McBride hopes Top Prospects showing can ‘jump start’ his season

Parenteau has taken over the Raiders starting job in goal. Since Oct. 31, Parenteau has more than doubled McBride in appearances—25 to 12. McBride hasn’t won a game with the Raiders since Oct. 28, his first and only WHL career shutout in a 5-0 road win over the Kootenay Ice.

But for his draft stock and confidence, McBride couldn’t have picked a better time to get back in the win column.

In front of more than 250 NHL talent scouts, McBride was awarded the ‘W’ at the 2015 BMO CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game, Jan. 22 in St. Catherines, Ont. As the starting goalie for Team Orr, McBride stopped all 11 shots he faced and left the game at the midway point with a 2-0 lead. Team Orr went on to win the game 6-0.

“I felt like there was a big weight lifted off my shoulders,” said McBride, who’s ranked 13th among North American goaltenders by NHL Central Scouting. “I was definitely nervous, really nervous, going into that game.

“How it went, it did wonders for how I was feeling inside … I’m going to try and use it as a catalyst to kind of jump start my season and get my confidence back up.”

Although McBride admitted he was a little uneasy before the game, he credits Bobby Orr, his coach for the game and NHL Hall of Famer, for settling his nerves.

“What he did do a good job of was calming me down before the game,” said McBride. “He calmed us all down as a whole group, just telling us to have fun.

“Bobby was a good guy, he’s got to be one of the nicest guys I’ve ever met.”

It was pretty evident to McBride’s coaches and teammates that his confidence when he returned to the Raiders on the weekend.

“He finally started to breathe normally, to be honest, when he came back,” Raiders head coach Marc Habscheid said on 900 CKBI’s Faceoff.

A few of McBride’s saves came against Raiders teammate Brendan Guhle, who suited up as a defenceman for Team Cherry in the game.

Although they were opponents for one night, Guhle was happy for McBride’s half-game shutout and to spend time travelling together to get to the game.

“It was really good that we went there together and had someone to chat to on the way there … but he made a couple saves on me,” said Guhle, with a smile.

Unlike McBride, who was initially named to the Top Prospects game, Guhle was a late addition and replaced the injured Mitchell Vande Sompell of the Oshawa Generals. Guhle found out Sunday evening, a day before the announcement was made public.

“It was really unexpected and a big surprise, but I was excited,” said Guhle, ranked 76th among North American Skaters by NHL Central Scouting. “Didn’t have too much time to dwell on it, I basically packed my stuff and headed to Saskatoon Monday night, spent the night there and went Tuesday real early to Toronto, then took a bus to St. Catherines for camp.

“It was a great experience,” Guhle added. “I met a lot of players, I met Don Cherry, Bobby Orr, that was awesome. They’re really ideal guys. Nick Kypreos was another, really smart guys. It was a really fun time.”

The unfortunate part for playing on Team Cherry was that Guhle had to play against Connor McDavid, who will likely go first overall in this year’s NHL Entry Draft. When asked about facing the Erie Otters’ captain, Guhle’s face lit up.

“He’s real good, he’s an amazing player,” said Guhle. “Real shifty, real quick, real fast, real agile—he’s got it all.

“Basically, you just have to watch his chest and hope he doesn’t get by you.”

The Raiders will play the Saskatoon Blades on Wednesday at the Art Hauser Centre on ‘Bash the Blades Night,’ with all tickets priced at $5. The Blades have beaten the Raiders in their last three meetings, and are currently on a five-game winning streak. The Raiders meanwhile, are mired in a four-game skid.

jdandrea@panow.com

On Twitter: @jeff_dandrea

by Jeff D'Andrea

McBride hopes Top Prospects showing can ‘jump start’ his season

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