The Yorkton RawTec Maulers kicked off their Saskatchewan Midget AAA Hockey League regular season last weekend with a pair of games against the Tisdale Trojans.
Despite a strong effort, they ended up in the losing column of both games.
On Friday, the Maulers visited Tisdale to play at the Tisdale RECplex. The final score of that game – the first game of their season – was 6-2.
Yorkton’s first goal came from Troy Bryksa in the second period, and the second goal came from Rylan Donald in the third.
On Saturday night, the Maulers held their home opener at the Farrell Agencies Arena.
It was a close and well fought game, but the Maulers came up one goal short. The Trojans took the win 1-0.
Maulers’ veteran goalie Jordan Schmuland was awarded Yorkton’s game star after making 29 saves.
RawTec Maulers’ head coach Kevin Rawlick, along with assistant coach Dalane Lamb, picked a new group of captains for this year’s squad after last year’s leadership group moved up in their careers.
This year’s team captain is Aiden Bulych, and assistants are Josh Bear, Jordan Repsch and Beau Stevenson.
After Saturday’s game, Bulych said he’s confident that their next meeting with the Trojans will have a different outcome.
“We were happy with our chances we had tonight,” the team captain said. “It was definitely a close game, and we’ll get them next time.”
Bulych steps into the role of team captain this year to replace his older brother, Kaleb Bulych, who was last year’s Maulers captain. Kaleb is now spending time with the Vancouver Giants of the WHL.
Aiden said stepping up to fill his brother’s shoes is a special time for them.
“He helps me out a lot, and we get along well,” offered Aiden.
In terms of what fans can expect to see on the ice this year, Bulych said they’re definitely a chippier team than last year’s squad.
He also said that despite it being a younger bunch this year, he feels they have a great chance at winning.
Head coach Rawlick said he’s very happy with the group of leaders the team has this year. His choice of Bulych for captain didn’t seem to be a tough one.
“Aiden’s always been a guy – even last year as a first year player – always the first guy on the ice and the last guy to leave,” Rawlick explained. “We knew we were losing some key leaders last year, and it’s kind of ironic how his brother was captain last year.”
Despite the family tie, Rawlick said the brothers are very different.
“They lead in two completely different ways. Kaleb was more vocal and Aiden is more of a quiet leader - he does by example,” he said.
Rawlick said after speaking to players at the end of last season, and again before this season began, Aiden’s name was bounced around a lot as a captain candidate.
“He’s just a great kid. He loves to be around the rink, and he’s great with people,” offered Rawlick.
Picking great kids is what the coaching staff seems keen of. Rawlick described the entire team as a great group of kids.
“I’m really excited about this year,” he offered.
After Saturday’s game, he said there was a lot of frustration that was evident on the ice, but they’re working to eliminate those penalties.
“We’re trying to make sure we have the right guys on the ice, with the right attitude, playing hockey the right way. We feel that we have that in the dressing room,” said Rawlick.
In order to get over the difficulty they’ve had with scoring, the coach said he offered some simple advice to his team.
“Close your eyes and fire the puck,” he said. “As the game gets going, they tend to hold on to the puck and try to get that perfect shot.”
Despite being a young team on the defensive end, Rawlick is confident with the two goalies they have.
“[Schmuland] finished last year really strong so we knew what we were getting back with him,” the coach said.
“Dakota Berezowski – he’s absolutely fantastic for us. He won a midget AA championship last year,” he said.
With Schmuland having played last game, Rawlick said Berezowski will get the start in the Maulers’ next game.
That game will be in Yorkton at the Farrell Agencies Arena on Tuesday night. The results were not available at time of print.
The Maulers then spend a few weeks on the road. They return to game action in Yorkton on Sunday, Oct. 15. They’ll face off against the Beardy’s Blackhawks at 1:00 p.m. at the FAA.
