Nine Okotoks hockey prospects got a rare opportunity to hit the ice donning the hometown jerseys of the Oilers on the weekend, an arrangement they hope to make permanent in the near future.
The Alberta Junior Hockey League’s Okotoks Oilers held their annual spring camp, April 13-15, with a bevy of local talent from 1994 to 1996 born players from Big Rock Country. Oilers head coach James Poole said seeking out Okotoks players who can fit into the organization blueprint is not always an easy feat.
“We want to see those players progress and it’s great when they can develop and come play for their hometown team,” Poole said. “You see some players around the league, Okotoks players, that seem to play elsewhere because for whatever reason they want to leave home, they don’t want to play Junior at home and that’s unfortunate.
“It’s nice when you can get the Okotoks players, the hometown boys to stick around and play for the Oilers and that’s what we’re hoping we can find here.”
Poole acknowledged finding spots on the roster for local players would be ideal, but developing players for the next level and icing a winning team are his priorities.
“Ultimately my job is to promote our players and first and foremost is to win, so obviously we have to look out for that first,” Poole said. “But if you can find that player that can help you win and is a local player that’s a huge bonus for us.”
The Okotoks Midget AA Oilers were well represented at the weekend camp with Okotokian forwards Zak Johns, Mark McLeod as well as defencemen Kurt Fraser and Trent Schussler on hand. The latter was foiled by an ankle injury in the second day of camp, but the younger brother of former Oiler Kyle Schussler showed enough to earn an invite to main camp in the fall.
“There hasn’t been not a ton of examples of (local) players that have had success in the organization, but there’s been a few,” Poole said. “(Chris) Duszynski is a prime example and not we’ve got Schussler at camp. He had a strong camp and unfortunately he got injured (Saturday), but we’ll have him back at main camp for sure.”
Elsewhere, the Keystone Minor Midget (M-15) AAA Raiders contributed three Okotoks players to the camp – forwards Matt Forchuk, Robbie McLean and blueliner Mark Nerland — with UFA Midget AAA Bisons netminder Grayson Sharpe and Foothills Midget AA Bisons forward Steven Showalter rounding out the Okotoks contingent.
Forchuk, an 11th round pick of the Western Hockey League’s Tri City Americans in 2011, went into camp wanting to prove his will matched his skill.
“Just to show them that I can play at this level and try and make it to main camp,” Forchuk said. “And to get a few points and show them my chippy edge and not back down from anyone.”
The Okotokian said playing a hard-nosed style was his method of standing out from the tens of prospects on display over the weekend.
“Hopefully get into corners, dig around, hit guys and obviously finish your plays,” Forchuk said. “You got to show them your skill side of your game and you’ve got to be chippy, especially when you’re smaller, you’ve got to hit guys.”
Forchuk, the Raiders leading scorer with 18 goals and 35 points, got a brief taste of Major Midget AAA with the UFA Bisons this season as an affiliate and strives to be a big part of the team in 2012-13.
“Going up for a few games this year got me comfortable with the speed of the game so I think I can do it next year,” Forchuk said.
The Okotoks resident said the thought of potentially lining up for the Oilers would be a dream come true.
“I’d love it to play in front of everyone I know,” Forchuk said. “I kind of grew up watching the team me and my dad really like it. It would just be a good experience, I’d be honoured to play here.”
The two-way centre said his tenacity was appreciated by the Oilers’ brass in the post-camp meetings where he was told to improve his upper body strength.
Forchuk’s linemate with the Raiders, McLean cuts an imposing figure on the wing. He put in a good showing in the final day of camp with a pair of late goals in a 4-2 win for Team Blue on Sunday.
“I was hoping to show my size, my ability to get to the puck and outmuscle them and get my shots off quick,” said McLean, a student at Foothills Composite High School. “I think it went pretty good, it’s all about the experience.”
The 15-year-old said he received positive feedback from the Oilers’ coaching staff.
“They said they liked the way I looked, that I was in position most of the time, they liked my skating,” McLean said. “No definitive answer on if I’m coming back, but they liked me so hopefully next year.”
McLean, who finished second on the Raiders with 14 goals and 30 points, said his game would undoubtedly benefit from a season of Major Midget AAA with the UFA Bisons.
“I want to excel at every possible league I can,” he said. “I don’t want to be the guy who just barely makes it, the guy who rides the bench.”
Poole said the spring camp serves dual functions as an evaluator of talent ready to contribute right away as well as an identifier of potential in young players who need seasoning before making the jump to Junior.
“We’re looking for guys that we know are not ready next year, but you know down the road guys that may be good fits for our organization in terms of what we’re looking for that speed, skill and grit are characteristics of our players that we want to have consistently through our lineup,” Poole said.
