By Jeff D'Andrea

Former Warrior McCarthy ready to play against old club

Oct 2, 2014 | 5:00 PM

Colton McCarthy said he was “shocked” shortly after the Moose Jaw Warriors traded him away Sept. 6, and “excited” to end up with the Prince Albert Raiders.

Now less than a month later, a new form of excitement is flowing through McCarthy. He gets the chance to prove to the Warriors that they made a mistake, as his old club will be visiting the Art Hauser Centre on Friday.

“Yeah, it’s going to be a pretty exciting game,” said McCarthy, who played 102 games with the Warriors over the last two seasons. “I have lots of good friends, they were good teammates back in Moose Jaw. I’m just going to try and stay focused throughout the game, but it will be pretty fun. I need to stay focused.”

Since arriving from Moose Jaw, McCarthy has found himself as the Raiders’ right winger on the third line; he’s been playing alongside Matteo Gennaro and Darcy Zaharichuk.

McCarthy has always been a natural centreman and the conversion over to the wing has been a work in progress.

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“I had never been a winger before, so it took a couple games to get used to playing wing,” said McCarthy. “My teammates Gennaro and ‘Darce’ have been helping me out, talking on the ice and telling me where to go.

“It’s been good. I think I’m getting used to it.”

Although those three players on that third line have been held scoreless through the first three games of the season, they have generated chances, especially in the home opener against the Saskatoon Blades on Sept. 19.

McCarthy has shown in the past he can light up the lamp, especially in his 16-year-old year in the KIJHL (Junior ‘B’ league in B.C.). With the Nelson Leafs, McCarthy had had 22 goals and 32 points in as many games, but that production hasn’t translated yet into his WHL career. In his 105 games since, McCarthy has 17 career points, but the Raiders hope he can regain his scoring touch.

Raiders head coach Cory Clouston has liked what he’s seen of the new winger, especially the 18-year-old’s get-up-and-go.

“I thought he’s played well. He came with a lot of energy, something to prove, and he’s got to maintain that,” said Clouston. “You can’t have a drop-off, we need him to continue to play hard and to continue to give us depth at the forward position, and use his size, strength and physical play.”

Ice issue

The Raiders couldn’t practice on the Art Hauser Centre ice, as there was some maintenance required. There were some visible and noticeable slants, including one sloping down from the outside hashmark to the boards near the home goal.

Carrie McCoshen, recreation co-ordinator with the City of Prince Albert, confirmed there were some “low spots” that needed to be filled in, but assured the ice will be good to go in time for Friday’s game.

Raider killers

Last year, the Warriors finished well out of a playoff spot with a 21-42-3-6, but absolutely destroyed the Raiders with a 6-1-1 head-to-head record against P.A. The Warriors also have a 28-10-2-0 record against Prince Albert in the previous five seasons.

Despite their dominance of the Raiders in recent memory, the Warriors have struggled coming out of the gates this year. They started off this year 0-3 while being outscored 3-18. They picked up their first win in their last game Saturday, a 7-1 blowout over the Saskatoon Blades. They’ll play against the Red Deer Rebels Thursday night, the night before they travel to Prince Albert.

Vanstone still 2-3 weeks away

Raiders forward Tim Vanstone (lower body) will continue to miss this weekend. Clouston said Vanstone will be re-evaluated on Friday and is still at least two or three weeks away.

The Warriors will be without Austin Adam, who will be out at least four weeks with a shoulder injury. Noah Gregor (lower body) is officially listed as day-to-day, but has skated with the team since Monday.

jdandrea@panow.com

On Twitter: @jeff_dandrea