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The future (and present) looking bright with development of rookie defenceman

Feb 17, 2017 | 9:49 AM

LETHBRIDGE – Looking at the present, it’s a great time to be a fan of the Lethbridge Hurricanes. The club is fifth in the WHL with just one regulation loss in their last 17 games, and they feature a solid cast of offensive weapons led by team captain Tyler Wong, who sits third in the league in goal scoring.

But what about the future? What happens when Wong and other leaders finish their time in the WHL and move on?

That’s where the Hurricanes youth movement comes in, highlighted by a young defenceman from Brandon, Manitoba whom the club selected with the second overall pick of the WHL Bantam Draft in 2015.

Calen Addison is the youngest player on the roster — he won’t turn 17 until April — but you likely wouldn’t know that by watching him on the ice. Addison made his debut with Lethbridge on Feb. 13, 2016, appearing in four regular season games and three more in the post-season. Retaining his rookie status this season, Addison has registered an impressive 24-points in 48-games, putting him second in defensive scoring for the Hurricanes behind veteran Brennan Menell.

In a sit down with Lethbridge News Now, the smooth-skating blueliner opened up about playing his first few games in the WHL at the age of 15, and how the team helped bring him into the fold.

“I think they’ve welcomed me really well, I think everybody’s treated equally on this team, on and off the ice,” Addison said, noting that he’s also gained a great deal of confidence from the coaching staff. “I think I’m really lucky with the minutes I play and getting power-play time and stuff like that, they treat me really well. I’m having a really good year personally and I’m really happy with where our team’s at right now… I’m really happy I’m here.”

At his age, and playing a position that is generally regarded as one that takes significant time to learn, Addison acknowledged that he’s constantly working to advance his game to the next level.

“I think I really have to strengthen up my d-zone and play tougher defensively, you know obviously, good defence leads to good offence, and that’s really helped me along the way this year. If you can play defence at a young age, you can be trusted upon to play bigger minutes out there, and be trusted in a bigger role,” he explained.

“I want to be a really good skater, keep working on my skating, and especially my strength, you know, being a smaller guy,” continued Addison. “I really want to play strong defensively, and that will help me keep going as I move along in hockey.”

The conversation then moved to his life away from the rink — at least that was the intent — when it became apparent that his focus generally doesn’t stray too far from the 200 x 85 foot ice surface.

“I don’t really do much off the ice, I just kind of hang out, have fun,” Addison said with some hesitation, as if not fully committed to his answer. Without any prompting — and with a notable uptick in his energy — he continued on, “I work out at the rink and stuff like that, I just kind of always want to get better on and off the ice. There’s nothing better than feeling better when it comes to game time.”

Based on that answer, it looks like the future is in good hands.

Into the Hurricane
(Check back every Friday during the regular season for a look at the players you cheer for)

Stuart Skinner – (Feb. 10, 2017)

Tyler Wong – (Feb. 3, 2017)