Scout
08-25-2008, 09:22 AM
Veteran forward a no-show for Cats
Written by JIM SWANSON, Citizen Sports Editor
Sunday, 24 August 2008
Another spot has opened up on the forward lines for the Prince George Cougars, though not by design.
Training camp had yet to officially start and already the team had a notable no-show. Veteran forward Brad Riege, a 19-year-old slated to play on one of the top two lines, did not arrive and has gone dark -- no one, from coaches to management and his friends in the dressing room, has been able to make contact with him to ascertain his intentions.
The prevailing thought is that Riege, acquired last January from Moose Jaw in part of the Justin Maylan-Ty Wishart trade, has decided to quit hockey. The native of Stoughton, Sask., is not listed on a training camp roster for any Junior A team.
“We’re not really surprised -- we had indications, fitness reports in late and we hadn’t heard from him in three weeks,” said Cougars general manager Dallas Thompson.
“No phone calls, no email... that’s life. You have to be at training camp to be on the hockey team. I don’t know -- I’m pretty busy this week and I’m not going to chase Brad Riege down, pretty simple.”
Riege, six-foot-two and 199 pounds last season, was one of few players from last year’s team who would engage the physical side of the game. He had 34 penalty minutes in 26 games for the Cougars, and combined with his 35 games for the Warriors, posted 93 minutes. He managed eight goals and 16 points -- four goals and nine points of those with the Cougars -- in his third full WHL season.
He was a dependable penalty-killer and defensive forward who showed signs of putting up commendable offensive numbers. Riege took a day to decide if he wanted to report to the Cougars following the trade, so the development wasn’t a complete surprise.
“I thought Brad could’ve played a very big role on our hockey club, and no one can seem to get ahold of him to find out where he is, or why,” said head coach Drew Schoneck.
“He hasn’t phoned to ask for a trade, and we have now heard third-hand that he might be quitting hockey and working with his dad. Nobody knows. A month ago, he was looking forward to coming back, but things have obviously changed in a month.
“He filled a role for us last year and he’s a guy with three years in the league, so not having him is something we’ll miss.”
n With more than 100 players in camp -- 104, to be precise -- time constraints and logistics meant the Cougars did not hold the usual fitness testing on registration day. Instead, after the first major cuts are made on Tuesday, the team will use the PacificSport facility at the Northern Sport Centre to get a better gauge on conditioning.
“It looks like everybody put in a pretty good summer -- some guys lost some weight and put that back on in muscle,” said Schoneck.
“We’ll see how that translates to being on-ice. If you’re looking for a guy who dramatically changed the way he looks, it’s Dale Hunt. He’s lost 20 pounds from where he was at the end of last year. He struggled a bit through his first two years here, but he seems to be refocused and has dedicated himself. He had a personal trainer in Winnipeg, and I think the fact he had injuries and was passed over in the draft was motivation for him to prove a lot of people wrong.”
n Don’t be surprised to see many of the veteran forwards ducking their heads as they walk around town -- practice for avoiding the chopping block.
It stands to reason that after a non-playoff season, any forward who struggled to put up numbers last year is going to feel pressure in camp and the exhibition season. With so many highly-touted forwards in the 16- and 17-year-old age group, jobs are anything but safe.
“I won’t name names now, but anyone in that five-to-10 goal range (last season) -- some 19-year-old guys coming back who have to produce,” said Schoneck.
“We’ve got anywhere from two to six 16-year-olds who could make our hockey club. Look at last year’s team -- we lost five guys, we have to replace those and then somewhere along the line something’s gotta give with the numbers. This camp will be far more competitive than it was last year when some guys almost got spots by default. We have people here pushing for spots.
“I think last year everything was far too loosey-goosey. This year, we don’t want to be the laughingstock, we have to be ready to go and that begins with holding the veterans accountable.”
Jordie Deagle (eight goals, 20 points), Colin Haas (3-8), Corey Tyrell (5-9), Marcus Watson (6-16) and Ryan Kowalski (1-5) would be the players feeling the most pressure to remain with the Cougars.
Thompson said the plan is to be down to about 40 players after Tuesday, with the team’s intrasquad game slated for Wednesday, 7 p.m. at CN Centre.
The Cats go to Edmonton this weekend for two exhibition games, the first on Sunday against the Swift Current Broncos. Next Monday sees a date with the Regina Pats.
That means a lot of cuts will be made over the next 10 days.
“It will be tough, but I’m looking forward to watching all these players because everybody knows where we stand and that we are looking for players to earn their way onto our 50-player list,” said Thompson.
Scout
Written by JIM SWANSON, Citizen Sports Editor
Sunday, 24 August 2008
Another spot has opened up on the forward lines for the Prince George Cougars, though not by design.
Training camp had yet to officially start and already the team had a notable no-show. Veteran forward Brad Riege, a 19-year-old slated to play on one of the top two lines, did not arrive and has gone dark -- no one, from coaches to management and his friends in the dressing room, has been able to make contact with him to ascertain his intentions.
The prevailing thought is that Riege, acquired last January from Moose Jaw in part of the Justin Maylan-Ty Wishart trade, has decided to quit hockey. The native of Stoughton, Sask., is not listed on a training camp roster for any Junior A team.
“We’re not really surprised -- we had indications, fitness reports in late and we hadn’t heard from him in three weeks,” said Cougars general manager Dallas Thompson.
“No phone calls, no email... that’s life. You have to be at training camp to be on the hockey team. I don’t know -- I’m pretty busy this week and I’m not going to chase Brad Riege down, pretty simple.”
Riege, six-foot-two and 199 pounds last season, was one of few players from last year’s team who would engage the physical side of the game. He had 34 penalty minutes in 26 games for the Cougars, and combined with his 35 games for the Warriors, posted 93 minutes. He managed eight goals and 16 points -- four goals and nine points of those with the Cougars -- in his third full WHL season.
He was a dependable penalty-killer and defensive forward who showed signs of putting up commendable offensive numbers. Riege took a day to decide if he wanted to report to the Cougars following the trade, so the development wasn’t a complete surprise.
“I thought Brad could’ve played a very big role on our hockey club, and no one can seem to get ahold of him to find out where he is, or why,” said head coach Drew Schoneck.
“He hasn’t phoned to ask for a trade, and we have now heard third-hand that he might be quitting hockey and working with his dad. Nobody knows. A month ago, he was looking forward to coming back, but things have obviously changed in a month.
“He filled a role for us last year and he’s a guy with three years in the league, so not having him is something we’ll miss.”
n With more than 100 players in camp -- 104, to be precise -- time constraints and logistics meant the Cougars did not hold the usual fitness testing on registration day. Instead, after the first major cuts are made on Tuesday, the team will use the PacificSport facility at the Northern Sport Centre to get a better gauge on conditioning.
“It looks like everybody put in a pretty good summer -- some guys lost some weight and put that back on in muscle,” said Schoneck.
“We’ll see how that translates to being on-ice. If you’re looking for a guy who dramatically changed the way he looks, it’s Dale Hunt. He’s lost 20 pounds from where he was at the end of last year. He struggled a bit through his first two years here, but he seems to be refocused and has dedicated himself. He had a personal trainer in Winnipeg, and I think the fact he had injuries and was passed over in the draft was motivation for him to prove a lot of people wrong.”
n Don’t be surprised to see many of the veteran forwards ducking their heads as they walk around town -- practice for avoiding the chopping block.
It stands to reason that after a non-playoff season, any forward who struggled to put up numbers last year is going to feel pressure in camp and the exhibition season. With so many highly-touted forwards in the 16- and 17-year-old age group, jobs are anything but safe.
“I won’t name names now, but anyone in that five-to-10 goal range (last season) -- some 19-year-old guys coming back who have to produce,” said Schoneck.
“We’ve got anywhere from two to six 16-year-olds who could make our hockey club. Look at last year’s team -- we lost five guys, we have to replace those and then somewhere along the line something’s gotta give with the numbers. This camp will be far more competitive than it was last year when some guys almost got spots by default. We have people here pushing for spots.
“I think last year everything was far too loosey-goosey. This year, we don’t want to be the laughingstock, we have to be ready to go and that begins with holding the veterans accountable.”
Jordie Deagle (eight goals, 20 points), Colin Haas (3-8), Corey Tyrell (5-9), Marcus Watson (6-16) and Ryan Kowalski (1-5) would be the players feeling the most pressure to remain with the Cougars.
Thompson said the plan is to be down to about 40 players after Tuesday, with the team’s intrasquad game slated for Wednesday, 7 p.m. at CN Centre.
The Cats go to Edmonton this weekend for two exhibition games, the first on Sunday against the Swift Current Broncos. Next Monday sees a date with the Regina Pats.
That means a lot of cuts will be made over the next 10 days.
“It will be tough, but I’m looking forward to watching all these players because everybody knows where we stand and that we are looking for players to earn their way onto our 50-player list,” said Thompson.
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