Olsen on familiar ground as he mines local talent for Canucks
Things have come full circle for Darryl Olsen.
Back in 1983, Olsen played at the Mac’s AAA Midget Hockey Tournament for the Calgary Northstars.
“Everybody couldn’t wait to play Midget AAA just because you could play in the Mac’s tournament,” he recalled. “It was like the Stanley Cup playoffs.”
Fast forward 34 years and Olsen will now be on the lookout for new talent from Boxing Day right up to the Mac’s final on New Year’s Day.
“I’ll be there every day,” said Olsen, who took over as head coach of the Alberta Junior Hockey League’s Calgary Canucks in mid-November. “You obviously want to be recruiting all season long, but to have that calibre of hockey coming into your own rink is just top level for us because not only can we recruit, butwecanwalkthemdownintoour locker-room (at Ken Bracko Arena) and show them our facilities right there.”
Although the Northstars didn’t fare well at the Mac’s tourney back in ’83, Olsen caught the eye of scouts and was recruited to play for the Penticton Knights of the B.C. Junior Hockey League the next season.
He eventually found his way back to his home province to play for the St. Albert Saints of the AJHL.
“Just before Christmas (in 1984) I got traded to St. Albert,” said Olsen, who was selected by his hometown Calgary Flames in the ninth round (185th overall) of the 1985 NHL Draft. “It worked out even better because I ended up getting a scholarship (to Northern Michigan University) and getting drafted out of St. Albert.”
Despite the fact that he didn’t get recruited to play junior hockey in Calgary, Olsen would like to open the door to invite local talent to play for the Canucks.
“What a novel idea to have the Northstars be a feeder system — just have them walk across from one dressing room to the next,” Olsen said. “Taking the top talent and developing them right from the Northstars through the Canucks. That’s my game plan.”
Current Northstars captain Cameron McAdam has already practised with the Canucks this season and suited up for one game earlier this month.
“ItrytoimplementwhatIlearned from that into my game in midget,” said McAdam, who also played one AJHLgamefortheCanmoreEagles last season.
WhileMcAdamisaffiliatedtoplay for the Canucks, he hasn’t ruled out the possibility of eventually suiting up for another AJHL squad or one further west in the BCHL.
“It’s great exposure,” said McAdam in regards to playing in front of lots of scouts at the Mac’s tournament. “You meet lots of guys, so you really can launch your career in the right path.”
Fellow Midget AAA prospect Logan Shaw is also hoping to turn some heads with his play at the Mac’s for the Calgary Flames.
“I’m kind of just leaving my options open,” said Shaw, who has talked to both the Canucks and Calgary Mustangs. “But nothing too serious yet … especially with the Mac’s, because there’s so many eyes on you to see if I can hopefully get some exposure to some teams that I haven’t seen yet.”
Along with some of his scouts, Mustangs coach and general manager Tyler Drader will be taking in several Mac’s tournament games.
“It’s a big tournament, for sure,” Drader said. “We’re scouting players all season long, but the Mac’s is a great place to see how they compare to different players throughout the city and all in one place — how they compare to guys in Saskatchewan and B.C.
“We’re looking to always make our team better any way that we can. We typically focus on local players, but at the same time we’re definitely open to players that aren’t from Calgary and area.”
SNAP SHOTS
Olsen’s son Dalton also played at the Mac’s tournament in 2008 and ’09. “He played as a 16-yearold with the Northstars and next year he was their captain,” said the proud papa. … Darryl’s older brother Dan coached the Strathmore UFA Bisons at the Mac’s tournament before going on to become the bench boss of the SAIT Trojans, a position he still currently holds. … Five seasons before Darryl played for the Saints in 1984-85, Dan suited up for the AJHL’s Taber Golden Suns.