Medicine Hat Tigers forward Kadon McCann skates up ice in the first period of a 5-0 preseason win Saturday at Co-op Place.--NEWS PHOTO JAMES TUBB
jtubb@medicinehatnews.com@ReporterTubb
Medicine Hat Tigers practice was noticeably smaller on Tuesday.
With 11 skaters with the team off to NHL rookie camps, the Tigers are working through practices and the remaining two preseason games with a few veterans, NHL draft-year skaters, rookies and prospects for the final week of the exhibition season.
They’re coming off a 5-0 win Saturday at Co-op Place over the Calgary Hitmen, with a lineup of 15 of 18 skaters having played full time in the WHL last season.
Associate coach Joe Frazer says the win showed them areas they need to work on ahead of their last two preseason games, as well as in preparation for the regular season getting underway Sept. 20. He says they’ll work with the players they have and get the rest up to speed whenever they return from their respective NHL camps.
“We didn’t have a lot of time with the NHL camp guys but the experience they’re going to get there is invaluable,” Frazer said. “That’s the trade off that we want to have. They’re going to have great experiences there.
“Fortunately, a lot of guys who were here last year got camp, so they they know how we want to play and that’s why I think the game Saturday was so important to get. Most of our guys, we’ve been practising all week on stuff we want to work on and how we want to play. So it’s good to get those reps.”
The Tigers wrap the preseason this weekend with a road contest Friday at Red Deer over the Rebels before they host the Lethbridge Hurricanes on Sunday at Co-op Place for a 4 p.m. contest. On top of using the last two weeks as preparation, the Tigers will also manage any injuries or ailments that pop up from a competitive training camp and preseason.
Forward Kadon McCann left in the middle of Saturday’s game and did not return. The 17-year-old Cochrane product worked out but did not skate during Tuesday morning’s practice.
Frazer says McCann will be fine for opening night and he says they’ll slow roll any potential injury to ensure a healthy lineup for game one.
“Camp has been hard, it’s a lot,” Frazer said. “When you’re going hard, guys get bumps and bruises and it’s better to rest now and make sure they’re 100 per cent for when the season starts.”
