Rebels coach eager, players “chomping at the bit” as training camp looms

“Players are chomping at the bit. There are a lot of new faces, and we’re very excited about the acquisitions. Obviously junior hockey is fun; we’re just waiting to see who’ll step up and be the next go-to,” says Konowalchuk, a 15-years NHL vet.

“I give [GM] Brent [Sutter] and [Associate GM] Shawn [Sutter] a lot of credit for bringing in a lot of key pieces. We want to be able to build off last year, and they’ve worked hard to put us in the best position to succeed.”

This Tuesday, the club announced a trade for Mats Lindgren from the Kamloops Blazers, in exchange for d-man Kyle Masters and a conditional 2025 first-rounder.

The coach is undoubtedly excited about what Lindgren brings to the table.

“From the back end, he’ll create offense, and it’s hard to create offense without having D who can move the puck. From what I’ve seen, he has a special ability to move pucks and make plays on offense,” he says. “So if we’re talking about losing King and Bains, maybe he can help our forwards. He’s definitely a guy who has that talent.”

Konowalchuk name dropped others, including Kalan Lind, a now 17-year-old who had 20 goals and 38 points in 61 games.

“He took a big step the second half of last year. At 16, it’s hard that first half, but all of the sudden, he was finding his way on that first line, and now he’ll get a chance in the middle to handle the puck more,” he says. “But he’s 17, so he should be bigger, stronger and faster, and that’ll slow the game down for him out there. I expect him to be a key part of the team for sure.”

Captain Jayden Grubbe, right winger Talon Brigley, who’s from Sylvan Lake, as well as centre Jhett Larson, and 19-year-old middle-man Craig Armstrong, who was acquired via trade from Prince George in early August, also earned nods from the coach as guys who should be able to kick it up a notch, and will be depended on should the Rebels hope to find success.

“Am I going to ask anybody to have 100 points? No. Do I hope somebody does? Yeah. No one would’ve thought they’d [Bains and King] both have 100 points at the start of last year,” says Konowalchuk, speaking about taking motivation from last season’s failures.

“We weren’t satisfied last year with the way it ended. Our guys didn’t hide the fact [they were unhappy]. Edmonton was a really good team, and they traded everything to try and win, but we had a chance to win in every game [last season], but in that series, we didn’t really live up to that.”

Red Deer knocked off the Brandon Wheat Kings 4-2 in the first round of the WHL Playoffs, but were swept by the eventual league champion Oil Kings in fairly dominating fashion.

“We’ve got more depth now than we did at the start of last year. Every other junior team wishes they could keep a couple key guys too. It’s about regrouping,” says the coach, asked about what he’ll change about his approach.

“The guys know me, and they know expectations. Coming in [last year], there was a feeling out process. I believe in the players, I believe they buy into the details and the work ethic it takes. I’m not looking to change things. I want to build off what we did, have a competitive culture, demand 100 per cent effort and give ourselves a good chance to succeed every night.”

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REBELS THIS WEEK TIDBITS

Between the pipes

Coach Konowalchuk also addressed news this week that goaltender Chase Coward won’t be available to the team to start the season, as he was recently diagnosed with a congenital issue, previously undiscovered.

“It’s a downer, definitely,” admitted Konowalchuk. “He was a really big part of our team, but we have to move on. I do believe we have two good goalies coming in, and two more trying out. If things work out and Chase can play, great, but as far as now, I’m not focusing on that.”

Coward made 35 regular season appearances last season, finishing with a record of 22-10-0, with a 2.51 GAA and .906 SV%. He also went 4-3-1 in the playoffs.

Training camp itinerary

Troy Gillard, Red Deer Rebels — Veterans report for medicals this Thursday morning (Sept. 1) and undergo afternoon off-ice fitness testing at Red Deer Polytechnic. On-ice fitness testing goes Friday morning at the Peavey Mart Centrium. On-ice sessions at the Peavey Mart Centrium begin Friday, Sept. 2.

Rookies report to camp on Friday (Sept. 2) with ice sessions starting the following day.

All practices and scrimmages through Sept. 6 are open to the public. Times throughout camp are subject to change.
(See reddeerrebels.com for ice times)

The 2022 Training Camp wraps up Wednesday, Sept. 7 with the Black and White Game at 7 p.m. at the Peavey Mart Centrium. Fans are invited to attend with admission being a donation for the Red Deer Firefighters Children’s Charity.

Also during the Black and White Game on Sept. 7, Rebels fans can check out a Garage Sale featuring Rebels equipment and apparel from years past, and an Open House to check out what Season Seats and 9-Game Packs are available for the 2022-23 season.

Pre-season

Troy Gillard, Red Deer Rebels — The Rebels will play four games during the 2022 WHL Preseason. The Rebels visit the Calgary Hitmen on Friday, Sept. 9 before welcoming the Hitmen to the Peavey Mart Centrium the following night, Sat. Sept. 10 at 7 p.m. Then on Friday, Sept. 16 the Rebels will visit the Lethbridge Hurricanes before hosting the Hurricanes at the Peavey Mart Centrium on Sat. Sept. 17 at 7 p.m. Tickets for all games are available through Tickets Alberta.

Regular season

Troy Gillard, Red Deer Rebels — Regular season play kicks off for the Rebels on Friday, Sept. 23 when they visit the Edmonton Oil Kings (7 p.m.). The Rebels will then host the Oil Kings for the Red Deer Advocate Home Opener at the Peavey Mart Centrium on Saturday, Sept. 24 at 7 p.m. More details will be announced in the coming weeks.

by Josh Hall (Twitter: @Vancan19)

Rebels coach eager, players “chomping at the bit” as training camp looms

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