While over 100 young athletes were testing their skills against each other, a young Portager was taking in the camp from an unexpected role.
Koy Funk, a nominee for the MJHL's Rookie of the Year Award this season, was the on-ice official for all of the games on the Friday evening of the camp. Funk adds that being there with many guys he knows was quite the experience.
"It's definitely a little bit weird, like I knew most like most of the guys there. Obviously, I didn't know all the guys coming in from different provinces, but it was a bit funny going out there and just seeing all the guys realize that I was going to ref the games. But yeah, it was good. It was nice to watch them and have guys that I know out there, see how they're doing, because I haven't seen a lot of them play this last year, and see how they are now."
Funk notes with a laugh that he was likely more relaxed with the whistle than many refs are.
"Let them play. You know, it's a camp. The games, it doesn't matter who wins or loses. I was just trying to let them go as long as I could because it's run time, so less icing, less offsides. Just what needs to happen, but pretty loose."
This wasn't the first time Funk has been involved in the on-ice officiating, working at other camps in the region, though he says he hasn't thought of it as a future job.
"I don't know how far I would want to be going as a ref. I'm not sure I'd be interested in it as an actual job, but it was pretty fun to do for the weekend."
When thinking on the weekend though, Funk emphasizes that he doesn't believe his year of junior experience made him any different from the athletes competing for a spot at training camp this fall.
"There's no difference between us. We're the same people, same age and everything. I might have a year under my belt, but we're the same all around. It was cool to see guys that are my age and ref that."
In the end, Funk says that the camp was a great chance for him to stretch his legs since he wasn't able to gear up for the camp himself.
"It was fun to be involved in it because I really couldn't be playing due to my injury. But it was nice to be involved in the camp and just kind of give a look at everybody else that was there and get a check in on all the people that I know."