By Trevor Redden

Scott steadying force behind Raiders’ hot start

Oct 3, 2018 | 12:00 PM

Another year, another step forward for Prince Albert Raiders goaltender Ian Scott.

Selected ninth overall in the 2014 WHL Bantam Draft, Scott stepped right into the lineup as a 16-year-old and is now in his fourth season with the Raiders. The Calgary native has settled into the full-time starter’s role with the team, playing in 100 of 144 games over the past two years.

This year, things have been humming along for Scott with four wins in four starts, allowing an average of 1.75 goals against per game and keeping a save percentage of 0.940. He was even named goaltender of the week by the WHL for his efforts against Medicine Hat and Saskatoon over the weekend.

“It’s been feeling good, I’ve been playing confident and I think the group has been playing with some confidence too and that shows,” said Scott.

Asked how much of an improvement he’s felt personally this year, he deferred to his teammates and said the entire group is playing well and ready to show the league that they’re going to be a tough team to beat.

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Last season, Scott posted career best numbers throughout the regular season, and experienced his first foray into the WHL playoffs as starter against the Moose Jaw Warriors. Back in the spring of 2016, Scott appeared in one game against the Warriors in their round one series but did so coming off the bench in relief of starter Rylan Parenteau.

This time, he was the leading man between the pipes and backstopped his team right to the bitter end, which was an especially bitter game seven loss in Moose Jaw.

Shortly after the playoff loss, the 2017 Toronto Maple Leafs draft pick was brought up to the Leafs’ AHL affiliate, the Toronto Marlies, picking up a win in his lone regular season professional start against Raider teammate Parker Kelly and the Belleville Senators.

The Calgary native stayed with the Marlies throughout the spring as the team worked towards the first Calder Cup title in franchise history. During the playoff run, Scott dressed as backup for game three of the Eastern Conference Final against Lehigh Valley.

The message from the Leafs as Scott went home for the summer was to keep on working on his strength and power as he continues to develop his game.

At the start of last season, Scott’s 6’4” frame tipped the scales at 168 pounds. One year later, the 19-year-old has bulked up to 183.

“I think it helps getting to pucks quicker and being able to get to those passes cross crease, stuff like that, I think that’s definitely helped me to stay sharp. I’ve been able to maintain [the strength] so far into the season so that helps,” Scott said.

For Marc Habscheid, it’s all about feel when it comes to goaltending, and the Raiders bench boss says he’s felt good with Scott’s play to start the year.

“I think for me personally, it’s a presence. As a coach or even as a former player, when a guy comes down to shoot you get a feeling of what’s going to happen. The feeling this year, there’s no doubt that he’s going to stop the shot. He has a presence about him, his body language is real good, he just feels that he’s got a chance to stop every puck and that’s what we need from him,” said Habscheid.

While the early season accolades are nice, Scott admits that as a goaltender you’re only as good as your next performance, so that’s where he keeps his focus.

“You can’t look at [your numbers] too much and get too high and too low, it’s just a matter of putting it behind you and focusing on the next game,” said Scott.

Wednesday night, the Raiders kick off a four-game Central Division road trip with a showdown against the Medicine Hat Tigers before carrying on to Lethbridge, Red Deer, and Calgary over Thanksgiving weekend.

Editor’s Note: This story was modified at 12:23 p.m. on October 3, 2018 to correct an error. Ian Scott was named goaltender of the week for the WHL only, not the CHL as previously reported

trevor.redden@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @Trevor_Redden