Young Oil Kings must make the most of limited ice time
It’s a long way to the top for most Western Hockey League rookies vying for ice time in a high-stakes league where every opportunity must be seized.
That’s the reality for a young group of Edmonton Oil Kings jostling for ice time on a team with a strong veteran core and a couple of upstart rookies. The impressive play of rookie defenceman Brayden Gorda and rookie forward Colton Kehler has limited the available ice time for younger players.
Gorda has worked his way into the lineup as a reliable 16-year-old defender, partnering up with veteran Aaron Irving for 32 straight games, after beginning the season as an occasional healthy scratch.
Injures are the only thing that has kept Kehler off the ice. He has 10 goals and 15 points in 41 games.
As a result, young players such as Kyle Yewchuck, Kobe Mohr, Branden Klatt, Jordan Dawson, Chance Patterson and Tyson Gruninger often find themselves high above the action, observing the game from the press box as healthy scratches.
“Obviously, it’s tough,” Mohr said. “You’re a young guy, you’re new to the league and you don’t really know what it’s like until you’re a healthy scratch.
“You’ve got to sit up there and watch your buddies play in your spot. It’s mentally tough on you, but you’ve just got to push through it and know that you’ll get your chance eventually.”
Mohr, a 16-year-old left-winger from Lloydminster, has sat out 12 games as a healthy scratch. He has 10 points in 38 games, but a plusminus rating of -10 is a glaring statistic that he needs to fix.
Mohr prides himself on being an energy player who can spark his team. He said his pesky style of play, akin to Brad Marchand of the Boston Bruins, is what got him noticed by the Oil Kings as a 15-year-old playing midget tripleA for the Lloydminster Bobcats of the Alberta AAA Midget Hockey League.
“They said I was one of the toughest players to play against in the league,” he said. “I think they really wanted that competitive side of me and I think that’s what got me here.”
The transition from minor hockey to junior isn’t always easy. It can be bittersweet for young players to have to observe the game from above.
Most players understand that there simply aren’t enough spots on the ice to accommodate every player and they have to be patient while developing their game.