Skyhawks continue to prepare for upcoming season

It was a fast paced, hard skating, physical scrimmage which took place Sunday morning at the North Bay Skyhawks mini training camp. With over 40 players taking part in the camp, and only a handful of players expected to be invited back for the main camp later this month, it was apparent that some were trying to make a lasting impression. The Skyhawks are hoping to take anywhere from 10-15 unsigned players and bring them back to their main camp. Head Coach Darren Turcotte said it is tough to get a full evaluation of the players on the smaller ice of Pete Palangio, and will wait to see how those asked to come back will perform on the bigger ice of Memorial Gardens.

“It’s hard to get a good feel for the talent out here,” said Turcotte referring to the fact the Skyhawks will play on a larger ice surface.

“We’re going to have to give some guys the benefit of the doubt when we invite them back. We’ll probably bring back anywhere from twelve to fifteen players.”

The Skyhawks have already signed eleven players making it even tougher for some of the new faces to crack the team. Turcotte is very happy with the teams’ signings and also feels that with so many returning players the learning curve will not be as tough this year.

“We obviously feel comfortable with our signings. We have seven forwards, three defensemen, and one goalie that can all play at this level, and we know that already. We want guys who want to play for the Skyhawks; it is a lot easier to work with guys who want to be here. And it does make me feel good that so many players were willing to return. I have had success in the past bringing guys back and that is what I wanted to do here,” said Turcotte.

One of the players who has re-signed with the Skyhawks is former North Bay Trapper Kody Carnevale. Carnevale, who was a rookie with the Skyhawks last year, is looking forward to another season playing for his coach. Although Carnevale was not always on the same page as Turcotte in the beginning, by the end of the year he could not have asked for a better experience.

“I questioned a few of the things he did,” said Carnevale regarding some of the decisions his coach made early in the year.

“But by the end of the year I was able to look back and appreciate the things he did. In hindsight everything made sense, and coach did a great job. By the end of the year I realized how great of an experience the season had been.”

Carnevale also added he is hoping to continue improving on the mental side of the game.

“It really helps playing against better players; it helps you improve your skills. The big thing is improving your mindset though. When you’re younger you can do things on your own and make plays on your own. At this level you really have play as a team, the pace is just so much faster that you can’t do it on your own,” said Carnevale.

Also in attendance on Sunday was Skyhawks General Manager Guy Blanchard. Earlier in the week Blanchard had stated that his goal for the season was to have eight forwards who could score four strong defensemen and a team backbone in net. Although the Skyhawks are more then halfway there with their signings, Blanchard still feels there is more evaluation to do before the team is set.

“We are not there just yet,” said Blanchard regarding how close the team is to his goal heading into the season.

“We still need to look at our returning players. We are going to give some of the guys out here another opportunity at our main camp, and we will see how they do on the bigger ice. There were a few guys out here that we did not expect to do as well as they did, who surprised us, but again we will see how they do on the bigger ice.”

The Skyhawks are able to have as many players as they want on their roster up until December 1st; however Blanchard hopes to have the roster trimmed to 22 players by September the 9th.

The Skyhawks main training camp will take place August 20th to the 23rd at the Memorial Gardens. The camp will include 6 hours of on ice session and a Blue/White game (select players) August 23rd @ 7 pm. Camp fee is $65.00 for players returning from previous camps and $105.00 for new registrants.

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