By Scott Fisher /
The Calgary Bisons AAA Bantams are still perfect.
The Bisons went 5-0 at the recent Red Deer Sutter Fund Tournament and blanked the Red Deer White squad 6-0 in the gold medal game.
Toss in exhibition and regular-season action and the Bisons are 13-0 on the season.
Head coach Tyler Drader said his team has been impressive in the early going, but is hoping overconfidence doesn’t become a problem.
“Anytime you go 13-0 and score 100 goals, you’re doing something right, but we have a long ways to go,” Drader said.
“[Overconfidence] is the challenge I’m facing right now.”
The Bisons opened the Red Deer tourney with a 7-5 win over Red Deer White. They also beat the Okotoks Oilers 7-4, blasted the Grande Prairie Storm 14-1 and edged Red Deer Black 5-3 in the semifinals.
Morgan Klimchuk has been leading the way for the Calgary team during the season, potting a dozen goals and three assists in six games.
Tanner McMaster and Jay Merkley are close behind with 14 points apiece.
Drader said Klimchuk, the team’s captain, and Merkley will likely be high WHL draft picks next spring.
“I’d hate to jinx the kids, but they should be top-10 picks,” Drader said. “There’s nobody better than those two.”
And McMaster, whose older brother Nathan is a rookie with the WHL’s Moose Jaw Warriors, will be there one day, too. But his draft year is in the spring of 2011.
Perhaps the smallest player in the league at 5-feet and 100 lb., Brayden Point is another of the club’s 13-year-old youngsters.
“He might be small, but he’s fourth on our team in scoring and he’s got a great touch around the net.
Defenceman Brycen Martin rounds out the 13-year-old class.
“He has the potential to play at a really high level,” Drader said. “I’d be shocked if he doesn’t get drafted (when he’s eligible).
“He’s on our number one powerplay.”
Drader said the biggest difference between the Bisons and some other clubs is the depth his team has.
“Our third line is better than most teams’ third line,” he said. “We have a lot of upside, that’s for sure.”
By winning the Red Deer tournament, the Bisons received an invite to next month’s tourney in Medicine Hat, which will feature some of the best teams from Western Canada. |
