Making the jump from midget to junior hockey can raise a lot of questions about the level of your game. Cochrane Minor Hockey product Colby Chartier has the answers.
The 17-year-old Cochrane High School senior is skating in his rookie season with the Alberta Junior Hockey League’s (AJHL) Calgary Mustangs. The right-winger, who played up to bantam in Cochrane before skating with Strathmore’s UFA Midget AAA Bisons last season, has five goals and 14 assists in 35 games for the Mustangs in his rookie AJHL campaign.
If there were any questions about his ability to play Junior A, he’s shut them down at terminal velocity.
“He’s actually progressed quite well,” said Mustangs head coach Derek Stuart following his team’s stirring 4-3 loss Jan. 12 to the Brooks Bandits, last season’s Jr. A national champions. “Better than we anticipated for a 17-year-old straight out of one year of midget. Colby seemed to transition into this league pretty well.”
Skating on a line with veteran forward Connor Collett, Chartier was on the ice at regular intervals against Brooks, mostly in 5-on-5 situations. Adjusting to the larger players and faster pace of the AJHL game has been made easier for the 5-foot-9, 165-pound forward using his main weapon; speed. Brooks defenders were always guarding the outer edges of the ice when Chartier had the puck because, if they didn’t, he’d go around them like a hoop around a barrel.
“Using my speed to beat those big guys wide,” Chartier said outside the dressing room following the Brooks contest. “Definitely, it’s a bit of an advantage. Normally I just like to stay wide and try to beat them and drive to the net.”
With regular shifts already coming in his rookie year, his role will increase as the seasons progress.
“Right now, he’s kind of an energy guy who can chip in offensively,” said coach Stuart. “Being a 17-year-old, the future is sky high. He’s got all the tools to be an elite point-scorer in this league.
“I would say, hopefully, we can start counting on him to contribute more offensively even next year as an 18-year old. Definitely, when he’s 19, he’s going to be one of our top guns for sure.”
It’s all part of a long-term hockey plan for the Cochrane speed merchant.
“I definitely hope to be one of the top players next year for the team, one of the guys the coaches can depend on for both defence and offence,” Chartier said. “In the years to come, I’d like to get a scholarship to the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association). I definitely want to go to one of the Division 1 schools if I had the opportunity
“That’s the goal for me.”
