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www.insideHALTON.com | OAKVILLE BEAVER | Thursday, February 9, 2 0 1 7 | 40 Burns gets second chance with Rangers By Josh Brown Waterloo Region Record Andrew Burns always felt that he had more to offer. The veteran defenceman came to the Ontario Hockey League on a m ission to m ake a difference when the W indsor Spitfires selected him in the third round of the 2013 draft. But the chance never really material ized with the Spitfires. "I w asn't being used m uch there," said Burns, who turned 20 last Thursday. Things changed last month. Kitchener w as shopping star winger Jer emy Bracco and had a deal brewing with the Spitfires. Draft picks and a prospect were the focus in talks, but season-ending injuries to rearguards Connor Hall and D oug Blaisdell meant the Rangers needed to get a blueliner back in the deal. Burns w as added to the package that also included winger Cole Carter and a trio of top draft picks. At the time, the Oakville native was seen as a bit of a throw-in. Now, he's one of the team's m ost dependable defence men, averaging 20-25 m inutes per game. "H e's getting a ton of m inutes," said Rangers coach Jay McKee, whose club lost 6-2 to the Spitfires last Friday. "When you get more m inutes, you get more con- Defenceman Andrew Burns of Oakville was involved in an Ontario Hockey League trade last week when he was dealt by the Windsor Spitfires to the Kitchener Rangers. | photo by Aaron Bell - OHL Images fident. He plays hard and we're happy with w hat he's done." Burns w as an offensive-m inded guy and had 14 goals and 36 assists for the Oakville Rangers during his draft year. W indsor tried to groom him as a fu ture power-play piece before sw itching gears. "When I was drafted, they wanted me as a special-teams guy," said Burns. "They kind of changed me into m ore of a defen sive defencem an." The transition w as successful but ice time was sparse in Windsor. It's a differ ent story in Kitchener where Burns has becom e a staple on the team 's top D-pair- ing and a steady presence on a relatively inexperienced back end. "It's a change but I welcomed it," said the rearguard. "It's a second chance. I re ally appreciate what I have here." In m any ways, Burns has rediscovered his purpose. In Kitchener he feels he has the free dom to play to his strengths. And while he takes guidance and listens to the coaches, he is also encouraged to follow his instincts. There w as a time when Burns w asn't so sure about his future in hockey. He w on dered if the gam e -- at higher levels -- had passed him by. But chats with McKee have changed his outlook. "I told him that he has an opportunity right now to show scouts w hat he could have been doing the past couple of years," said the bench boss. Now, Burns is eager for a strong finish to help him win one of the three overage jobs up for grabs in Kitchener next season. He's also having a lot m ore fun. "A lot of people have som e rough patches," he said. "I've been around a long time. It's nice to get back to hockey. "(The new role in Kitchener) brings me a lot more joy again, especially since a lot of the pressure is off and I'm playing m y game. It rem inds m e about the love I have for hockey " Maltais reaches two milestones in Hornets' PWHL win vs. London Em m a Maltais scored a milestone goal, but her two assists put her in even more exclusive com pany as the Oakville Hornets routed London 7-2 last Saturday. M altais scored the 50th goal of her career, becom ing the 37th player in Provincial W om en's Hockey League history to reach the mark. Her two assists, giving her 90 for her career, m oved her into a tie for third all-time. M altais added two more assists in last M onday's 3-1 win over the Stoney Creek Sabres as the Hornets scored three consecutive goals in the second period -- by Annie M acDonald on a power play, Laura Cote and Jessica Digirolamo. M addy McArthur lost her shutout bid with 5:05 rem aining in the game. Saturday, Victoria Klim ek scored the gam e's first two goals and Sarah Fillier and Lexie Adzija add ed goals in the final two m inutes of the period as Oakville built a 4-0 lead. London cut into the lead with a pair of goals in the second period but the Hor nets responded with three unanswered goals by Cote, M altais and Brooke Jovanovich in the third. M adison Oakes made 14 saves for the win. With the victories, Oakville im proved to 26-3-4 and hold a five-point lead atop the PWHL standings over Durham West. The Hornets host Aurora on Sat urday, Feb. 11 at 3:30 p.m. at Jo sh u a's Creek Arenas. WWW.WAVEHOCKEY.CA Register: 905-336-3434 x10 or programs@wavehockey.ca