High-flying Wheat Kings leading U18 circuit

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This article was published 06/01/2022 (1376 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Brandon Wheat Kings have been a fixture at the top of the Manitoba U18 AAA Hockey League standings for several years.

Prior to a brief dip in 2020 when they missed the post-season, the Wheat Kings captured a championship in 2019 over a Winnipeg Wild program that beat them in the final the previous spring. 

They also started strong last season as they posted a 6-2 mark when COVID-19 brought an eventual cancellation to the campaign.

As league play resumes this week, the 25-0-3 Wheat Kings are leading the way in the 12-team loop with a five-point advantage over the 23-2-2 Wild.

“Each team is a little bit different,” Wheat Kings head coach Curtis Brolund said. “When we won the league back in 2019, that was an older group who had played quite a bit of hockey together, while we really weren’t sure what we were going to get this season. 

“A lot of that was due to the amount of time these guys have had away from the game, but this group has done a great job of putting the work over these extended off-seasons so that they were ready to go.”

The squad was slated to be back in action Friday for a home game with the Yellowhead Chiefs, but that contest and a Saturday meeting in Shoal Lake were postponed due to Brandon not having enough players able to play this weekend due to COVID-19 protocols. 

While it may not be a surprise that the Wheat Kings are a contender once again, their offensive firepower is causing people to take notice.

They’ve lit the lamp 188 times so far this year, which is the most goals by a U18 AAA club at the holiday break since the Wild scored 202 goals in the first half of the 2011-12 season.

“That’s been a very pleasant surprise for us,” Brolund said. “There are nights where it seems like we’ve been scoring at will out there and putting a lot of points on the board.

“What impresses me the most though is everyone’s commitment to the game. They are putting forth a good effort in games where we’ve outmatched teams, which is where you can see guys having their minds wander a bit. They’ve stuck to having a strong effort and that’s allowed us to maintain some great stretches of play this year.”

The Wheat Kings’ attack is paced by the top three scorers in the league.

Seventeen-year-old Braden Keeble leads the way with 65 points — 22 goals and 43 assists — in 28 games, with 15-year-old Clarke Caswell posting 57 points — 26 goals and 31 assists — in 24 contests and 16-year-old Nolan Chastko putting up 56 points — 37 goals and 19 assists — in 27 games.

All three players have earned the attention of junior programs over the course of the campaign.

Keeble has signed with the Alberta Junior Hockey League’s Brooks Bandits for next season, Caswell was selected sixth overall by the Western Hockey League’s Swift Current Broncos and inked a contract with the club last month, and Chastko made his Manitoba Junior Hockey League debut with the Virden Oil Capitals right before Christmas.

“All three guys are a little bit different,” Brolund said. “Braden’s the playmaker for us. He sees the ice extremely well and he’s able to slip out of the corners with full control of the puck to make good plays to his linemates.

“Clarke is a tremendous young talent. He’s a gamer every night with a ton of speed, quickness and skill. Nolan’s a strong, physical player with a fantastic shot. If he has any kind of room out there to get that shot off, there’s a chance it will go in the net every time.”

Callum Halls is also enjoying a strong campaign as the 17-year-old forward has posted 51 points – 26 goals and 25 assists — in 28 games and is tied for fifth in league scoring with Jayce Legaarden of the Parkland Rangers.

“He’s a pretty natural sniper with a big body, but he doesn’t use his legs as much as he should,” Brolund joked. 

“Callum’s got a knack for scoring goals and he picks his spots really well when he gets time and space.”

Carter Dittmer, who made his MJHL debut with the Winkler Flyers in November, sits fifth on the team point chart with 39 points — 13 goals and 26 assists — in 23 contests.

“He’s a tremendously fast skater,” Brolund said of the 16-year-old, who is also a draft pick of the WHL’s Everett Silvertips.

“Carter creates a lot of chaos and confusion for the other side. He has a great work ethic and he’s willing to do anything to help put the puck in the net.”

The Wheat Kings blue-line is paced by 16-year-old Calder Crossin and 17-year-old Ethan Guthrie, who have posted 30 and 25 points respectively in 28 games.

“Ethan’s a third-year guy and he’s a very mature leader,” Brolund said. “He plays his butt off every night on both sides of the puck and his smooth skating allows him to get up the ice to chip in offensively.

“Calder plays the same way. He has a tremendous first pass that results in odd-man rushes and scoring chances. He’s been great for us all over the ice.”

The backend also features a pair of 2006-born players in Cole Slobodian and Owen Wallace, the latter of whom was a seventh round selection by the Prince Albert Raiders in last month’s WHL prospects draft.

“There’s always a learning curve when you come to this level as a 15-year-old, especially as a defenceman,” Brolund said. 

“Owen and Cole have adapted to joining a fairly deep backend that has a lot of older guys on it. They’ve been playing their way into bigger roles as the season has gone on and that’s really helped both of them develop their games.”

The team’s goaltending duties have been split thus far between 17-year-old Mason Lobreau and 16-year-old KC Couckyut.

Lobreau has a 12-0-2 record with a 2.47 goals against average, a .918 save percentage and a shutout, while Couckuyt has put together a 13-0-1 mark with a 2.81 goals against average and a .914 save percentage.

“They are a couple of smaller guys but they are tremendous battlers,” Brolund said. 

“We’re confident in either one of them as they’ve given us a chance to win every night. We’d like to have someone take the reins as our top goalie, but they are both so close right now with how well they are playing. It’s a great problem to have.”

The only real challenge the Wheat Kings have had in the first half of the season is getting used to a different building, as they departed their longtime home in the Sportsplex for the brand-new J&G Homes Arena in December.

“There were some mixed emotions for me as there’s a lot of great memories and great players that have come through the team during our time in the Sportsplex,” Brolund said.

“With that said, we’re all looking forward to making new memories in our new home. The transition went smoothly and it’s a great setup in there for the kids, who were super excited to move in there.”

With only two months left until the start of the playoffs — barring any further scheduling changes due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic — Brolund is stressing the importance of keeping up good habits during the stretch drive to his players.

“Before we went into the holiday break, we told the guys that these next few weeks are going to go by very quickly,” he said. “Our major focus now is with the mental side of the game and performing every night. We’ve done a good job of playing the right way in those lopsided battles in the first half, but we can’t afford to take any nights off before the playoff push, especially with the parity we’ve seen in the league this year.

“We feel that we have a team in this room that can compete at a high level and go for a championship. The biggest thing for us is to make sure that we keep playing the right way.”

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