The Yorkton Terriers held their annual spring evaluation camp on the weekend.
This year鈥檚 three-day camp took on a bit more importance in respect to the fact the team is coming off a Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League season in which they finished with the worst record in the entire loop.
Terrier head coach, and general manager Trent Cassan said it was a good opportunity to evaluate most players in the organization.
鈥淧retty much all our list kids came,鈥� he said, adding only a couple missed due to other commitments.
鈥淚t was a physical camp,鈥� he said, physicality which included not just lots of checking but 鈥渁 few scraps too.鈥�
鈥淭he guys played pretty emotional.鈥�
Cassan said certainly the players in camp were aware that there are going to be opportunities available to them based on the Terriers need to improve on last season. He added there are not a lot of set spots in regards to 鈥渨hat the roster will look like next year.鈥�
One thing Cassan did notice, and liked, was how players 鈥渨anted to win鈥� scrimmages even though it was just a camp.
Cassan said he wants players who want to win every time out.
鈥淪ome nights (over a season) the results may not be what you want, but you鈥檝e still got to give an honest effort,鈥� he said.
Cassan said he saw enough on the weekend to think the Terrier roster in the fall will come together once they get into camp and preseason.
In particular Cassan said he saw some solid 1997 and 1998-born players.
鈥淭hey should be a good solid base of the team the next couple of years,鈥� he said.
The Terrier coach said the Terriers are going to be younger come fall, based on less 20-year-olds eligible to return.
鈥淲e鈥檙e not going to be overloaded on older players,鈥� said Cassan, meaning it is likely at least some 17-year-olds 鈥渨ill play for us this year.鈥�
Cassan said following the camp the team brass will evaluate its list, heading toward the first SJHL Bantam draft in June.
The draft will go six rounds, and the Terriers will get the first one.
It will be a balancing act for SJHL teams, admitted Cassan, who noted that some Bantam players project to almost assuredly play Western Hockey League, so SJHL teams may not want to risk a draft selection on a player who is highly unlikely to play in the league.
Of course all Bantam draft players are something of a risk in the sense they have up to two years of Midget hockey before joining a Junior roster. Cassan said a lot has to do with trying to gauge how a player will develop, and project where they are likely to fit in two, three, four years.
Cassan said leading up to the draft Terrier Director of Scouting & Player Personnel Garry Carson is busy evaluating talent.
As for spring camp prospects 鈥渨e鈥檒l follow-up on how they progress and how they project to,鈥� said Cassan, adding 鈥溾�� I鈥檓 happy with a number of players we think could step in and play for us next season.鈥�
