The Osoyoos Coyotes, who don’t yet have their regular jerseys, kept up the pressure on the Grand Forks Bruins in an exhibition game Sunday night, defeating them 6-2. This followed two exhibition wins over the Princeton Posse of 6-1 and 6-2. This year’s Coyotes will have many new players. (Richard McGuire photo)
Osoyoos Coyotes head coach Ken Law knows the best way of attracting top players onto his team is by getting rid of them as fast as he can.
It can seem counterintuitive for a coach to part with the most valuable players, but Law knows that talent gravitates towards opportunity.
Players holding onto the ultimate goal of reaching the NHL have to get there one step at a time, and snagging the attention of Junior A scouts is much easier in a Coyotes jersey.
“When you move a lot of guys on, other players see that, so they all want the opportunity to come develop for a year and get the chance to play at a higher level,” he said. “We’ve proven to be one of the top teams for moving players forward and I think it’s really been a feather in our cap. Many of the players we get in here move up to the next level, and they talk, and the best recruiters are the players.”
Law said the team is looking to increase its size on the back end while also making it more mobile. He’s also optimistic about the team’s goaltending, but until Junior A teams finalize their rosters, the Coyotes can’t fully commit to every player.
Law’s comments came last week during training camp, where 38 players are competing for the 23 slots on the Coyotes’ roster.
“It’s how you start your season off and hopefully you’re starting it off on the right foot,” Law said. “We feel like we’ve got a pretty good nucleus here. The biggest thing is trying to evaluate the guys we recruited over the summer and see how they fit into our program.”
Some of the players have already secured a spot on the roster, like defenceman Dan Stone who was appointed to lead the team as captain through the upcoming season.
“Stone is going to be just a workhorse for us on the back end. He’s going to be that guy who’s called upon to lead in every aspect, not only in the dressing room but on the ice as well.”
Another returning player is right-winger Jackson Glimpel, who scored 35 points in 53 games last season.
“He’s skating very good right now and we expect great things from him,” Law said. “He’s telling me he’s going to be as good as his brother (former Coyote Rainer Glimpel), so we’ll give him the opportunity to play in all those situations and see what he can do.”
Also confirmed on the team so far is forward Colton Nikiforuk from Maple Ridge, defenceman Kaleb Comishin from Nelson, and forward Brayden Durante from New Westminster.
Among the other teams in the Okanagan Division of the Okanagan/Shuswap Conference – the opponents the Coyotes face the most often – Law believes the Summerland Steam will be the Coyotes toughest division rival.
“On paper they should be good – they’ve got a lot of returning guys,” he said. “So it’ll be one of those situations, if they’re all back, all healthy, if they’re focused and ready to go, I’m sure they’ll be one of the stronger teams in our division.”
The Coyotes underwent the exhibition portion of their season last weekend, taking on the Princeton Posse twice on Aug. 27 and the Grand Forks Border Bruins on Aug. 28. All three were held at the Sun Bowl Arena, and the Coyotes won every match, 6-1, 6-2, and 6-2 respectively. Osoyoos’ next exhibition game is in Princeton tonight (Aug. 31), and their final preseason game is on Sept. 2 in Grand Forks. Both games begin at 7 p.m.
DAN WALTON
Regional Reporter
Training camp is underway for the Osoyoos Coyotes, which means players and coaching have been spending ample time at the Sun Bowl Arena to configure the best roster for the upcoming season. (Dan Walton photo)
