The St. Paul Junior B Canadiens played an inter-squad Red and White Scrimmage on Sept. 21 at the Clancy Richard Arena.
The game served as the team’s final training camp activity, and coaches used the scrimmage to determine who would remain on the team after the final cuts.
“Everyone’s working hard, trying to make the team and trying to prove themselves out there,” commented player Tanner Hellquist.
Following the game, head coach Joe Young was pleased with what he saw during the scrimmage.
“I thought it was good,” he said “Guys competed. It’s been a pretty good grind here at training camp. We had two preseason games, and we had a hard skate last night. For the amount of guys we had on each bench, I thought the guys competed really well.”
Young was happy to see quality performances out of many players, both new and returning.
“It was good to see the veteran players play like they can, and see some of the young guys step up,” he said.
Following the game, the coaches then had some difficult decisions to make, as the roster needed to be cut down to 25 players.
“It’s extremely tough,” Young said of the cuts. “I’ve been in this league now for 12 years, and it’s probably the toughest thing you have to do at the start of the year. It’s just tough when you’ve got to release guys that played with you last year, and have given a lot to this organization. But that’s the way it works.”
Following the unpleasant business, the players who did make the team gathered for a short meeting.
“The guys couldn’t be more excited,” Young said of the atmosphere in the room. “Everybody is extremely honoured to be wearing our crest, and I think that’s the main thing first. It starts there, and then you’ll see the work ethic, because they care a lot about who’s sitting next to them in that room, and that’s what counts.”
The team will open the season with two home games this weekend. They will take on Cold Lake at 8 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 26, and on Saturday night they will play Saddle Lake at 7:30 p.m. Anyone attending Friday’s game should try to arrive a little early in order to catch the team’s opening ceremonies for the season.
