Doug Falconer:
Good morning. Once again, it's time for the Yorkton Terriers Coaches Show on GX94. I'm joined by Terriers head coach and general manager Emery Olauson. Coach, let's start with Saturday night's shootout loss in Melfort. What stood out to you about your team's performance?
Emery Olauson:
I thought the guys played well. Going into a building like Melfort and outshooting them 30-22 is an accomplishment, especially when you compare it to some of our other road performances this season. What we're looking for at this time of year is progress, and I think we made some strides over the course of the week. That's a good sign as we head into four more straight games on the road.
Doug Falconer:
You mentioned that road trip. It's four games in five nights, starting tomorrow night in Flin Flon. What do you want to see from your group, particularly in that opening game against the Bombers?
Emery Olauson:
Just another step in the right direction. Obviously, getting up to Flin Flon is always challenging, especially with the travel involved. You've got a full day on the bus and then a day to prepare, rather than being in your own surroundings and sleeping in your own beds. But that's part of junior hockey, and it's something we have to get better at.
We want to get this four-game, five-night trip started the right way. I was really happy with our overall effort in Melfort, outside of special teams. I thought we were good around the crease, solid in our own zone and created enough opportunities. We just didn't get the bounces on the power play, although we generated nine shots with the man advantage. There were definitely some positives to take away.
Doug Falconer:
Another Terrier had the opportunity to represent the organization last week, with Tyson Medernach competing at the Western All-Star Challenge. What did it mean to see him get that opportunity, and how did you feel he performed?
Emery Olauson:
I thought he was really good, and we expected that. He's been tremendous for us all season. When you narrow it down to the 16-, 17- and 18-year-olds in the league, we knew Tyson would have a good showing, and he certainly did. Three points in two games is very respectable, and he represented our organization extremely well.
The only thing that surprised us about the showcase was that we had four, five or six players among the top 20 in rookie scoring, but only one of our guys got the opportunity to go. I'm not taking anything away from the players who were selected, but we certainly felt there were a couple of our young players who could have gone there and performed just as well as Tyson.
We've got a very young team, and our younger players are doing a great job. Tyson was tremendous, and it was nice to see him pick up a shorthanded point. Getting an opportunity on the penalty kill and showing he can contribute in that situation was pretty cool to see.
Doug Falconer:
Anything else you'd like to add before we wrap things up?
Emery Olauson:
No, we're just going to keep working at figuring out how to be a better road team. We're also really looking forward to welcoming our fans back to the Westland Arena in about a week and a half. Hopefully, they're ready for some hockey after all the bull riding and rodeo action.
It's going to be great to get back in front of our home crowd. Hopefully, our fans remember us because we're 5-0 on home ice, and we'd certainly like to keep that going when we get back next week.
