You know all those times I've talked about how our young hockey players need to play in a higher level of competition on a regular basis?
Well, a bunch of them are and they're finding out just what major AAA hockey is all about.
You'll have read about the Yukon Rivermen and their exploits in Kelowna, B.C., last weekend. Don't let the name fool you – there is a strong Yellowknife presence on this team with several really good young bantam-aged players on it along with Shawn Talbot and R.J. Carr serving as assistant coaches. Don't forget the very capable, lovely and talented April Desjarlais as the team's manager.
This is the first year for the collaboration between Hockey NWT and Hockey Yukon for a joint AAA team. There have been joint efforts in the past with the minor hockey associations in Yellowknife and Whitehorse either through series between the two cities or joint teams but this is the first time something anywhere close to this has happened.
The idea was to give these young players exposure at what the highest level of minor hockey outside of junior is all about. This isn't your standard weekend tournament where you drive your child to somewhere in Alberta, play a few games against local minor hockey teams there, beat the formaldehyde out of them, win their trophies and come home full of smiles and all sorts of fast food you don't get here in Yellowknife.
This is where the big kids play. This is where you play when you're looking to impress a few Western Hockey League scouts. This is where the Western Hockey League drafts from. This is the big time for AAA hockey.
It's also a helluva lot faster than anything these players will have ever seen. They won't get the luxury of being able to coast through neutral ice with the greatest of ease because they will either get checked by the time they hit centre ice or, if they make the mistake of putting their heads down, they will most likely be counting how much asbestos there is in the roof of the arena from a lumbar-prone position.
The good thing about having Talbot and Carr on the coaching staff is they know all of the Yellowknife players already. They know what they can do and they know what the players need to work on. Sure, sounds simple enough but when you're at the AAA level, the changes to play style come quick. It's easier to shuffle lines at the A or AA level because a coach has a couple of shifts to see how the lines need to be re-jigged, if at all.
At the AAA level, coaches are coming in with at least two or three different models on their sheets and you can bet every single scenario will be played out over the course of a game. Good players can spot changes right away but Talbot and Carr are really good at line-matching. I watched them in the final of the bantam boys gold ulu game and how they played this one particular player from Alberta North, one of these small, mosquito-bite-type players who looked to get under the skin of Carter McLeod.
Talbot spotted it right away and after that shift – and having home ice advantage, which meant last change on all faceoffs – he threw out a line which had Kaden Beck on it to counter said runt. All of a sudden, he wasn't a problem anymore and McLeod was able to quarterback the top line the way a good centre should.
That's what good coaches do – they spot the little things to give their team an advantage. It's going to be tougher at AAA but give Talbot and Carr a few games and they'll be fine.
Besides impressing the scouts, there's the little thing of the Canada Winter Games. Every Yellowknife player on the team is in the running for a spot in Red Deer, Alta., this coming February. Playing AAA hockey means they will be playing at the level that will most likely come at them when the Games begin. They'll also be playing against some of their potential competition from B.C., so let's hope they pay attention.
This coming weekend will be a big one not only for the fact that they will be playing at their home barn in Whitehorse – Takhini Arena – but they will also be facing Mirsad Mujcin, who will be coaching the Prince George Cougars, their opposition for the three-game series. Mujcin is the head coach for the Team NT boys outfit for the Games so he'll get a good look not only at how the Rivermen shape up but also to see who's going to make the cut for Red Deer.
So the Rivermen may not win a lot of games this season but most newly-formed teams don't in year one. The best thing this team can do is take the experience and run with it because they will be better for it. I've said it before – this is where these players should be looking for the next step up. Wins will be at a premium but scouts will always be there.
Just don't be selfish.