The St. Albert Raiders are rested and refocused after recharging their batteries during a break in the Alberta Midget AAA Hockey League schedule.
The first game in 12 days for the Raiders (6-4-7) is Friday in Red Deer against the Chiefs (4-7-5). The next day they visit the UFA Bisons (8-7-3) in Strathmore.
The Raiders are undefeated in seven games – four wins and three ties – and are only two points out of second spot in the north division as the fourth-place team in the standings.
“We have a positive mindset right now. We haven’t lost in about three or four weeks and we’re headed in the right direction,” said assistant captain Parker AuCoin at Monday’s practice at Akinsdale Arena.
The Raiders welcomed the rare weekend off from league play.
“Playing two games every weekend since the beginning of October, as well as practicing three times week, plus dryland, it takes its toll on anyone, especially a bunch of 15, 16 and 17-year-old kids so to get that weekend off helped us catch up on our rest,” AuCoin said.
The Raiders gained traction after a slippery 2-4-4 start in the opening 10 games of the season.
“We’re playing really well. We’ve been able to get guys into situations where they thrive. They’re doing stuff that they’re skilled at,” AuCoin said. “A big part of it, too, is we’re really gelling as a team right now. At the beginning of the season when we were having our struggles, and every team has their struggles, we were kind of a bunch of individuals still getting to know each other and now we’re bonding really well. We’re starting to hang out away from the rink and not just at the rink. We’re talking a lot more on the ice and that’s a big correlation to the stuff off the ice.”
In the north the Raiders are ranked third in goals with 61 but are tied for seventh defensively with 61 against.
The Raiders and the second-place Sherwood Park Kings (7-3-7) have collected the most ties among all the north and south teams.
During the layoff time was spent preparing for the next phase of the team’s season.
“We’ve been working on what we need to improve on like moving the puck fast and communicating better and staying disciplined and we want to bring those things into the games on the weekend. We want to keep rolling from here and keep getting better,” said centre Ryan Peckford. “We’re exciting to get going again.”
Peckford expects the Raiders will resume their winning ways.
“We’re a hard working and fast skating team. We also don’t give up. We’ll battle hard right to the end of the buzzer,” he said. “We’ve had a good power play and we’ve worked together well on that. Everyone has also been buying into our systems and how we play.”
The Raiders have seven games remaining until the Christmas break, including five at home, but for the second year in a row didn’t receive an invite to the Mac’s tournament in Calgary during the holidays.
“It’s a big disappointment for us not to make the Mac’s. That was obviously a goal we had but looking back at last year’s team we didn’t make the Mac’s and we were one of the best teams in the league after the Mac’s,” AuCoin said. “We’ve just got to keep a positive attitude and not dwell on the past.”
AuCoin, 16, played a major role during the team’s undefeated streak. The explosive right winger and former captain of the bantam AAA Calgary Northstar Sabres racked up eight goals during a five-game stretch. His 16 goals – four on the power play and two shorthanded – ranks second overall in the AMHL and is seventh in the league scoring race with 23 points in 17 games.
The Grade 11 Bellerose Composite High School student clicked offensively with centre Riley Smith (five goals and 10 points in 11 games) and left-winger Colin Schmidt (eight points in 17 games).
“It’s going really well right now. I’m with Smith and Schmidt and we’re gelling really well as a line. I’ve got to give credit to them. They’re getting me the puck or I’m getting them the puck,” said the first round (15th overall) selection of the Tri-City Americans in the 2013 Western Hockey League bantam draft. “At the beginning of the season I was trying to do too much. I wasn’t playing simple but now I’m not trying to do it all myself.”
Peckford, 15, has been equally impressive as the second-highest scorer on the Raiders with 12 points in 15 games. His six goals are the second most on the team.
“It’s going pretty well. I’ve had a lot of help from my linemates. We work well together. We’ve got a lot of chemistry,” said Peckford, who is flanked by the gritty Cam Mazur and scoring threat Cam Lockard (eight goals and 10 points in 17 games).
The Stony Plain product and Grade 10 Memorial Composite High School student is one of five Raiders who played for the bantam AAA Spruce Grove PAC Saints last season. He led Saints in scoring with 28 goals and 32 assists for 60 points in 33 games.
“It’s a lot faster and hard hitting here than in bantam. You have to keep your head up and keep moving your feet or you won’t get the chances,” said the second round (31st overall) selection by the Victoria Royals in the 2014 WHL bantam draft. “You’re playing against guys that are bigger and older and you’ve got to work hard to be successful.”
