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Written by Tony Clarke
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Wednesday, September 24 2008, 11:28 PM |
Brock Hirsche hopes to one day be a Western Hockey League player, but for now he’s content spending another year in midget.
The 16-year-old recently attended the Prince George Cougars training camp, the team that drafted him in the second round, 32nd overall, of the 2007 WHL bantam draft.
Brock Hirsche hopes to one day be a Western Hockey League player, but for now he’s content spending another year in midget.
The 16-year-old recently attended the Prince George Cougars training camp, the team that drafted him in the second round, 32nd overall, of the 2007 WHL bantam draft.
At the conclusion of his audition with the Cougars it was recommended to the young forward to play another season with the Lethbridge Y’s Men Titans in the Alberta Midget Hockey League. The reason was simple.
With the Titans he would see more ice time which would further develop his game. If he remained in Prince George he would see limited action, possibly hindering his progress.
At this stage in his career, Hirsche agrees more ice time will only help him become a stronger, more skilled hockey player.
“I’m confident I’m doing the right thing playing with the Titans and I’m happy to be back here with the team,” said Hirsche. “There’s been young players before who have stayed to play in junior and it didn’t work out, but coming back here will help me.”
However, it remains his dream to play in the WHL, hopefully next season. He was informed by the Prince George coaches to work on his foot speed throughout this season and next summer, something the six-foot, 185 pound winger said he will address by increasing his training both on and off of the ice.
But with the 2008-09 AMHL season underway, Hirsche’s focus is to help the Titans win a lot of hockey games, something they did in the regular season a year ago when they finished first in their division.
Hirsche played a key role on the Titans checking line last year by shutting down opposing players. While he said this was vastly different from his bantam playing days where he was a scorer, it only helped him become a more complete player.
“It was a good role for me. It was different, but I learned a lot about playing in my own end, which is important.”
With a year of midget hockey under his belt, Hirsche believes he will be counted on this season to score more goals and be a leader for first-year players.
As a hard worker he plans to lead by example, both on and off the ice. The energy he brings to the rink is something he hopes his teammates will also pick up on.
This year’s version of the Titans may be younger, but Hirsche said there’s a lot of talent. If the team can establish some chemistry, he’s certain they have what it takes to be among the stronger teams in the league.
“If we buckle down defensively we’ll have a good team because we have players who can score,” said Hirsche.
While Titans head coach Doug Paisley said he’s blessed to have Hirsche back in the lineup for another campaign, he was a bit surprised when he learned of the news he wouldn’t be suiting up for the Cougars this season.
“Brock is the full package. He has leadership, work ethic, scoring, just about everything,” said Paisley, adding Hirsche would be his top choice to have back in the lineup from last year’s roster.
“He’s a very good system player who works his tail off every night. You don’t have to worry about him away from the rink or in the dressing room . . . he’s just a real good kid.”
NOTES: The Titans opened the 2008-09 regular season on the road Wednesday evening with a close 3-2 victory over the Calgary Buffaloes. Patrick Holland had a goal and two assists, Lucas Sutter netted the winner with 1:18 left in the third period and Brandon Davidson also tallied for the Titans.
Netminder Klynt Spencer stopped 29 of 31 shots to earn the win. With a short bench, Paisley gave Hirsche player of the game honours notching one assist and leading the charge at both end of the ice for 60 minutes.
Two of the three Titans goals were scored on the power-play, including the game winner.
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