Cochrane's chances of having the Ed Chynoweth Cup visiting the town has now gone-by-the-wayside with both Tyrel Bauer's Seattle Thunderbirds and Connor Bouchard's Tri-City Americans bowing out of the Western Hockey League (WHL) playoffs on March 30.
Seventeen-year-old Connor Bouchard and the Tri-City Americans fought hard but came up short against the Everett Silvertips, the team who has now ended the Americans playoffs the last two seasons. During the five game series, Bouchard chipped in with one assist, seven penalty minutes and went almost 50 per cent on faceoffs. The National Hockey League (NHL) draft-eligible prospect showed great signs of improvement in his second full season in the WHL. He posted seven goals and 31 points in 68 games this season, a significant bump up from last year's totals where he scored twice and added six helpers for eight points in 60 games.
After a hard fought series with the Western Conference leading Vancouver Giants which went six games, Bauer got got his first taste of playoff action at the junior level, after suiting up for 64 games in the regular season where he registered two goals and 12 assists for 14 points in those games as a 16-year-old. The young defenceman, who was selected in the second round of the 2017 WHL Bantam Draft by Seattle and signed a Standard Player Agreement with the team on Jun. 14 of last year, spent last season with the Airdrie CFR AAA Bisons where he scored three goals and eight assists for 11 points in 32 games.
During the playoffs, Bauer played in all six games for the T-Birds, registering one assist in Game 2 to go along with two penalty minutes and five shots on goal. The young defenceman said he enjoyed his time playing in his first WHL season and playoffs.
"Overall this season was great. It's a little different and took a bit of adjusting to the lifestyle but it was really fun. I learned from my teammates and got better every day. We took it day by day and pushed each other to be better," Bauer said of his first full season of junior.
"These guys are aspiring professionals and I got a taste of what it takes to get to the next level. We had a really good group of guys and although we had our ups and downs throughout the season, we really bonded and worked our way into a playoff spot. In the playoffs the atmosphere was incredible and we gave them a good run. We believe we had a little more to give and maybe get an upset, but overall we are really proud of how far we had come."
Bauer played a lot as a rookie which is rare on most teams, which is something that Bauer thinks really pushed his development to new heights.
"I was fortunate enough to see regular and important minutes this year. At the beginning of the year we suffered injuries on the d-core that gave an opportunity to step up. I was kind of thrown into the fire, but I developed a ton," Bauer said.
"Then, around Christmas we made some trades that gave us our d-core for the year and again I was relied upon. My game has improved greatly since training camp. The bigger, stronger, faster players gave me some awesome game experience ... I learned the importance of the finer details and worked to implement them into my game. Going against NHL drafted and signed players let me learn from them by playing against them. It helped my confidence and that showed in my game, allowing me to be more comfortable in high pressure situations."
Bauer also believes that having such a young team will lead to bigger and better things as they'll be able go grow older and get better as a group.
"We turned the season around and were able to make some noise in a tough division and a tough league ... myself and all of the young guys learned a ton and gained very valuable experience. The older guys are a huge part of that; they led by example on and off the ice. They have helped all of us come around to be better players and people and the playoff experience gave lots of young guys, myself included, the opportunity to embrace the atmosphere and get better. We are very excited for the seasons to come."
Bauer, who turned 17 on March 23, will be heading into next season as an NHL draft-eligible prospect. While the young rearguard said that's something that's always in the back of his mind, he's not going to change the way he trains or plays.
"It really just comes down to hard work. If you want it you have to earn it and it's no different here," Bauer said.
"All that stuff will take care of itself if I stay true to myself and work for it. All I need to focus on is playing my game and getting better everyday. As for preparation, this is a lifestyle, not a job. Every day you have to get a little better. You need to be focused on the right things, and be a good person too. Nutrition, rest and training are all very important and you can't take days off."
