Depth, young talent, and competition were on display at the Virden Oil Capitals Fall Camp.
When head coach and general manager Troy Leslie was asked what impressed him the most, he said: “The overall depth of the camp. We had a lot of forwards. … It was pretty competitive camp the whole weekend. I thought the games were pretty spirited and the guys worked hard.”
Fifty-nine players, ranging in age from 15 to 20, tried to impress the Oil Capitals staff at the event, which ran Sept. 1-3. The Oil Caps start this week with 34 players. Leslie said he would like to get down to at least 25 when the team hosts the Dauphin Kings on Sept. 22 at the Tundra Oil and Gas Place to kick off its Manitoba Junior Hockey League regular season. Oil Capitals faithful will get their first glimpse at the team competing against an MJHL opponent on Sept. 9 when they host Steinbach in an exhibition tilt.
“There is competition at all positions,” Leslie said. “We have a lot of good forwards right now.”
The Virden bench boss said there is a lot of competition for forward spots. Right now the Oil Caps look to be young on the blue line. They have a number of 18-year-old defencemen and a 17-year-old who has shown well so far. Behind them, Leslie noted the team is very comfortable with returning goalie Riley McVeigh, a Calgary product entering his 19-year-old season.
At camp, Leslie was very pleased with the state of the team’s player list. He praised head scout Chad Leslie and his scouting staff for their work. Leslie said that the team’s list includes many different types of players.
“We have lots of good young players who are going to push some of the older guys,” Leslie said.
Virden had 14 returning players in camp.
“They come into camp confident,” Leslie said. “A lot of time your leadership shows. I was happy with them. They know there are younger players who want to earn a spot. They have to work hard as well.”
With some veterans being held out of the fall camp’s annual intrasquad game, younger players had a chance to compete for the Garry Cup – named after the team’s dressing room attendant who is an integral part of the team. Team Red beat Team Black, 6-4, in the Sunday night contest. Melita 17-year-old Carson Brigden scored twice for the victors.
“I thought it was a very spirited game all the way through,” Leslie said. “I think the guys competed hard.”
