Just of few of the choice beverages Cale and I consumed after Game 7 to help cope with our loss.

POST-SEASON OVERVIEW
Cow arse.

The game of hockey can be an absolute dick. Going home for the season after Game 7 and failing to capture that Four Star Cup that we thought we were guaranteed is just heart breaking. The mood in the locker room was just filled with frustration after the game. The Managers tried to make some post-season speeches to cheer us up and keep looking ahead but you could tell that a bunch of the guys were just pissed with the result. Cale especially seemed to be taking it hard.

Surviving Game 7 against Detroit filled us with a ton of energy. We thought Detroit was going to be our hardest opponent in the quest for it all but the Kraken managed to steal a couple of games from us. After the 9-1 win we really thought that the rest of the series was going to be ours but we seemed to be struggling for no real reason. Maybe it was the pressure of the post-season but a lot of the guys, including myself, just weren’t playing like their old selves from the regular season.

When the first game was about to begin some changes to the line-up were announced and the Managers decided that Soupy and I were going to be paired up together again. I don’t know if that messed with my head or something but ever since we were drafted in our SMJHL draft I was excited to see what our pairing was going to do together. Then we both got the call to Minnesota and it looks like we are going to be a pairing to be feared with for seasons to come, but it wasn’t meant to be in the S54 Four Star Playoffs.

Soupy kept hot for the post-season and ended falling just short of a point-per-game with his 11 in the 14 we were able to play. I ended up near the bottom of the scoring for the entire team though, only finding the back of the net once and getting a total of 4 points. When the playoffs started J said that he wanted me to play more of a defensive game and that pressure might have gotten to me. Too many times I can recall turning the puck over with a stupid move or not being able to get the jump to keep control of the puck.

My four points was not enough. I know that my focus was supposed to be on my defensive play and to keep control of the puck but I couldn’t keep up for some reason. I ended at only a +4 which seems to be a polar opposite of how I was performing in the second half of the regular season. There were some highlights like ending with 17 shots blocked but it’s clear that my defensive game needs work, which is going to be the focus going into next season. Juke and I shared to honours of being give-away machines in the post-season with a team-leading 12 each so next season I need to learn to play smarter. At least there were still some highlights of the post-season for the team though.

Liam Slate popped off. For a rookie going into his first post-season and taking into consideration that he was not confident in his play through the regular season, you would have expected the fourth line was going to end up cooling off, but instead? Slate went god damn bonkers through our 14 games. He almost had 27 per cent shooting! 27!!! Averaging a goal for every two games is something that no one would’ve seen coming and I can’t wait to see what he is going to be bringing to the ice next season. I predict Slate is definitely going to be huge for us next season.

It was stupid mistakes time and time again that held my game back and I can’t help but think my poor play is part of the reason that we are going home before the Finals. A lot of the guys are swearing off the rest of the playoffs, not caring who is going to take home the Four Star. I get that entirely and I was just as angry when the final horn went off to confirm that we were going home, but I’m keeping my eyes on the game. Why? So I can be better next season.

Yes, it’s a complete bummer that we won’t be moving on to the Finals and holding the Four Star Cup to end S54 but really? This team is getting started. We heard it throughout the league that people were cheering against us as is common against the favourites, but this team is young. I will and the rest of the team will get even better over the off-season. We are going to kill the competition in S55 and show that it’s our season, and I think staying focused on that goal is what’s going to set us apart from the rest.


One thing in my game that is lacking is more moments like this. I will make sure that over the off-season I put on some muscle so I'm ready to land a few more hits in S55.

A lot of the teams in the league are going to be hurt by players moving on to the SHL next season. Detroit is taking some massive damage specifically. Newfoundland though? We’re set to lose one. Our captain SLATT will be making the jump to Texas and yes that’s going to hurt the first line big time but losing only one talent with the rest of the team improving day by day is absolutely crazy. Imagine a defense where everyone is practicing as much as they can. Imagine a fully trained Cale… next season is going to be an absolute blast.

The only thing that we have to worry about is that the SMJHL will be expanding as well, so Newfoundland is likely going to lose a player to one of the expansion teams as well. No one knows who the team is going to protect going into this thing so I think that is going to be the thing that most guys are worried about but we are going to be all right. We are going to get some new youth from the Entry Draft and we are going to keep improving to prove to the rest of the league that there is nothing that is going to stop us.

Yes, we’re leaving a little sooner than we expected but our heads are held high still. We have the greatest locker room in the league and that’s what’s going to motivate everyone to keep working their hardest to be the best player that I can’t be. My favourite S54 memory is going to be Game 3 against the Falcons. We’re sitting in the locker room waiting to head out for the pre-game skate when Andrei gets a stack of papers out from his bag. He goes around handing these sheets out which I assumed was just another “Where’s Sergei?” but on the top of the sheet read “DANCING CLEAN!”

Andrei had written a playoff song for us. The guys embraced it right away and before every game we would blast Dancing Queen on the Bluetooth and sing these lyrics that Andrei created for us. It’s moments like that why I love this league. It’s moments like that which are keeping me motivated to be the absolute best player that I can be. I want to show the world how great this team is and then represent the Newfoundland system in the SHL. We have a lot of work ahead but we’re only getting better from here.

༼ つ ◕◕ ༽つ BERSERKERS TAKE MY ENERGY ༼ つ ◕◕ ༽つ

THE OFF-SEASON
With the off-season here I’m able to improve on a few stats and hopefully become an even better player for the Berserkers. I was happy overall with my regular season but the playoffs were an absolute mess. I think the best idea for me is to focus on more defensive stats and worry about offense when I make it to the SHL.

The next season could end up being my last in the SMJHL. I am confident when I saw I’m one of the hardest working prospects from my draft class and I could easily be in a spot to join Minnesota after the upcoming season as long as I make sure to do everything that I can to continue to grow as a player.

I would love to stay in Newfoundland for another couple seasons to see if we can get the Four Star Cup we know we deserve. The team will relatively be staying the same with only the mystery of the expansion draft looming. There is still another week to go before we even find out who was unprotected by the team and will be joining Quebec or Nevada.

We also found out that Juke will be joining the Rage, which broke my heart. This was a rumour for all of S54 but I always wanted to believe that Juke was just making lame jokes. When I first joined Newfoundland I wasn’t even sure if I was going to stick to this hockey team, but Juke is one of the main pieces in a locker room that became a family. He did everything he possibly could to help the team and he was the type of player that I was trying to become. Him leaving the team is going to be a massive loss and I don’t know exactly where we are going to go from here. The defense with Tinke, Soup, Renji and I is still strong but we need to find a way to step into Juke’s shoes which I don’t think is possible. I will definitely miss him but know we’ll meet on the SHL ice in a few seasons.

The WJC and IIHF tournaments are also starting to get going. While waiting for the next season to get started, this is the perfect way to continue growing as a player. Last season I made the decision to declare for Team Japan as I saw it as an opportunity to help build an up-and-coming nation. Team USA is in good hands and who knows when I would make their squad.

WJC
It was announced that I would be part of Team World for the second season in a row, which I was happy to jump at the opportunity. Team World features a ton of stars and gives me more time with Mina after our season was cut short.

After the amount of times Knight scored against us through the season I’m happy that we have the opportunity to work together towards the WJC. We definitely have some major competition if we want a medal to become a reality but it should be a fun tournament as we give it our all for Baba Yetu.

Along with Knight, I’m really excited for the opportunity to play with JMac and Grapefruit, two of the guys who I will be meeting in Minnesota in a couple of seasons. This tournament gives us a ton of opportunity to show just how exciting the future is for the Chiefs so I’m hoping that we are going to see some success from these two.

The defensive core of Team World is quite exciting too. After keeping tabs on them throughout the season to see how I compare with them, now I get the opportunity to play with the likes of Scianna, Sondergard and Sato. The S54 draft class had a lot of defensive talent and to all be on the same team could mean some exciting things for Team World in this tournament.

I find myself on a pairing with Axel Meszaros and was told that I need to focus on my offensive game to try and keep up with the more talented Junior rosters. While I want to work on my defensive game over the off-season, it’s exciting to have the opportunity to help lead the offense.

At this point, all of the exhibition games have been played. I feel good about the team since we were able to pick up some wins against teams that we theoretically did not compare to. It seems that the team is adjusting to their new roles but we are seeing some chemistry. I have no doubts when I see Niccolo or Mina ahead of me on the ice that I will be able to count on them.

After our 7 games for the exhibition round it should be no surprise that the team is going to be counting heavily on our first line. Knight led all of our scoring with 4 goals and 10 points while Mina and Hellquist were also up there as well of course. Scianna led the defensive scoring and Niccolo surprised everyone with three goals as well.

Cillian Kavanagh was counted on for all 7 exhibition games but it’s safe to assume that we will be counting on Redacted to step in at some point throughout the round robin as well.

My own game seemed to rebound from the Four Star Playoffs with five points through the games. My penalties are still a concern but if the team is finding its way to get these goals then that’s really all that matters. I’m excited to see how far of a run we can make in this tournament and hopefully we will be able to head back to our junior teams with a medal to show off.


I didn't expect to get the call to the IIHF. I was so focused on the SMJHL I wasn't keeping tabs on my future teammates but I guess it's time to step up!

IIHF
Right after we were eliminated from the playoffs, I got a call that I wasn’t expecting. In just my second season I had been named to the Team Japan roster and would get the opportunity to play against some of the SHL’s greats.

This was the highlight of the off-season of course because now I will have the opportunity to meet some of the guys that I hear of so constantly in the Berserkers locker room. This is also an opportunity for me to show that I am going to be ready to make the jump to the pro level in the coming seasons.

Team Japan is still relatively young. Some prospects like myself are declaring for the nation from their home country and the pros on this team are either in their prime or just reaching it. While Team Japan may not be of any concern to the top nations right now, we certainly could be in the coming seasons and I hope to be a huge part of that future as well.

I was one of four SMJHLers who got the call to report to Japan after the WJC wraps up. With the invite came a list of the other players who would be on the team with me and I’ll be honest, the pressure of playing with some of these guys may end up getting to me.

Going into the SHL Entry Draft one of the teams I wanted to end up on was the Chicago Syndicate just because of the younger roster they have. They are primed for success and Japan shows many of those players responsible for that. I’m not sure how I will know which Smeb is which and playing with Ren and Westbroek will be awesome as well.

There is too much talent on this team and it’s clear that I’m likely not going to be able to keep up, but at least this will prepare me for getting to the point that I need to be. Playing with guys like Chico and Dayudie gives me the chance to pick their brains on how to grow into a better player.

One of the other SMJHL players to make this team is Sato, a S54 rival/friend who I will likely end up sharing third pairing duties with. Having the chance to go for gold with Team World and then reporting for my first IIHF tournament gives a ton of excitement for the season and I can’t wait to see how everything plays out.

My agent says that this is the most fun that he has ever had while working in this league and things are just getting started for us. I can’t wait to see what next season brings.