George and Ritchie Carry NHL Experience, Childhood Memories Together into Isles Development Camp

Isaiah George and Cal Ritchie go way back.

Long before the days were highly touted prospects in the New York Iskanders system, they were running around playing lacrosse together in their hometown of Oakville, Ontario.

Lacrosse is a close cousin to hockey and in Canada can often be a summer activity when the ice has melted. The strength, endurance, hand-eye coordination and a lot of running around helped the two kids bond and develop skills early that translated to the ice.

“We were probably like nine or 10 years old, I just remember how strong he was back then playing with him,” Ritchie said of George. “He was just a beast, running over guys in lacrosse, that was pretty funny.”

“Oddly enough that’s the only sport we played together as kids,” George said with a laugh.

Flash forward 10 years and they were opponents in the Ontario Hockey League, as George and the London Knights faced Ritchie and the Oshawa Generals for three seasons. The two faced off against each other for the OHL title in 2024, with George and Knights coming out on top. George contributed three assists and sturdy defense for the Knights in the four-game series, while Ritchie exploded with a four-point game (1G, 3A) for the Generals in Game Two. They both saw each other as tough adversaries.

“He’s a really good player, really good guy, super humble,” George said of Ritchie. “Out on the ice, he’s smart and skilled. When I played against him in junior, he was always one of those guys who was super dangerous. I’m happy to have him here.”

George, the Isles’ 2022 fourth-round pick (98^th overall), and Ritchie, the 27^th overall pick in 2023, are training together on Long Island at the team’s development camp. They’re both hungry to learn as much as possible with their sights set on making the roster in the fall.

“The main goal is to develop, come in and try to soak in as much as much information as I can,” Ritchie said. “I want to learn from other players and grow my game.”

Ritchie and George entered development camp as two the players with NHL experience. Ritchie, who was acquired by the Isles from the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for Brock Nelson ahead of the NHL Trade Deadline, made Colorado’s opening night roster, playing seven games and recording his first goal – coincidentally against the Isles – before returning to Oshawa and reaching the 70-point mark in 47 games.

“It was a lot of fun and I learned a lot throughout the year,” Ritchie said. “Starting in Colorado, that was really good experience for me, to understand what it takes to play at that level. Going back and continuing at Oshawa was great for me because I learned from great coaches, we had a good team. I felt like I developed my game in Oshawa.”

The 20-year-old winger has been happy to help Isles prospects who pick his brain about making it out of training camp and playing at the NHL level, but he’s focused on learning from the mix of prospects and talent at Islanders development camp.

“A few guys ask questions and stuff, but everyone here is unreal,” Ritchie said. “Everyone has an idea of what they’re doing, they don’t have to ask too many questions.”

George has the most pro experience of any of the prospects at camp, playing 33 games, averaging 15:39 TOI/GP, but playing as much as 24:07. All that experience followed just four games in Bridgeport, so when he was returned to the AHL in February, he played the remaining 29 games of the season and recorded 12 points (3G, 9A), powered by the knowledge and confidence he picked up from the NHL. He’s also passing along pointers to anyone who asks.

“They’ve got questions, I’ll answer them for sure,” George said. “But we just talk hockey, about each other’s seasons, it comes up like that. I only have great things to say. My time here last year was amazing.”

The 21-year-old defenseman is excited to share his positive experience in the pros as the other prospects naturally turn to him as a veteran among rookies, in a sense.

“George is a good friend of mine, he had a good season last year, so I try to learn from him in practice and take advice,” defenseman Calle Odelius said.

As Islanders development camp continues, the focus is all on building chemistry as a group and soaking in as much as they can before the rest of their offseason training.

“We’re doing a lot of skills stuff, we call have things to work on this offseason,” George said. “We’re just here to work hard, have some fun, meet some new guys and make a good first impression to the new coaches and management.”

It may be a first impression on the coaches, but Ritchie and George have already left an impression on each other. If all goes right, they could make an impression on the ice as teammates.