Landon Bow (photo by Darwin Knelsen for scbroncos.com)

Swift Current Broncos goaltender Landon Bow was in fine form to start the WHL regular season.

The 20-year-old veteran stopped 89 of 93 shots he faced in helping the Broncos to a split of a home-and-home series against the defending conference champion Brandon Wheat Kings.

"I felt extremely confident after coming back from (Anaheim Ducks) camp," Bow said. "I just felt like I was on the top of my game. I wanted to make sure I came back and made a statement. I just knew I couldn't get rattled by anything that happened."

For his efforts the WHL nominated Bow for the Vaughn CHL Goaltender of the Week award. It's an honour the St. Albert product has twice won and been nominated for on several occasions.

He felt like his teammates worked hard to make sure he could see the puck and keep shots to the outside against a high end offensive club.

"The guys really helped me out," Bow noted. "They were blocking shots they didn't want to block. They sacrificed their bodies and they kept a lot of shots to the outside."

Anaheim invited Bow to be a part of their rookie tournament and his performance there earned him an invite to main NHL camp.

"It was unbelievable going down there just to see how professionals are treated," Bow said. "To skate with the big guys... those guys are so good. They'll make you pay for every mistake you make so that was something I really had to take seriously. I really had to make sure I had little things in my game fixed up so that when I came back here I could use what I learned."

The coaching staff in Swift Current has noticed the impact that opportunity had on Bow.

"I think he's a little bit different coming back from Anaheim," said Broncos Coach/GM Mark Lamb. "Lots of confidence, looks good and wants to play. I really noticed it in the shootout (Friday) how confident he was. Once he started playing like that it was going to take a real tough shot to beat him."

Even though it was only a short stint in Anaheim, Bow still felt like it has added a lot to his game.

"Just the amount of coaching you get down there," he said. "Every day you're getting coaching before and after practice. They really talk to you all the time and keep giving you stuff you need to work on and then you'll work on that specific drill. For two weeks it was crazy the amount of stuff I was able to soak up."

After playing more hockey than he ever had before in his career Bow's play started to fade a bit in later last season. In an effort to better prepare his body for playing most of his team's game he really focused on nutrition over the summer.

"The one thing that changed was my diet," Bow noted. "I took real good care just watching what I was eating. That was just a huge help."

"I just have to take care of myself better over the year. Make sure if I have any aches or pains I work them out."

Bow was perhaps the top netminder in the WHL over the first half of last season before some inconsistencies crept into his game. If his experience in Anaheim and better conditioning can keep him close to that level for a whole season he could be Swift Current's MVP.

The Broncos are in Red Deer on Friday and Edmonton on Sunday. You can hear both games live on The Eagle 94.1 FM.