Nipawin Hawks battle the Notre Dame Hounds on Day 3 of the SJHL Showcase (Ben Tompkins/northeastNOW)

By Ben Tompkins

Future Commitments

Opportunities a plenty with numerous hockey scouts in Warman for SJHL Showcase

Nov 16, 2023 | 10:00 AM

The 2023 Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League (SJHL) Showcase, like all of its predecessors, is a great opportunity for all players to get closer to achieving their future goals.

Those goals could range from getting to the NHL or finding a local college to play hockey while they further their education.

For the scouts that have travelled down to the Legends Centre in Warman this week, they’re looking for a little bit of both.

“It’s a pretty important event for us where we come in and just watch players live, and actually get to talk to them in person,” said Division III Alvernia University scout, Anthony Astorino.

“They’re all really good kids, so they translate to the next level pretty well, and it’s a good option for us to come up here all the time.”

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Depending on the league, level, and team the scout represents, the priorities vary on what exactly they’re looking for.

For example, Astorino’s club is searching for five forwards and three defencemen for the start of next season.

“I’m looking at everybody, but in reality, we need a guy that’s gonna run a power play and we need a guy that’s going to be our best penalty killer, so I’m looking at guys that flourish in those aspects,” he added.

“Upfront, we just need some guys that are more in-depth guys, as well, so really, I just look at everything in general and see how they play and write some notes down, and then eventually, I’ll go down and talk to them, see how their grades are, and all that stuff.”

For a Division III scout, Astorino’s likely not going to garner much attention from the SJHL’s best, as they’re hoping to make NCAA Div I.

For Astorino, though, he knows how tough it is to make it that high, and that some are going to need a backup plan.

“We look at everybody, even if they’re on that cusp of division one because there’s always that possibility that they may not get it. Not everybody can play division one hockey, and at our level, it’s pretty similar, the only difference is the high-end skill whereas, at the D3 level, it’s more of a grind,” he told northeastNOW.

“When we come here to the showcases, we’re looking at all the 20-year-olds and 19-year-olds, and we’re making sure that we’re doing everything in our power to make our program better… there’s some really good players in this league, I think that it translates to the next level and hopefully we can grab a few.”

Scouts aren’t the only ones who show up for the Showcase as some of the league’s players already have people in their corner who resemble agents.

Billy Cawthorn is a hockey representative for Visionary Sports and Development, which specializes in providing help to maximise a student-athlete career.

With potential opportunities on the line, Cawthorne explained he’s here to keep players confident in themselves and their abilities.

“Helping them trust the process, it’s not always easy when you’re in the middle of a grind of a season to stay positive, and when you’re hoping for a scholarship to go somewhere, you don’t exactly know what school you’re gonna go to yet,” he said.

“It’s more so just being a mentor for these guys and helping them understand that when their time comes those opportunities are gonna come forward, and then they’re gonna have a decision to say what school they want to go to.”

Day 3 is well underway with two games already in the books, a third in the process, and just three left in total (two on Thursday) before the Showcase is over.

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Ben.Tompkins@pattisonmedia.com

On X @BenTompkins_8