Brandonite working hard for Wheat Kings dream

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This article was published 15/09/2022 (1297 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Calder Anderson heads back to his second home tonight as the Brandon Wheat Kings kick off their final weekend of Western Hockey League pre-season play tonight in Moose Jaw against the Warriors.

The Warriors then complete the home-and-home series by visiting Westoba Place on Saturday at 7 p.m.

Anderson was drafted by the Warriors in 2017 and spent three seasons with the club.

“I’ve thought about it a few times,” Anderson said. “It’s nice to be in the lineup to get into that game. I’ve got nothing but good things to say about that whole organization. They treated me unbelievably the three or four years I spent there. It will be nice to get back there and see some familiar faces and reconnect with a few guys.”

If there’s one downside, it has to be the timing, because many of the players he skated with are now gone to NHL camps.

Moose Jaw has seven players expected to suit for them this season who are away, including Cole Jordan of Brandon (Calgary Flames), Eric Alarie (Los Angeles Kings), Atley Calvert (Buffalo Sabres), Jagger Firkus (Seattle Kraken), Denton Mateychuk (Columbus Blue Jackets), Martin Rysavy (Columbus Blue Jackets) and Max Wanner (Edmonton Oilers).

Meanwhile, Daemon Hunt of Brandon (Minnesota Wild) and Ryder Korczak (New York Rangers) will almost certainly turn pro and are unlikely to return.

“A lot of the young guys will be in the lineup with so many guys away, but even the coaches and trainers and all the staff there,” Anderson said. “It will be good to see all those faces and reconnect with them.”

Still, Anderson wouldn’t trade the opportunity he has now to play with his hometown Wheat Kings with his close friend Nolan Ritchie. Acquired in an off-season deal, Anderson said it still feels a little surreal.

“Just waking up in the morning and knowing that I get to come to the rink here in Brandon is definitely a special feeling,” Anderson said. “It’s one that won’t get old ever. I’m still soaking it all in but taking advantage of the moment and doing what I can to stick around.”

That’s the tough part for Anderson, who is battling a trio of Wheat Kings veterans for one of the three overage spots this season. Big defenceman Mason Ward has likely earned a spot, as has Ritchie, who led Brandon in scoring last season.

The other 20-year-old is Riley Ginnell, who is currently skating at Florida Panthers camp.

Head coach Don MacGillivray said Anderson is making it a difficult decision for the club.

“Calder has been really good,” MacGillivray said. “He brings a little bit of pace, he’s intelligent, he gets around the ice, he seems to be able to play in lots of different situations. He’s given himself a chance to be in consideration for one of the jobs.

“If you had asked me that before, I would have said he would be in tough, but I think he’s really closed the gap. It’s going to be a battle until the end. He’s done everything he can do.”

Anderson, who has played just 98 games over three seasons due to the pandemic-shortened 2020-21 campaign and knee surgery a year ago, has 11 goals, 15 assists and 51 penalty minutes. He’s been pleased with his game at camp so far.

“There’s always that voice in the back of your mind telling you that you can be a step better but I’m not overthinking too much,” Anderson said. “I’m just trying to do what I do best and that’s controlling what I can control, and my work ethic and skill level will take over from there.

“Overall I’m happy with where I’m at.”

Brandon still has a handful of decisions to make on its 28-man roster, with three goaltenders, eight defencemen and 17 forwards remaining with the team. Brandon is temporarily at 24 players with three guys away at pro camps — Ginnell (Florida), Jake Chiasson (Edmonton) and Rylen Roersma (Colorado Avalanche) — and Tyson Zimmer nursing an injury.

Even so, MacGillivray is starting to see progress in his group.

“We’ve kind of touched on all the areas and some guys have skated together a few practices in a row so the chemistry is starting to develop a little bit,” MacGillivray said. “What you want to see is if it’s translating into the game, and see if what you’re doing in practice can carry into the game and if they’re grasping the concepts, and we’ll find that out against Moose Jaw.

“The next two games are real important in terms of understanding how we want to play and then also try to identify some chemistry, and we also have some battles going on still for jobs.”

Last weekend, the Wheat Kings split their first two pre-season games, beating the Winnipeg Ice 6-1 in Brandon on Friday and falling 3-1 a night later in Winnipeg.

Brandon’s regular season kicks off on Sept. 24 when they host Winnipeg, and then the Wheat Kings have a week off before the Warriors visit on Oct. 1.

» pbergson@brandonsun.com

» Twitter: @PerryBergson