Young Vees impress at camp

Tyson Jost and Dante Fabbro impressed Penticton Vees coach-GM Fred Harbinson during the Hockey Canada under-17 hockey challenge development camp.

“The guys handled themselves well,” said Harbinson, who attended the camp in Calgary for two days. “They put in a lot of work.”

Fabbro said he initially felt overwhelmed, but the competition was one of the best experiences in his life.

"It was by far a lot of fun. You got to learn a lot of new things about hockey that I never thought that was actually there about the mental side," he said. "Overall it was one of the best camps I've been to just gather information and play against the top kids across Canada."

With three teams (Red, Black and White) being selected, a change in Hockey Canada’s Program of Excellence, Harbinson said he thinks they should have a good chance of making one of the three teams. In three games, Jost scored two goals and finished with eight points, while Fabbro had three assists.

“They put themselves in a good spot,” said Harbinson.

Fabbro said he felt he performed pretty good, but said it's tough to arrive in top shape when it's the middle of summer.

"I kind of held my ground a little bit," said Fabbro, who got a feel for the ice and found his comfort zone. "It was definitely challenging some times."

Fabbro below.

As for being ready for their rookie BCHL seasons, Harbinson said the 16-year-olds, who played major midget last season, face a big step as they have been building their bodies to compete against older competition. Both have added weight. Fabbro, listed on the BCHL website at 175 pounds, now weighs 186 pounds, while Jost went from 175 to 191. Their added strength will help them battle opposition in front of the net and in the corners.

“Putting the right type of weight is important,” said Harbinson.

Fabbro adding weight can be good and bad, but where he now is perfect.

"That little bit of extra weight might give me breathing room on the ice," he said, adding it helped during the camp so he didn't get pushed around as much."

In other Vees news, the addition of Patrick Newell put the team one over on the import player limit, which is six. To get back down, the Vees decided to release Minnesota product Max Coatta. The Vees offered to move him to another BCHL team, but Coatta, who is committed to Minnesota State University, decided he wanted to play close to home.

“It was extremely hard to release Max,” said Harbinson. “He was a great player for us. We weighed our options. Newell makes us better.”