Oil Kings coach pleased early on
Lauer happy players trying to implement game strategies being taught at practices
Edmonton Oil Kings head coach Brad Lauer liked what he saw from his team in the opening weekend of Western Hockey League preseason play at a tournament in Red Deer and is hoping to build on it in two exhibition games this weekend.
The Oil Kings host the Calgary Hitmen at the Downtown Community Arena (7 p.m.) on Friday and travel to Carstairs on Saturday night for a return encounter. The Oil Kings begin the regular season Sept. 21 at home against the Red Deer Rebels.
“Last weekend was good,” Lauer said. “For me, getting a chance to practise during the week and then getting a chance to see how your group responds against different competition is good.
“I thought it was a little bit sloppy at times, but we were trying to do the things that we had been doing in practice and talking about, which was good to see.”
The Oil Kings lost their first preseason game 6-5 to the Red Deer Rebels last Friday and followed it up with 4-2 win against the Kootenay Ice the next day.
Lauer has since trimmed his roster and will continue to evaluate, while instilling systems in preparation for his first regular season with the Oil Kings.
“A lot of it now has been team stuff, systems stuff, what we want to do in all areas of the game,” Lauer said. “It’s been a little bit more video time right now and practice times have been really focused on some systems and understanding what we need to do in some situations.
“It’s actually been a really good week of practice and our schedule for the first month of the regular season is going to be a weekend schedule, so we’re going to have a lot of time during the week to work on our system stuff.”
While a number of players are returning to the Oil Kings from last season’s last-place squad, everything is new with Lauer now at the helm. The former Tampa Bay Lightning assistant coach replaced Steve Hamilton this season, who is now head coach of the Hitmen.
“Obviously, it’s different terminology that we are using,” Lauer said. “I think they’re understanding it. We’re trying to visually show them with video clips to see the terminology that we’re using and I think that’s a big help for getting them to understand, especially for the young guys that we have.
“They’re doing a really good job of picking things up and we’ve had some really good practices.”
The strength of the Oil Kings this season is expected to be on their blue-line, with a number of talented defenceman returning, but it was on offence that they impressed last weekend.
The Oil Kings received solid performances from their two new 20-year-old veteran forwards, Vince Loschiavo and Quinn Benjafield, while Logan Moon, 18, and Brett Kemp, 18, also had strong outings.
“Our veterans group have been working hard and that’s what we want to see as a coaching staff,” Lauer said. “The 20-year-olds are a big part of this league, and for me, they have to be part of the leadership group. They have to be helping with guys if they don’t understand some things, doing the extra things and bringing a positive presence to the rink every day.
“Not only that, they have to be leaders in practice, working harder effort-wise. When the young guys look at your older guys working, they have to follow that. To me, that’s very important.”
Last weekend, Lauer also got a first look at the three goaltenders vying for two roster spots.
Sebastian Cossa, 15, started against Red Deer, allowing five goals on 31 shots through two periods before giving way to Boston Bilous, 17, who stopped five of six shots.
The following day, Todd Scott, 18, made 11 of 12 saves through two periods before being replaced by Bilous who stopped nine of 10 shots.
“Cossa, I thought he played OK, I think he may have liked two goals back,” Lauer said. “There were some breakdowns defensively that didn’t help him, either. I wouldn’t say it was totally his fault when we watched the game again. I think we could have done a much better job in front of him.”
I thought it was a little bit sloppy at times, but we were trying to do the things that we had been doing in practice and talking about, which was good.