Benny Walchuk
Good morning, it’s time once again for the Yorkton Terriers Coaches Show here on GX94. Joined by head coach and GM Emery Olauson after the preseason wrapped up. Coach, you had a handful of games. What did you like and what did you see from your hockey club during the preseason?
Emery Olauson
You know what, there was some character for sure. I thought our home-and-home with Virden to start with, with the young guys, they pushed through. In a game on the road that was sometimes scrambled eggs with first-year players, I thought the grit and determination was really good, and we had a really good third period.
The depth of the group was good. We put ourselves in a position to win and won that game, and then we came home and, as we included more and more returning players, that kind of dwindled a little bit.
So what I didn't like was the consistency, but I guess that's to be expected in the preseason when you haven't really established roles or line combinations or anything like that.
We didn't lose any of them. Our five-on-five scoring was good, our five-on-five defence was good. Special teams were not, and again, at this point in time, we haven't really practiced that.
Overall, I like the fact that we had the character to not lose games. I didn't love the fact that in two games where I thought we had opportunities to come out on top, we found ways to not seal the deal or finish the job. That's on us as a coaching staff to get a little bit better and cleaner on our special teams play.
Benny Walchuk
And now going into preparations for Saturday's season opener against the Estevan Bruins, let's start with the goaltending. You've got Callum Craig coming back, you brought Brady Low in, and you've got another option between the pipes as well. You have to be pretty happy with that group.
Emery Olauson
For sure. We've got another kid, Anderson, out of Phoenix, a big, solid guy between the pipes and a draft pick of the Calgary Hitmen.
So we feel like we've got three really, really good options in the crease. With Callum Craig, in my mind, there's absolutely no question marks. He is a winner. He's done a lot of it here, and he's very poised and determined to have another good season.
Benny Walchuk
Going to the back end, of course, led by Tommy Ries, you've got Brett Buckley, who I thought took some steps in the playoffs as well. With 20-year-olds like Tyler Palin and Riley Cormier not returning because of the age limits, talk about that defensive group and what you like about it.
Emery Olauson
We love the way it came together, mostly through recruiting, because you do lose your 20-year-olds after a playoff run.
When you look at Xavier Madore, he's going to be a defenceman that brings people out of their seats. Sean Grohman is a big, six-foot-five, 225-pound, very physical defenceman.
We've just added a BCHL late cut in Jacob Hughes, a nice right-handed defenceman. We made a trade for Rayen Hache, who comes to us from Quebec and has been part of two Centennial Cup teams.
Then the list goes on. Layne Keyowski is a nice, big defenceman who defends extremely well. Kyler Zulyniak, and the list goes on on the back end.
We feel like this is the deepest group we've had. We addressed things on the right side because of the exits of Palin and Cormier, and we feel real good about where we sit to start the season.
Benny Walchuk
Up front, I know you've lost some offence with graduation and some other players not coming to camp. You do have a lot of veteran returnees coming back who played big roles for you last year, including Aidan Vallance, Jake Briltz, Owen Roberts and others. Talk about that forward group and what you like heading into opening weekend.
Emery Olauson
Depth. We don't know, looking at our forward group, who will lead that group. And that's not a bad thing.
You have Horbachewsky, Vallance, getting Medernach from the Wenatchee Wild. Kaden Sperle has scored in every game he's played, and then you've got Briltz, Johns, Shoffner, Brass.
I don't think we've had a first-year player with the skill set and the pace that DJ Brass brings.
Peter Godley, coming over from the Columbia Valley Rockies, has been just excellent in the preseason. He's good at everything. Maybe not elite at anything, but there's no holes in his game and we love that.
We think, again, it's young, but it's deep. And it's a good thing when you kind of post the lineup and you're like, I don't know if the fourth line is going to score the most, or the first line, or someone in between.
The guys sitting in the stands are junior players every day.
So we like the depth and, yeah, you lose a Jye Zawatsky, a Gabrielle Courchesne and a William Léonard. Would it be nice to insert those guys back in the lineup and know where your top-end scoring is going to come from? Yeah, that would be wonderful.
But having the depth and compete level of the guys that we do, we're really, really excited about not only the guys that are written high up on the lineup, but our second-, third-, fourth- and fifth-line guys that we think can contribute in big ways this year.
Benny Walchuk
And just lastly, I know it's still early in the season, but talk about your first opponent, the Estevan Bruins, on Saturday. What do you know about them heading in, and what do you want to see from your club on opening night?
Emery Olauson
Well, you know what, they're kind of like us. They lose some high-end scoring, but I think Kocur has done a really good job of filling holes. They've gotten some fortunate bounces with guys coming down from the WHL up front.
They've got a good decor, and they've had three good goalies in Estevan for the last couple of years. I think those guys will take another step this year.
So, every bit a contender to win this division, I think, and it's going to be a very, very exciting game.
On Yorkton's end, it's the first time that a banner is going to be going up to the rafters since 2014. We're proud of last year. We're proud of how we get to start this year.
But we know it's our job this week to go 1-0 on Saturday, and preparation starts today.
