According to Rich Preston, young hockey stars are a lot like wild horses — they need to be broken when you get them.
One of the projects taken by the head coach and general manager of the Lethbridge Hurricanes this season is 16-year-old Cochrane boy, Tyler Wong, who was indeed a star last year with the UFA Bisons midget and the Hurricanes’ fifth-round selection in the 2011 Western Hockey League draft.
“Usually the kids who are big scorers in bantam and midget don’t play defence,” Preston, a former National Hockey League player, told the Cochrane Eagle prior to a game against the Calgary Hitmen at the Scotiabank Saddledome on Saturday.
“They get too much ice time and the shifts are way too long. They’re like wild horses, you have to break them of those habits.
“They have to be high-tempo, 40 second shifts and off (the ice). You have to learn how to play away from the puck; that sort of thing.”
Preston, who is also a former assistant with the NHL’s Calgary Flames, is willing to put in the effort with Wong because he sees him as a potential WHL star. Preston predicts the young forward is going to be a “top scorer in this league.”
Wong is happy with the way his first year has gone thus far.
“I’ve got to keep learning,” he said. “It’s a big step up but I think I’ve handled it well and adapted my game to playing up here.
“Hopefully for next year and for the rest of this season I can keep improving.”
Wong produced 15 goals and 17 assists in 26 games as a 15-year-old in his lone midget AAA season in 2011-12. He was drafted by the Hurricanes after a 143-point year (72 goals, 71 assists) with the Airdrie Xtreme AAA bantams in 2010-11.
Eligible for the 2014 NHL draft, Wong has two goals and seven assists in his first 50 regular season games. He took a regular shift on right wing at the Saddledome on Saturday.
“He’s not a big size, but he’s got a big heart. He can score. He’s going to score in this league,” Preston said.
“It’s a big adjustment for 16 year olds. The players are bigger, faster, stronger. (Tyler) has adjusted well.”
