The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Kelly Carrington Staff Writer Going into spring camp and main camp before this past season, the Flin Flon Bomber organization wasn't looking to win a championship. They spent their season building and developing their roster of young players. This year, it's a different story. The upcoming spring camp, to be held June 1-3 in Saskatoon, has head coach and GM Mike Reagan raising his expectations. Roughly 100 players will be on the ice fighting for an invite to main camp, which happens at the end of summer, in Flin Flon. 'I think it's going to be a really competitive camp,' said Reagan. With June 1 being the first day that a player can sign with an organization, the timing of the weekend is perfect for the organization. 'We've got some really good...young, and exciting players...coming to the camp already,' said the coach. 'We think (they) are going to be able to step into the lineup next year and be able to produce.' In the past, the organization has missed out on players due to the wait times before being able to commit. 'We wanted to make sure that we get kids that are ready and able to make that commitment at that time,' said Reagan. Players who made the 2011-12 roster will be on hand for the spring camp to help with coaching, reffing, and filling in on the ice when and if injuries occur. Many of the players attending spring camp are making their way through the ranks and coming in from Midget AAA. 'It's a huge difference,' Reagan said, contrasting Midget with Junior A hockey. 'I mean, it's difficult for guys to make that jump.' Cole McCaig, who played for the Bombers this past season, was a 60-point player in Midget. In his first Junior A year, the forward put up nine points for the Bombers. 'I love (his) work ethic,' said Reagan. 'I think one of the biggest problems is that guys don't realize, including fans and players, how big of a jump it is. 'The expectations of both the fans and the players are sometimes too high.' Local talent Reagan hopes to see as many local players at the spring camp as possible. 'If there are any kids out there that want to come to spring camp and didn't get a letter that should have, contact the Bomber office,' said Reagan, adding that this would not have been intentional. 'We do want to have as many local guys as we can. I (want to) give every local kid an opportunity.' But there may not be as many local names on the ice as he would like to see. The numbers in the Flin Flon Minor Hockey Association are dropping _ there is no Bantam AA team this year. 'It makes it real difficult to develop players in this town when you don't have the numbers to do that,' said Reagan. Nonetheless, Reagan says the camp will be competitive. 'This is going to be a very tough team to make,' he said. The Bombers have their pick of a Humboldt Bronco player at the end of their season, which will finish off the Andrew Johnston trade made last season. The Humboldt player will 'probably be another guy that is going to fit in our top six forwards,' said Reagan, though the name of the players being looked at were not mentioned. The Bombers' spring camp, combined with the returning players, will build a strong team, said the coach. 'People should be very excited about this team,' he said. 'I know I am.' During the 2011-12 season, the Bombers developed their players to contend for a championship in the 2012-13 season. 'Our goal is to win a championship and if it takes us a year to try and build for that, then we've got to try and do that,' Reagan said. Turnover The Bombers have a good group of players returning, though they said goodbye to four who aged out of the SJHL. With some open spots on the roster, Reagan isn't worried _ he's excited. 'You want turnover. We don't want a team that everyone is returning to,' he said. 'You need change.' And spring camp will bring plenty of opportunities for that change.
