to get much younger much quicker. So what looks like a slow start is actually a blessing in disguise," he said. "As the years go on and teams start losing players due to age, we'll end up being one of the stronger teams."He's not counting out more movement transaction-wise, he said, but "I'm not prepared to lose any of tomorrow's vision for today's satisfaction."We believe in the players we've picked and we're extremely happy about how our players are developing and how we've played so far."Upper Canada Patriots will face off against Burlington Cougars Friday, Nov. 13 while Dixie Beehives meet Toronto Junior Canadiens Saturday, Nov. 14.Both games are at home with 8 p.m. starts.