The Bantam AAA Red Deer Rebels feel they have something to prove this season.
Last season in the Alberta AAA Bantam Hockey League, the Rebels had a solid 23-7-6 record but lost in the first round of the playoffs to the Lethbridge Golden Hawks.
In his fourth season behind the bench, head coach Justin Jarmolicz is as excited as ever to see the puck drop.
“We’ve got a really good group of kids. They’re very talented. We’re going to be a team to watch,” Jarmolicz said.
“I’m looking forward to showing what we’ve got. We have some high-end kids.”
Jarmolicz said they’ll return three forwards (Tyler MacKenzie, Nate Danielson, Austin Corsiatto) and a defenceman (Kaiden Ellertson) from last year’s roster.
They will also have four of their affiliate players (Avery Trotter, Nolan Larson, Porter Pennock and Ty Daneault) from 2017-18 on the team full-time this year. What the head coach likes about this year’s team is how quickly they’ve adapted to his coaching style.
“Their hockey IQ for this early in a season, I’ve never seen it like this, this early. I’m excited to see how fast we can progress and see how much they can soak in,” he said.
They will have two new goalies in Mason Gantz and Kaden Toussaint, who was also an affiliate last year. Toussaint played for the West Central Panthers last year at the Bantam AA level.
Last season, a big source of pride for the team was the six players selected in the 2018 WHL Bantam Draft. Jarmolicz noted while that’s not a focus for the coaching staff, it’s a big goal for the players to work towards during the year.
“That’s secondary to what we’re doing here. We’re trying to build good people and get these kids better every chance we get,” he said.
“The draft is a reward for those guys. Something for them to work towards. Ultimately, that’s not the be all and end all. We want them to be way better equipped after the season is down than when they showed up.”
The Rebels will open up the 2018-19 season on home ice at Servus Arena when they square off against the Calgary Flames at 2:15 p.m. Sunday, they’ll host the Calgary Southeast Tigers at 1:30 p.m.
Email sports tips to Byron Hackett
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