Reporter staff
Jerret Smith left the ice with a smile and a shake of the head.
The mighty mites left a big impression on the former Seattle Thunderbirds captain.
“Really good. The skill level is definitely better than when I was a kid,” Smith said after coaching 9-, 10- and 11-year-olds for a two-hour session Monday on ShoWare Center ice at the Thunderbirds Scoring, Stick handling and Skating Hockey Camp. “It’s great to see them fly around with the skills I never had when I was younger.”
Smith, who lives in Surrey, British Columbia, returned to Kent to be a part of the instructional staff. The week-long camp provided advanced on-ice skill development experience for players all ages, from 9 to 18 and older. The T-Birds offer the camp over a two-week period each summer.
“It’s something I’ve always wanted to do,” said Smith, a 6-foot-2, 212-pound defenseman who played out his eligibility with the T-Birds and will compete for the University of British Columbia this season. “It’s great to come back and be with the Thunderbirds. It’s a great experience working with the kids.”
Smith joined T-Birds assistant coach Matt O’Dette, right wingers Luke Osterman and Luke Ormsby as lead instructors at the camp.
Youth and adult groups received on-ice instruction that included puck handling in open ice and traffic; power skating; focusing on technique, speed and agility; shooting techniques and shot selection; defensive/offensive positioning and theory; body protection, checking and safety (for 12-and-up players); and small space games.
Training camp begins
The Thunderbirds – Western Hockey League finalists last spring – open training camp on Wednesday, Aug. 24, with four scrimmages at the ShoWare Center.
The scrimmages will be between four teams made up of players born in 2000 and 2001. Team Blue plays Team Gray at 9 a.m. and Team White plays Team Green at 10:45 a.m. Team Blue plays Team White at 4:30 p.m. and Team Gray plays Team Green at 6:15 p.m. Training Camp continues on Thursday, Aug. 25, with four more scrimmages between the teams at the same times.
More scrimmages are scheduled for Aug. 26, 27 and 28.
The Blue-White matchup – a full 60-minute, three-period game – faces off at 5:30 p.m. Aug. 29, the last day of training camp. Teams will wear T-Birds white and blue game jerseys.
All scrimmages and the Blue-White game are open to the public free of charge. Fans should enter the ShoWare Center from the east side of the building.
Exhibition slate
The T-Birds will play seven tune-ups, beginning with the Everett Silvertips Holiday Inn Preseason Classic at Xfinity Arena on Sept. 2-4. The first game is at 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 2, against the Everett Silvertips.
The T-Birds will conclude their preseason schedule with a home-and-home series against the Silvertips. The T-Birds host the Silvertips on Friday, Sept. 16, at 7:35 p.m. and then visit Everett on Saturday, Sept. 17 at 7:05 p.m.
The T-Birds open the regular season in Portland against the Winterhawks at 7 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 24. The T-Birds’ home opener is 7:05 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 1 against Portland.
Tickets?
Single-game tickets for the 2016-17 season will go on sale at 10 a.m. Wednesday, Aug. 31. Fans can purchase tickets online or at the ShoWare Center box office.
Season tickets can be purchased by calling the T-Birds office at 253-239-7825.
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