Estevan’s Alex Von Sprecken is one of the youngest players to ever lace up the skates with the Power Dodge Estevan Bruins.
After playing for the Bruins Saturday at Affinity Place against the Battlefords North Stars, the 15-year-old defenceman has a bright future, according to Bruins head coach and general manager Chris Lewgood, even though Von Sprecken only played five or six shifts in the game.
“He was excellent,” said Lewgood. “He made some very big plays. I think one on one he played against the best player in the league, where Layne Young ends up laying in the corner and Vonny is standing over him. That’s a sign of things to come with Von Sprecken and junior hockey, whether it’s with the Estevan Bruins or at a higher level.”
When Von Sprecken emerged from the Bruins’ dressing room after the game, he had a cut on his chin and a huge grin on his face.
“(I was expecting) this would be a lot faster than midget and … I just had to adjust to the pace,” Von Sprecken said. “Just make quicker decisions and know what to do with the puck before it comes to you.”
There have been other 15-year-olds step into the lineup for the Bruins, like Cole Fonstad and Brayden Pachal, but Lewgood believes Von Sprecken might be younger than they were in their games than he was at the time of his game.
Von Sprecken has been working on moving the puck quicker and not holding onto it for too long. Lewgood said he made clean plays with the puck in his time with the Bruins Saturday.
Von Sprecken has played this year with the Notre Dame Argos of the Saskatchewan Midget AAA Hockey League, his second year with the school. This year he was sixth in league scoring with three goals and 11 assists for 14 points and gathered 56 penalty minutes in 39 games. Last year while playing bantam AAA, he scored three assists in 30 games with the bantam Hounds.
Last spring, Von Sprecken was drafted in the sixth round, 116th overall by the Spokane Chiefs of the Western Hockey League. Earlier this year, he played in the WHL Cup with team Saskatchewan against other first year midget players.
Nest year, he said he’d love to play with the Bruins but will also be amenable to another year of midget with Notre Dame.
