The U18 AAA Pembina Valley Hawks are set to open camp this coming weekend, and coach Jeff Andrews can't wait to get things going.
The work before camp
With a few days before the players are set to hit the ice, Andrews says a lot of behind the scenes work is being done ahead of the upcoming campaign. "Lots of the organizational stuff to do with the camp, get the schedule finalized, the the rosters finalized. We keep in touch with guys that are still away at junior camps, and trying to get a handle on their situations. That eats up the majority of the work we're doing right now."
Andrews says he already knows what he'll be putting the players through on the ice come this weekend. "That schedule is all competed. We'll have each position specific group, we'll have a skill session where they can showcase their position specific skill set, so we'll have a forward skill, defensive skill and goalie skills session. We'll do a bunch of scrimmages for the four teams that are there, they'll get to play against the other teams, and showcase their abilities in a game setting. There will be some situational things going on each period, like some special teams stuff, we'll run some 5 on 4's for each team, we'll do maybe a little 3 on 3. We'll obviously work on the 5 on 5 stuff. We want to put the kids in a whole bunch of different scenario's, and allow them to showcase where there games are at, and impress on the coaching staff why they'd be a good fit for the hockey program."
Creating an identity
When it comes to the Hawks identity, Andrews believes it's something that will come through the personalities, along with the team culture already set. "I'd say it's a combination. There are some things that we as a coaching staff feel are really important, and we want to make sure that our team has some of those characteristics, but at the end of the day, you have to see what kind of group you have. You have to set up your game plan based off the teams makeup, and what makes the most sense with that group of guys, what's going to allow them to reach their potential, allow us to win the games we need to, and help them develop so they can move on to the next level."
"It's all going to get flushed out over our time in camp," Andrews says about what kind of team he'd like to have this year. "Obviously, we want to play with pace. We want speed to be part of our identity, for sure. We want to be sound defensively, I think that you look at teams that are successful, they take care of their own zone, and they keep pucks out of their own net. That's a real important facet for our framework and makeup. For me, we want to have offensive ability, and knowing we have some returning guys coming back that have the ability to put the puck in the net, or make plays, I'm excited about the coming year. We're adding some good, young players that have some of the same characteristics. I would think that just based on paper, and it'll come to the forefront more as we get going, but I feel like we're going to have an offensive team, and we'll really focus on rounding out the defensive side of our game, and we'll be really hard to play against night in, and night out."
Coaches coaching
With an influx of younger players, Andrews and the coaches will have the opportunity to really work with the group, and teach them the Hawks way, something Andrews is very much looking forward to. "Always really excited to teach, it's such a fun time of year. You get to meet the new kids, you get to fire up the old relationships, spend some time with kids you haven't seen in a few months, so it's always a fun time when camp starts. Then the exhibition season is soon, the regular season gets closer, you're always excited to work with the kids. We're going to have some young guys and building those relationships, finding out what makes them tick, trying to get the most out of them as the season progresses will also be a fun challenge."
Birds eye view
When it comes to the on-ice portion of camp, Andrews says he's decided to take a wide view of things, giving him a chance to see all. "I have a hand in putting the camp together, so I will not be on the ice," he says with a chuckle. "I'll be sitting in a chair evaluating. Let the younger guys get out there and get their feet wet, so to speak. I'm really excited for the opportunity to get going, meet the new guys, and re-connect with the veterans. It's a really great time, and I can't wait for it all to start."