(File photo/northeastNOW)

By Ben Tompkins

Season Arrival

Mustangs Fall Camp beginning shortly

Sep 6, 2024 | 2:00 PM

The Melfort Mustangs 2024/25 season is virtually upon us.

Mustangs Fall Camp begins just after 5 p.m. Friday as roughly 80 players descend on the Northern Lights Palace in hopes of cracking the pre-season roster.

“There were some kids that showed very well at our spring camp in April and will be returning here for fall camp to compete for spots. Seems like they all worked hard this summer based on the early skates they’ve had. They’ve come back in great shape, looking to make the hockey club and hopefully, they can lead us in the direction of defending our title,” said Mustangs Director of Player Development, Rick Oakes.

“It was a little bit of a shorter summer, but it’s always nice to get back in the rink and get things going. It’s kind of an exciting time of year for everybody and we’re looking forward to getting things rolling here.”

A full four teams will begin the camp Friday night, as each group possesses 12 forwards, six defencemen, and two goalies.

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The camp will then be whittled down for the inter-squad game on Sunday before more players get cut ahead of exhibition games starting on Monday.

“We’re very excited about this group, they’re a talented group, and bring a lot of attributes that Mustang hockey is all about. We’re excited to get them on the ice and moving in the right direction towards making the hockey club and getting our team formed moving into the season,” Oakes added.

“The skill things is a huge part of the game right now. It’s such a speed-oriented game right now that skating is an integral part of the equation. We just want kids that possess that skill and then show a willingness to compete and win on a daily basis.”

Melfort’s rookie group played a fairly integral role in the success of the team last season, as the club dealt with their fair share of injuries.

That meant younger players stepping up, and while the organization is hopeful to have the same calibre pipeline, they are hoping to stay a bit healthier this year.

“Watching them (the new guys) on the ice is one thing, but we do a lot of research with their coaches and past coaches, trying to get a feel for what their character is and what their willingness to compete is,” Oakes told northeastNOW.

“Our 2005-born players played key roles for us last year and probably bigger ones than they were initially expecting. I think that’s going to pay huge dividends for us again because that group is going to be much more confident coming into camp and ready to take on some leadership roles. It’s all about having that pipeline who can carry the torch when our guys move on.”

Coming into the season there are roughly six full-time spots to fill up front on the main roster, as well as three or four on the back end and one in net.

Fall Camp games will run from 5:15 p.m. until 8:30 p.m. on Friday, 9 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. to 8:45 on Saturday, as well as 9 a.m. until noon on Sunday.

All games are open to the public as teams red, black, green, and grey will all duke it out.

“We have a pretty good group of returning guys, but we got some young guys that can really play that we’re excited about, so we’re going to make room for some youth here too, moving forward,” concluded Oakes.

“I think last year was great to showcase that to any young guys coming up the pipe that we do need affiliate players. It’s important to them, that no matter what level they’re playing at, to develop and play a lot of minutes, so when we do need them, we’re confident they can step in, fill the hole and and play very well for us. It also basically make it a seamless transition for the next year when they come in.”

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Ben.Tompkins@pattisonmedia.com

On X @BenTompkins_8