To some, the Parkland U18 Rangers have been a surprising team to start the campaign in the Manitoba U18 AAA Hockey League.
The Rangers opened their season with a very tight 3-2 loss against Yellowhead before earning their first point of the season on October 7 against Eastman. The Rangers were less than three minutes away from earning their first regulation win of the season in that game against the Selects.
After a tough loss against the Selects the next afternoon, Parkland embarked on their first overnight road trip of the season as they played the Winnipeg Wild and Interlake Lightning. Tavyn Boychuk scored the winner against the Wild as Parkland won their first game of the season. The next afternoon, the Rangers led Interlake by a goal with less than 10 seconds left before Drew Russell found the back of the net to force overtime. Ultimately, it was the Lightning that earned the extra point. Despite the loss, the Rangers still earned three of a possible four points.
Now heading into a busy weekend that will see the team play three home games in three days, the Rangers are in a playoff spot at 1-2-2. While their strong play early has been a surprise to some, it is far from a surprise to the coaching staff and every player in the dressing room. With e sold veteran group and a good overall core, there was plenty of belief in the dressing room. One of the team's top contributors so far has been Cam Sarna.
From Newton, this is Cam's first season with Parkland after he made the move from the Central Plains region.
"It's been awesome, I really love the team, we're all good friends," said Sarna. "We have great coaches that are always helping whether it be on or off the ice, it's been a great experience so far."
Sarna played high school hockey last year and it was a season to remember with Portage Collegiate as the now 15-year-old scored 22 times while adding 33 assists. Cam's success at the high school level has translated directly to succeeding at the AAA level as Sarna is tied for third in team scoring with three goals in five games. One of Sarna's goals is also on the power play and he's coming off a red-hot weekend in which he scored all three of his goals.
Thanks to his success, the first year Ranger was named the CCM Player of the Week. A rap music fan that also loves the Winnipeg Jets and lacrosse, Sarna says receving the player of the week award gives him confidence moving froward.
"It's pretty sweet to be honest," offered Sarna. "I didn't even think it was a possibility. It's awesome, I'm really happy about it. More than that, I'm thrilled that I was able to help the team earn those three points, they were crucial."
On top of practicing twice with Parkland and playing games with the AAA club, Sarna has also began training with Doug Hedley twice a week as he looks to take his game to the next level. Sarna will be back on the ice Friday when the Rangers open their busy week with a daunting task. The Brandon Wheat Kings, who have won six straight games to open the season, come to town for the first time. While Brandon will be a very tough opponent, Sarna knows Parkland can make a game of it.
"They're a really fast team and they have some excellent players," ended Sarna. "With that said, I believe we can play with speed and we have some excellent players as well. We need to play as we did last weekend and we will see what happens, I believe in this team."
