Steve Milton: The Hamilton Bulldogs didn’t just lose players, they also gained them

As the Hamilton Bulldogs - like all junior hockey teams experiencing separation anxiety following a brilliant season - have continued to trade players who helped create something special, it can be difficult to remember that it's not a one-sided equation.

The Bulldogs have gained something too. Maybe a lot, depending upon the imprecise art of nurturing teenage talent.

Case in point: Luca Testa, a six-foot 16-year-old already showing signs of classic two-way hockey skills.

On Sunday, Testa was a London Knight, the team's 15th-overall draft choice who was on the ice for exactly 32 seconds the last time Hamilton head coach Jay McKee watched him play.

On Tuesday, Testa played full shifts as a left wing for the Bulldogs in a loss to Peterborough.

Despite his age and not being familiar with the Dogs' systems, Testa did not look out of place, exhibiting puck sense, laying a couple of hits on much older players, getting two shots on net and finding a feel for 17-year-old linemates Cole Brown and Braeden O'Keefe, who, like Testa, are expected to be around here quite a while.

Obviously, London was a great spot and I was honoured they drafted me," Testa said after Tuesday's game. They are well-coached, and know what they're doing. But I wasn't playing a lot and I want to play.

I'm really happy to be here and hope we can build for a really good team in the future. I learned a lot in London and hopefully I can bring that here."

Testa - who was obtained Monday with 17-year-old defenceman Carson Lloyd in return for Ryan Winterton and Ryan Humphrey, two hard-pumping pistons from Hamilton's 2022 OHL championship engine - is a natural centre and put up big numbers last year with 34 goals and 59 points in just 22 games for the Niagara North Stars U16s.

But more indicative of his promise, he had two goals and an assist in his junior debut as a call-up for the St. Catharines Jr. B Falcons when he was just 15. And once his minor team was eliminated, he joined the Falcons for their run to the Sutherland Cup championship, which included that memorable six-game series win over the Kilty B's. Matched against top teams loaded with players five years older, he had 17 points in 18 playoff games.

It was an older team and it introduced me to a physical game," Testa says. Minor midget is physical but nothing like Jr. B."

The outgoing and articulate Testa is a Grimsby native and looks forward to having more of his friends and family being able to attend Bulldogs games than they could Knights games. There was a good contingent on hand for his local debut Tuesday.

It will take a couple of weeks to settle in and feel comfortable here and during that time we'll play him with different guys and give him lots of minutes and try to get his confidence up and let him have some fun," says McKee. He's had limited minutes in London. That's hard; he was a star forward at the level he was playing and you go from that to very limited minutes, it's hard on the development, it's hard on the confidence. But I think he's going to really flourish here."

While McKee says it's his job to coach the players GM Matt Turek decides to provide, he acknowledges and supports that the Bulldogs are in a transition phase, trying to win games but likely obliged to focus more on team and individual development. The idea is to rotate younger players with different linemates, hopefully make the playoffs to provide competitive experience, challenge more significantly next season and, ideally, be a clear title-calibre club again the year after. A little extra here and there, and that ramp-up could accelerate.

It's a great opportunity for development for Luca, for Cole Brown, for (Marek) Vanacker, all the young players," McKee says. If they compete they'll earn good, meaningful minutes as the season goes on.

If we're moving toward development, I'm going to let these players make mistakes and not sit them down for it."

Meanwhile, Hamilton will be in London Friday night, affording Testa a reunion with the Knights and McKee and the veteran Bulldogs a chance to see Winterton and Humphrey again.

London is a great organization and they traded for two top-end players, who will bring the fans off their seats," Testa says. I love every one of those guys there, they were all great to me. I'm looking forward to going back and playing."

Playing a lot more than he had been.

Steve Milton is a Hamilton-based sports columnist at The Spectator. Reach him via email: smilton@thespec.com