NEWS PHOTO JAMES TUBB
U15 SEAC Tiger goalie Kolter Gans keeps his eye on the puck as his teammate Cole Fisher comes in for a breakaway during the Tigers practice Tuesday night ahead of the Hockey Hounds annual tournament this weekend.
jtubb@medicinehatnews.com@ReporterTubb
It’s been more than a year in the waiting, but the 48th annual Hockey Hounds tournament is set to get underway this weekend.
The annual bantam tournament was put on hold last fall due to COVID-19 but will make its return this week with teams from across the western provinces arriving to the Hat for a weekend of high-calibre minor hockey.
Hockey Hounds treasurer Dale Fuller says it would have been nice to have the tournament last year so the Hounds could call this year the 48th consecutive tournament, but he’s just glad they can have it this season.
“I guess we can still say it because it was through no fault of our own that we cancelled last year,” Fuller said.
He says there are no changes to the tournament other than all arenas are following their REP programs that require proof of vaccination to enter.
Fuller says all of the arenas will be steaming the weekend’s games on the website LiveBarn. He says the link to watch the games on hockeyhounds.ca, where fans and parents can also find the schedule and updated scores, standings and statistics from the tournament.
Sixteen teams will take part in the tournament, known for being a scouting opportunity for WHL teams. Fuller says hockey fans should come enjoy the good, quality hockey from kids that may be the future of the WHL.
“We’ve had a lot of these kids that have played in this tournament over the years that have played in the NHL and some still playing in the NHL. In fact, one of them reffing in the NHL,” Fuller said.
The Hounds say in the tournament’s program that over 700 players who have taken part in the tournament were drafted to the WHL, with 26 playing in the NHL.
Medicine Hat’s entry, the South East Athletic Club U15 AAA Tigers, are off to a 7-4-1 start to their season. Head coach Tyler Keen, who played in the Hounds tournament when he was younger, says his team is pretty excited for the tournament.
“For a lot of them, this is the biggest thing they’ve played in so far and for a lot of them it won’t be the biggest thing they play in,” Keen said. “I think there is a little bit of nerves but the boys are doing good… I’m excited to see what we can do with a full squad.”
The Tigers get their tournament underway Thursday night at 8:30 p.m. when they take on the Prairie Storm at the Kinplex. Keen says preparing for the tournament has taken away some of the nerves of it being his first behind the bench.
His advice for his team, having played in the tournament, has been to be prepared.
“I tell them I can still remember my very first shift of this tournament, every second of it – was probably only 10 seconds long but it’s something you don’t forget,” Keen said. “But it’s just a matter of visualizing and getting prepared mentally for everything that can come at you and making sure you’re physically ready.”
The rest of the SEAC’s round robin games are Friday at 11 a.m. against Northern Alberta at Hockey Hounds Arena and Friday at 8 p.m. against West Vancouver at the FLC.
Tigers captain Josiah Jackson says he’s excited to showcase his skills in front of the scouts and to play in a tournament with his team. He says he isn’t nervous and wants to let his game speak.
“I’m just going to play my game and let my skills show, not really worry about what people are thinking,” Jackson said.
Defenceman Hudson Gainer says this tournament will be a lot tougher than any tournament he’s played in before, and it will have more fans, but he thinks the Tigers will do well.
Keen says his team’s goal is obviously to win the tournament and he’s excited to see how his team can do with a healthy line-up.
“There are some good teams coming in, I think we will be extremely competitive. I am excited to see where we go,” Keen said.
Keen says, for any fans attending, there will be bins to drop off food donations for the Medicine Hat and District Food Bank, and any gently used winter jackets to donate to those that don’t have one.
“Hopefully we can do some good for our community through this tournament,” Keen said.
