Regina Pats head coach Dave Struch said in his fifteen years in hockey, the group of prospects that have assembled at the Co-operators Centre this weekend, may be the best he has seen.

The team is holding its annual spring rookie camp for players from the 2003 and 2004 draft class.

The Pats have cast a really wide net in search of talent. “It’s something that we’ve had to do in the past years, obviously, the way we did things by building through trades, it didn’t leave much in the high rounds to get players,” Struch said.

The Pats’ scouts have put on some miles identifying American talent over the past couple of seasons. In Southern California, they found 6-2 winger Easton Armstrong, and speedy winger Zane Rowan, who both played for the L.A. Jr. Kings last season.

“It’s a different type of hockey, it’s a lot more physical up here,” Zane Rowan told CTV.

Each of the Americans has a different story about how they fell in love with the game of hockey, which is not a traditional sport where they come from.

“When I was six months old, I went to my first Kings game,” said Rowan. “It’s just been my life since then.”

Easton Armstrong, a tall, blond defenceman, had 40 points in 47 games last season for the L.A. Jr. Kings.

“I got in the game from my dad, I don’t even remember when I started, I could probably skate before I could walk,” said Armstrong.

In Scottsdale, Arizona, they found Jake Johnson, a self-described physical defenceman with a good first pass. Johnson’s introduction to the WHL is off to a rough start.

“Just got in last night, sticks got lost on the way here, so I had to borrow a stick, and first skate today, it’s been good so far,” he said with a laugh, adding after a couple of drills, he felt right at home.

The scouts were also deep in the heart of Texas, where they identified a pair of skaters, neither of whom made it to spring camp, but are expected to be in Regina for main camp this fall.

A lot further north, they discovered Braxton Whitehead, playing for the Anchorage Northstars in Alaska.

These skaters said they believe they are ready to make the jump to the WHL but know there is work to do in the off-season.

“Compared to some of the other kids, my shot, definitely, I need to grip down and rip the puck more,” Whitehead noted.

“They can all skate, they all work hard, they can make plays, there are some skilled players out there,” Coach Struch told the media after practice. “Understanding their role and starring in their roles, being the best version of themselves is going to be important.”

The Pats coaching staff said they know these young skaters are going to make mistakes and they want them to have the freedom to do that without recourse, but also be able to learn from them and grow as young hockey players.

Most of the players on the ice this weekend at the Co-operators Centre are ineligible to play in the Western Hockey League next season due to their age, but the coaching staff wants to get familiar with them and have them see where they need to be at in order to make the jump when their chance comes. The Pats said it doesn’t matter where they find the talent, as long as they do find it.

The Regina Pats open main training camp on the week of August 19.