As they continue their Alberta road swing, the Swift Current Broncos have been happy with the progress of their large contingent of Alberta produced rookies so far this season.
Max Lajoie, Tyler Steenbergen, Jaydan Gordon, Travis Child and the injured Cole Johnson are all part of another deep Alberta rookie class in Swift Current.
The Broncos try to take rookie development slowly by giving young players opportunities gradually and pulling them back when they hit a wall.
"Mark (Lamb)'s philosophy about giving them a role and getting them some ice and allowing them to grow into it," said Broncos Assistant GM/Director of Player Personnel Jamie Porter. "When at a point they seem to stagger or hit a wall a bit draw them back and let them start again from a different position. I think we've seen over the year that it works."
Lajoie has probably been given the most rope with a top four role on defence and a spot on the top power play unit. His success comes after spending his 16-year-old season in midget even though he was likely good enough to play in the WHL at that age.
"We were always excited about Max," Porter said. "We felt that where we drafted him... he should have gone higher. He proved last year he could play but as a 16-year-old he wouldn't have had enough ice. He went back and had an excellent year with the Calgary Royals. Now he has taken another step and done what we expected and probably has gone even beyond that now."
"Just another example of a guy going back and being allowed to be "the guy" in his own age group preparing him for the WHL."
Steenbergen was Swift Current's first round bantam draft pick in 2013. He has 7 points in 28 games so far this season while jumping from third and fourth line duty to occasional moments in the top six.
"We've been happy with the way Tyler has played," Porter said. "I'm sure Tyler would like to put up more numbers but that hasn't really been a concern with us. He's a solid two-way guy and he's very responsible. What we're getting out of Tyler is what we were hoping for."
Porter recently saw Johnson who is optimistic of a successful recovery from shoulder surgery. The Broncos aren't happy to not have him in their lineup, but are hopeful it happening now means he will be healthy during his junior prime years.
Porter noted that even with only one extra skater on the roster they are confident in the depth they have in their system of prospects should any injuries come up.
The Broncos are in Calgary Friday night and you can hear the game on The Eagle 94.1FM at 7:30pm
Sat, Apr 20, 1:00 PM
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