NSMMHL: White confident Midgets will be competitive**
Monday, September 8, 2014 - Submitted by Courtesy of Christopher Cameron
NEW GLASGOW – This weekend is the final opportunity for players to make their case to be part of the Weeks Major Midgets this season.
Weeks Major Midgets
After multiple weeks of a selection process the team will travel to Sydney for the annual early bird tournament. They will join NSMMHL teams and Nova Scotia’s Canada Games squad in the tournament.
Currently the Pictou County team has 26 players remaining on their camp roster including those who are still at junior A camps. They have to cut that to 20 players before the season, which opens for them on Sept. 13 in Cole Harbour against the Wolfpack.
“That (cutting the team to 20) means we will have to make some tough decisions this weekend in terms of finalizing our roster,” said head coach Richard White. “For us, we’re looking for players that are willing to compete for 60 minutes and give the same effort regardless if you’re up four goals, down four goals, on the first line, or on the fourth line.”
White added that this weekend they want to see what effort their players bring, with the results not holding as much meaning.
“Wins and losses don’t mean anything at this tournament, but we want to see good habits on the ice, a high work ethic and to use this time to build some chemistry not just on the ice, but off the ice as well.”
After last season the team graduated Nathaniel Leger, Cody Johnston and Mark Vokey. They will also not see the return of Lane Cormier, Matt Sartoris or Lucas Sangster as they all made their respective QMJHL teams.
“Obviously, we’re losing some pretty good players and guys that logged big minutes for us but this now gives an opportunity to other players to step up and fill those roles this year,” said White. “We’re not asking anyone to be Mark Vokey or Lucas Sangster, but we’re taking the approach that in order to be successful we have to be prepared to compete every night and it has to be a total team effort.”
Regardless of the players they lost from last year’s team, the expectation is that they will be competitive once the regular season gets underway.
“There has been a lot of movement throughout the league with players moving on to junior A and the QMJHL so the makeup is going to be different across the league,” he said. “I see us being competitive and a fun team to watch. We’ve got a nice combination of grit, speed and skill.”
They still have some experienced players returning to the lineup, one of whom is Luke Melanson between the pipes. Having a third-year goaltender is a benefit according to White.
“Luke will be back for another season as our number-one goaltender,” he said. “Having a third-year goaltender, who has the experience that Luke has, provides stability for our team at that position. He’s been through a lot in this league and knows what it takes to win. He’s going to be a major part of our team this season.”
Their first game of this weekend’s tournament is Friday at 10 a.m. against the N.S. Canada Games team. They play the Cape Breton West Islanders at 6 p.m. later that day before Saturday’s game at 4 p.m. against Halifax. Their final game is Sunday at 2 p.m. against the Cape Breton Tradesmen.