By Laurence Heinen /
The UFA Bisons might just have a secret weapon when it comes to having success at this year’s Mac’s World Invitational AAA Midget Hockey Tournament.
Assistant coach Rick Puttick was behind the bench as head coach when the Strathmore-based squad won the Mac’s title back in 1998.
“He’s got extensive knowledge of the tournament and our league in general,” said Bisons head coach Doug Thurston, who has four Mac’s tournaments under his belt. “He’s been a big help.”
While the Bisons boast experience behind the bench, only four players are returning from last year’s squad that compiled a 3-1 round-robin record before dropping a close 4-3 decision to the Calgary Buffaloes in the first round of the playoffs.
“We have a very young team,” Thurston said.
In net, the Bisons returned starting goalie Michael Snider, who compiled a 9-5-1 record as of Dec. 13 for the 11-9-2 squad. In addition, Snider had a respectable 2.91 goals against average to go with a .918 save percentage.
“He had a slow start and he’s played much better lately,” Thurston said. “He’s a good leader.”
Forward Corban Knight is also back for another season, this time as team captain.
“He’s a gifted offensive player and a committed hard worker,” Thurston said of Knight, who put up 18 goals and 13 assists to lead the Bisons through 22 games.
Also back for another season at forward are Devin Mitzner (12g, 10a in 22 games) and Austin Fyten (6g, 15a in 22 games).
“They’re very good in the dressing room and good leaders on and off the ice,”
Thurston said.
While the Bisons blueline features six new faces, 17-year-old defenceman Lane Wagner is coming off a year of experience playing for the Wheatland Midget AA Chiefs last season.
“He’s played very well,” Thurston said, adding that the young defensive corps has been getting better as the season progresses. “They’ve been good and committed. Eventually we’ll get to where we need to be.”
If the veterans continue their strong play and the rookies follow their lead, the Bisons have a good chance of faring well at this year’s edition of the Mac’s.
“If we have a good Mac’s it’s just going to build up the confidence in our young players,” Thurston predicted. |
