Wheatland Kings ready for hectic weekend

There aren't a lot of three-in-threes on the HJHL schedule.

But the Strathmore Wheatland Kings didn't have to wait long for their first marathon test.

The Wheatland Kings will play three home games on three consecutive days this weekend, starting with Friday night's tilt against the Lomond Lakers (8 p.m.).

Head coach Joel Robinson says he's looking forward to the test.

"That's how the scheduling went for us," Robinson said. "I'm not too upset about it.

"I think it's good for the guys and I think it's a good way to get some momentum going, especially if we can get a couple (wins) in a row there."

The Wheatland Kings will also welcome the High River Flyers on Saturday (8 p.m.) and then the Coaldale Copperheads on Sunday (4:15 p.m.).

Robinson will be looking for an improvement in one specific area from last week when Strathmore fell 6-1 to the Okotoks Bisons.

"We just took way too many penalties," Robinson said. "When it was five-on-five, we were keeping up with them. It was a good hockey game, it was back and forth.

"You can't win a hockey game when half the game is spent in the penalty box.

"It wasn't the way we wanted to start things off but I think the boys learned a lesson - especially the rookies - about how crucial special teams are in this league."

The Wheatland Kings took 62 minutes in penalties and the Bisons converted on three of five opportunities, one which was a major, in the season-opener.

Robinson didn't need to say much to his squad after the game.

"The group of guys that we have aren't undisciplined," Robinson said. "It was just one of those nights where everyone decided to take a penalty and it didn't matter what it was for.

"The guys in the room know they can't be taking stupid penalties.

"The vets stepped up after the game and said 'we can't be shorthanded that much.' It was nice to see the vets take over the room because for a lot of the guys, it was their first game in the league.

Strathmore will look to Lucas Muenchrath and Garret Vander Ploeg to lead the offence this season with Ty Skehar and Zach Suntjens bringing a steady influence to the back end.

"We lost three of those guys in the first 10 minutes of the game," Robinson said of the club's home-opener. "So that throws you in a bit of a blender and you have to come up with some lines that are going to work.

"I think we found a couple of combinations we were never expecting to work and now we're trying them out, so there were some positives to come out of the game."

Robinson will continue to put his faith in goaltender Brett Willan, who he considers to be among the best puckstoppers in the HJHL.

"He'll play the majority of the games and I'll lean on him pretty heavily," Robinson said. "It's easy to tap a guy on the shoulder and tell him to go score a goal. It's harder to have that confidence in a goaltender and just say 'hey, that's your crease and let me know when you need a break.'

"That's the big thing for me - having that relationship with my goalie."

Just making the playoffs isn't going to cut it in 2019-20.

Robinson feels this squad has a chance to be much more than a slightly above average team.

"I think we're going to be a surprise," Robinson said. "I want to be one of the top three teams in the South and I think we can do it this year.

"We won 18 games (18-17-3) last year and that tied our franchise record. We have a lot of those core guys back.

"I think we can be an elite team. It's just a matter of getting there now."