Hockey is back.
Western Financial Place is a hive of activity as the Kootenay Ice are preparing for another WHL campaign which started with a Skills Camp and Main Camp over the weekend.
The first portion of camp included 36 prospects that include Kootenay draft picks, listed players and camp invitees. Sessions included skills development and drills that were not meant to be used as an evaluation tool, according to head coach James Patrick.
Following skills camp, the veterans returned to the ice for a practice session before getting into scrimmages.
Skills Camp
Skills camp was the first opportunity for Kootenay Ice hockey operations staff to check out their 2018 WHL Draft class.
And it did not disappoint.
Led by D Carson Lambos — the 2018 second overall pick — the camp also included second rounders D Karter Prosofsky and F Skyler Bruce,
Other high profile names from the previous draft year were also on hand such as forward Connor McClennon and Anson McMaster.
However, draft position doesn’t really count for much if you can’t bring the skills that go along with it.
In that regard, head coach James Patrick was impressed.
“My impression…going back coaching the last 14 years and seeing rookie NHL players and seeing rookie Western Hockey League players, for me, the skills keep getting better, they keep getting better at a younger age,” Patrick said, on Saturday. “It’s a faster game.
“You see this, you see some of the footwork and the puck handling skills from these 15-year-old kids; its pretty impressive.”
Even at a young age — some of the players are as young as 14 years old — the skill is readily noticeable, Patrick said.
He had high praise for the club’s recent first round pick.
“Carson Lambos, you can see he’s strong,” Patrick said. “He’s a man already at 15 and he shoots the puck…his wrist shot is at an NHL level right now. You see his skills, his powerful stride and that’s impressive.”
The skills portion of training camp was just that, a chance for coaches and staff to put the players through their paces to show them what skills are necessary to hone in order to make it, and stick, to the WHL.
“These first two days are totally about skill development,” said Patrick. “We’re not evaluating, we’re just getting to know them, putting a face to the name, introducing ourselves to the players and trying to emphasize the skills and the skill development needed to become a better player, to be able to play in this league, eventually.”
Among the list of prospects were two locals who played for the Kootenay Ice in the B.C. Major Midget League last year, as both Ryan Bennett and Erik Daliare hail from the Key City.
Time to go camping
While it’s a new experience for the 2018 WHL Draft class, there are some familiar prospect faces who are back for a second or third camp.
Forward Connor McClennon is one of them.
The second overall pick from the 2017 WHL Draft is back in Cranbrook and aiming for a spot on the roster after suffering an unfortunate injury from an open-ice hit at last year’s training camp.
However, despite the injury, he made a few appearances over the course of the regular season to get some WHL experience.
“It was a lot of fun being up here, the guys made me feel really welcome,” McClennon said, of his five-game stint with the club. “Having that experience made me feel a little bit more comfortable coming into camp, for sure.”
McClennon knows he’ll have a lot of eyes on him as training camp progresses.
“I just want to make sure I have a good rookie camp,” he said, “make sure I do whatever I can, work hard every time I’m on the ice, continue that into main camp, then hopefully stick around for preseason.”
Defenceman Nolan Orzeck is another young prospect who has a few training camps under his belt already.
A fourth round pick in 2016, Orzeck caught the eye of head coach James Patrick last year and even suited up for a few regular-season WHL games after heading back to Midget AAA last year.
“I’m trying to make the jump to the team full-time, worked hard in the summer, gained a couple pounds so I’m feeling good,” said Orzeck.
Speed was the biggest difference between the two leagues, which Orzeck said has helped him prepare to push for full-time duty this year.
ICE CHIPS: Logging on the miles are six prospects from Winnipeg, five of which come out of the Rink Hockey Academy, the same program that developed Carson Lambos and Skyler Bruce…Karter Prosofsky likes to hit. The young defenceman wasn’t afraid to throw his body around during scrimmages and a few solid connections were made with some rushing forward who had their heads down…In total, nine players are attending on invite, four are listed with the club and the rest of the 22 players are selected out of the WHL Draft.