Pair of draftees benefit from hockey family backgrounds
By Ryan McCracken on June 2, 2018.
rmccracken@medicinehatnews.com @MHNMcCracken Centre Cole Sillinger and defenceman Dru Krebs both come from impressive hockey families, but the pair of newly drafted Medicine Hat Tigers are hoping to forge their own path and make a name for themselves in the Gas City. Sillinger and Krebs — selected in the first and second round of last month’s Western Hockey League bantam draft, respectively —made their way to the Family Leisure Centre for their first taste of the team at orientation camp Friday. Both have family members who have been there before, but Krebs could have the chance to face off against his brothers, Kootenay Ice forward Peyton Krebs and Calgary Hitmen defenceman Dakota Krebs — in the coming years. “I’m ready to shut him down,” said Krebs, adding his brothers helped prepare him for the draft and the road to come. “You learn a whole lot from them, it’s really cool. They know how to teach you stuff and you learn so many things on and off the ice from them … You see their work ethic on and off the ice, it’s really cool and it helps me become a better person on and off the ice.” Sillinger’s older brothers, Owen and Lukas, both spent their season playing with the British Columbia Hockey League’s Penticton Vees, while his father Mike graduated through the Regina Pats system and went on to complete a 17-season National Hockey League career with a record 12 different teams. Sillinger says he was too young to remember his father’s glory days, but it still helped pave a path for him to develop and thrive on the ice. “I was kind of young when it all happened with my dad playing in the NHL. It kind of just became real to me when I got older, I started to understand,” said Sillinger, drafted 11th overall, adding he’s thrilled to finally be in Medicine Hat with his new team. “It’s awesome just getting to know everyone and meeting the players in the Tigers organization and all the coaches.” Regardless of their backgrounds, Tigers head coach and general manager Shaun Clouston says Sillinger and Krebs have created their own success, and he’s hoping they’ll continue to create names for themselves in orange and black over the coming years. See Clouston, Page A10 “They’re from hockey families, they have great pedigrees, but it’s mostly about them. We’re excited to have them here and we’re excited about earning their trust and hopefully convincing them that this is the place they want to develop,” said Clouston. “We’re really excited about those guys, we’re really excited about the whole group.” The pair of prospects were joined by the eight other members of this year’s bantam draft class and many from last year’s draft and current players Gary Haden, Jaeger White and Dylan MacPherson. Clouston says the weekend is primarily geared toward getting players immersed and comfortable within the Tigers system, but it also features some on- and off-ice testing. “We do some testing so we see where the players are at and we give them some feedback as to where they need to get to compared to our roster players. Hopefully we see big improvements from the guys who are coming back from last year’s camp. Hopefully by the end of the weekend we’ve answered lots of questions, and players and parents have a real good understanding of what the Western Hockey League is about and what maybe distinguishes or is a little bit different about the Medicine Hat Tigers.” Clouston added Haden, White and MacPherson will play a big role in providing that level of understanding to the team’s newest draft picks and their families. On top of lending a hand with drills and providing a benchmark for aspiring players, the trio of WHL veterans will be ready to answer questions and provide insight on the WHL experience. “They were excited about helping out and I think it says a lot about them as people and players. I think it’s a real positive, hopefully for the parents and the players that are here. We’re going to try to utilize those guys and encourage the parents and the players to talk to them, to ask questions. What better place to start as far as gathering information about our organization?” 14
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