Determined Kosior wants more after first stint in professional ranks

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“It was cool to be able to go down there at the end of the year and see what the pro life was like,” Kosior said. “To be able to practice with them and see how much bigger and stronger they were, it helped me prepare for the summer as well. It was a good experience.”

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Those practices gave Kosior just a small sample of what he’d need to do to succeed in the pros. Young players moving up from junior often find a lot of differences and Kosior was no different.

“It’s quite a big difference,” he said. “Guys are passing hard and they’re a lot stronger because they’re men. They have a lot more years on you. Strength was the biggest difference.”

That’s not to say Kosior was coming in completely unaware of what awaited him, however. He’d been to two development camps and two main camps with the Los Angeles Kings, and had seen that yes, players were faster, but his footspeed was still a strength.

“My speed is always something that was a strong suit,” Kosior said. “I think I fit in pretty well with them. There’s definitely a couple of faster guys than what I was used to seeing before. But I think for the most part I was able to keep up with them.”

Speed is one advantage for Kosior, and his position will give him another. He’s something of a rarity on Iowa’s roster at the moment: a right-shooting defenceman.

“Right-handed D are always at a premium it seems,” Kosior said. “I think that’s something I can hopefully use to my advantage but at the end of the day I have to play my best no matter what hand I am.”

Kosior added he’s had an easy time fitting in with a new group of teammates, helped along by the fact some of Iowa’s players are about his own age.

Meanwhile, prior to his time with the Raiders, Kosior was a stalwart for two seasons with the Tisdale Trojans. He led them to an appearance in the TELUS Cup in 2019.

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rob.mahon@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @RobMahonPxP