Four games in four nights is a daunting task for any hockey player.
It was an even tougher challenge for 17-year-old defenceman Parker Gavlas, as he had to do it playing for two different teams in two different leagues.
The Saskatoon product was in his regular role on the blueline for the Saskatchewan Midget AAA Hockey League’s Battlefords AAA Stars on the weekend in a pair of 4-3 wins over the Yorkton Maulers.
Prior to that, he made his debut for the Yorkton Terriers for a pair of road games.
“My legs were a little bit tired afterwards, but I was able to battle through it,” Gavlas smiled.
“Everyone on the Stars was really supportive of me going up and playing with the Terriers, and it turned out to be a really fun weekend.”
Gavlas, whose SJHL rights are held by the Terriers, was called up to the team for last Thursday’s game against the Kindersley Klippers in Macklin after defenceman Regan Seiferling made the final roster for Canada West at the World Junior A Challenge tournament in Bonnyville, Alta.
“I found out the night before the game, so it was a little bit of a rush to get ready,” Gavlas said.
“I was a little bit nervous and that first period was rough at times, but I was able to find my pace and I kept building off of that.”
He then took to the ice at the Civic Centre a night later as he matched up against the Battlefords North Stars.
“The North Stars are a little bit faster and more skilled than Kindersley was so I had to adjust to that right away, but I felt like I did a good job,” Gavlas said.
Although the Terriers lost by scores of 5-2 and 2-0 respectively, Gavlas’ performances impressed head coach and general manager Casey O’Brien.
“He certainly didn’t look out of place at all for us,” O’Brien said.
“The biggest thing for him was to keep things simple out there. The confidence starts to build when you do that and you could see that from Parker in both games. He showed that he can play at this level.”
Following Friday’s game, Gavlas returned for two contests with the Stars and had an assist in Sunday’s victory.
“I was a little concerned that he might be pretty tired after having a regular shift with the Terriers in both games,” Stars head coach Jean Fauchon said.
“He was good to go in both games. He played hard and was ready for anything.”
After playing Saskatoon Midget AA Spartans last year, Gavlas is off to a strong start in his first year in the Midget AAA ranks.
He has 11 points in 24 games for the Stars, which puts him in a tie for third place in team scoring Mackenzie Donovan and fellow defenceman Luke Reid.
“Parker’s become more confident as the season has gone on,” Fauchon said.
“He’s an offensive-minded player, but he’s also very good in his own end of the ice, and he’s become one of our top guys on defence.”
Moving forward, Gavlas plans to put the lessons he learned with the Terriers to good use.
“You need to keep your feet moving at all times,” Gavlas said.
“It’s a very fast game in the SJHL, and if I ever have a chance to go back there, I’ll be able to build off of those experiences and what I’m doing here.”
Gavlas will be in the lineup for the Stars this weekend, as they’ll host the Regina Pat Canadians for two games at the Civic Centre.
