The Yorkton Terriers held an intra-squad scrimmage on Sunday night for all of the hockey-hungry fans looking to catch a glimpse at some of the new recruits.
With training camp running from last Friday until Sunday, the Terriers players hoped to use the opportunity to make an impression on the coaching staff.
However, it was the returnees who mostly ruled the day.
Divided equally into two squads, Team Black jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead over Team Orange before the first intermission.
Returnee and playoff hero Rylan McDonell had the first goal for Black, while last year's call-up Alex Laird and Zak Majkowski had the other goals. Veteran Kelley Leismeister picked up two assists in the period.
Newcomer Kyle McLeod put Orange on the board at 2:45 of the second period with an unassisted marker.
Looking to make a name for themselves were Sam Rockwell and Jordan Daniels - on the Black and Orange team, respectively.
The two combatants squared off and threw punches on two separate occasions within minutes of each other in the second frame, neither achieving a decisive victory.
Both did, however, get a misconduct penalty.
Justin Beernaert restored Black's lead back to three with a goal at 8:35 of the second from Morgan Salkeld and Jeremy Johnson.
It wasn't long until Sam Prpich ('91) put Orange on the scoreboard again - courtesy of returnee Nathan Murray and Kyle McLeod.
Brenden Poncelet ('92) made the score 4-3 with another goal for Orange of the unassisted variety. The opportunity to shine is an important one for Poncelet, a part-timer with the squad last season.
The two quick goals by Orange came on goaltender Kale Thomson ('93) who split time with Scott Shivak and presumed starter Devin Peters.
The goaltenders on the other side included Myles Dunne, Steve Altman and last year's back-up for the playoff run, Warren Shymko.
It was Shivak who stole the show in the third period. The goaltender recorded several highlight reel saves, surrendering only one goal in the process (to Nathan Murray, his second point of the night).
Team Black pitched in with two goals of their own in the final frame. Morgan Salkeld recorded another point with a goal at 9:01 of the third. Jeremy Johnson and Justin Beernaert were credited with the assists.
Rylan McDonnell notched another marker three minutes later to extend the Black lead to 6-3.
The game would ultimately finish 6-4 for Team Black - though the score was not what the coaching staff was concerned with.
With several exhibition games on the docket for this week and roster cutdown's imminent, the chance to look at players in the heat of competition was incredibly necessary.
Head Coach Trent Cassan was pleased with some of the younger guys who may play a role on this team a few years down the road.
Of that group, one of the notables was 1995-born Kailum Gervais.
"He fared very well though, he didn't look like a 1995 out there. He's going to play Midget AAA with the Yorkton Harvest, he showed no fear out there playing against guys four and five years older than him. I was very impressed with his camp," Cassan emphasizes.
With so many goaltenders in camp, Cassan remains undecided on the depth chart at hockey's premiere position.
The coach was quick to point out that the upcoming exhibition games (five in seven days) will go a long way towards deciding who plays where.
Trying to project any sort of Terriers roster at this point would be premature, Cassan states. Especially considering the notable Terriers veterans who are currently in Western Hockey League camps.
"That's still two weeks away and we still have obviously some guys in some Western Hockey League camps. To pick out your roster right now is pretty unfair to do to some kids because there are certainly some kids who turned some heads at camp here," Cassan explains.
A critical factor in determining who plays their way onto the squad, for Cassan, is the ability to be a good teammate. Being one of his fundamental requirements as a coach, Cassan insists that a Terrier player must not only possess individual skill but be able to make his teammates better as well.
"The big thing is, how they are as teammates. How they fit in with each other, how they fit in with their surroundings," Cassan says, "That's one of the big things we preached last year on our good run in the playoffs was that it was being a good teammate and holding each other accountable. That's one of things we're looking for in some of our guys."
These intangible qualities include things like leadership and shot-blocking -- overall sacrifices for the good of the team.
One of the projected strengths for this year's edition of the Terriers will be the defence.
Cassan says that the area is still a question mark with so many guys at camp in the Western League.
"We have four returning guys in our camp right now. We have three guys (Austin Bourhis, John Neibrandt and Davis Vandane) who are in Western Hockey League camps and indications are that those guys are all going to be given very good opportunities to play and they're all very good players," Cassan notes.
With the veteran guys away at Junior camps, there has been a chance for a younger defenceman to come in and impress. Cassan says that several guys have used the time wisely, particularly Sam Rockwell ('91).
The forward ranks may be the most fluid position of all heading into the year.
With the loss of so many guys, Cassan says that the onus is on the returnees to shoulder the load.
"All of our returning guys I'm going to rely on more," he says, "I've been impressed (with) Riley Patterson's come and he's stronger and he has a lot of confidence. Same with Brent Struble, he looks like he's grown a bit. Rylan McDonnell, we're going to count on him a lot to be a leader and a goal scorer. He scored a lot of goals already here in training camp."
Another potential guy to look for is 18-year old forward Nathan Murray, who brings in a lot of experience for his age.
The newcomers at forward assembled by Cassan and General Manager Don Chesney certainly hold some promise.
Kyle McLeod (1992) brings in a solid pedigree as the former captain of his Manitoba AAA Junior team.
Cassan also indicates that Zak Majkowski, Craig Eisenhut and Sam Prpich will all be counted on to contribute right away.
As for Alex Laird and Brenden Poncelet, the chance to make the club will be there for the taking.
Cassan says that Poncelet, in particular, will have a solid shot while Laird still has a year of eligibility at the Midget AAA level.
With a week chalk full of exhibition games and roster decisions, this is one of the busiest times of the year for Cassan and his coaching staff.
To think, the season is still two weeks away.
