Don’t let the destination get in the way of the journey.
That’s the challenge awaiting the Rocky Mountain Raiders as they launch a title defence in the Alberta Major Bantam Hockey League knowing they’ll be ending the season on home-ice as hosts of the Western AAA Championships.
“At the start of the season we can’t be worried about it. It’s playoffs first, for sure,” said first-year Raiders winger Jaevon Buschlen. “It’s just coming together as a team and getting better throughout the whole season and then we go to westerns.
“They want to beat us because last year (Rocky Mountain) was champs. It’s something we’ve got to compete with. It makes us want to work harder.”
Buschlen, a prolific scorer with the Okotoks Bantam AA Oilers, figures team bonding will be the path to success for Rocky Mountain.
The regional team is comprised largely of Wheatland, Okotoks and Foothills minor hockey products.
“It’s going to be a good team,” he said. “There is three different teams all put into one so we’ve just got to be with each other and come closer together. I think it’s a good way to start off the season, connecting more.”
The group is dissimilar, the message from the coaching staff remains the same.
Third year head coach Mickey Kluner, who guided the Raiders to back-to-back division crowns and the organization’s first championship in 2014-15, is steadfast in his expectations from the squad.
“Coming into the season we won the bid to host Westerns and that was a huge excitement,” he said.
“That doesn’t really change anything from an approach perspective. It’s a tournament at the end of the year.”
“It raises expectations and on the heels of last year with our success, expectations are as high as they’ve ever been or could be.”
Only one player remains from Rocky Mountain’s championship team from a season ago in Okotokian Peyton Krebs, who’s fresh off South Rookie of the Year honours and 66 points in 33 games.
“He was a huge part of our team and he’s going to be equally relied on this year,” Kluner said. “He’s a top-end, dynamic player. His skill level, poise, speed is second to none versus almost any player around, but he’s one of 19. We will have to see how it forms out.”
Adding to the arsenal are a plethora of Okotoks minor hockey products in the forward ranks with Zachary Beaver, Caleb Garet, Travis Thorhaug, Andrew Bonham, Levi Young and Buschlen, to name a few, making the jump to Bantam AAA.
Rocky Mountain’s defence is a promising group featuring smooth-skating High Riverite Joel Dawson and the likes of Majid Kaddoura, Kaden Booth, Connor Bertamini, Ryan Conroy and Mitch Desserre.
In goal, Wheatland products Ethan Rycroft and Jackson Berry will man the last line of defence.
“Different group this year,” the coach added. “We’re very confident with our back-end this year. We have a lot of depth in all six of our D and that’s going to be a huge reliance.
“We’re definitely smaller than last year’s team, but we just have to work that much harder.”
Rocky Mountain opened its season with a 6-3 triumph on the road in Red Deer on Sept. 20 and then saw its home opener spoiled by the Calgary Northstar Sabres in a 4-0 contest on Sept. 26 at the Scott Seaman Sports Rink in Davisburg.
Rocky Mountain responded in kind with a 10-2 troucing over SEAC in Medicine Hat the following afternoon.
The Raiders’ next home date is Oct. 17 versus the Lethbridge Golden Hawks.
For full schedule information on the team go to ambhl.ab.ca or follow the Rocky Mountain Raiders on Twitter at @RockyMtnRaiders
