Geoff Grimwood has seen some good junior hockey players the past two seasons as assistant coach of the B.C. Hockey League Coastal Conference powerhouse Powell River Kings.
Now, as head coach of the South Island Royals B.C. Major Midget league team, he is tasked with getting players to junior, whether the Western Hockey League, BCHL or Junior B.
An elite few, like B.C. Major Midget graduate Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, get to rarefied heights in the NHL via the WHL. Others settle far below into the Junior B ranks.
"Where they all eventually end up is different for each kid depending on what is the best fit for each," Grimwood said Thursday as the Royals began their final training camp at Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre.
"We've had a fantastic turnout of 80 players, which is now down to 45. You always look for the easy cuts early in the process but there were not many of those. The players we have to let go will be going back to really good midget Triple-A programs. All associations have shown well."
Grimwood points to two camp standouts - returning 17-year-old winger Liam Carradine out of the Saanich Braves minor hockey association and 17-year-old goaltender Jessie Jenks from the Cowichan Valley.
"Liam [Carradine] is a real sleeper," said Grimwood.
"Some [junior] team is going to get a really good player when they figure it out. Liam has had an outstanding camp and he has a lot of potential. And Jessie [Jenks] has a lot of passion for the game and is a [BCHL Cowichan Valley] Caps prospect."
The final part of camp will be intrasquad games at 5 p.m. today and Saturday in the Memorial Centre.
Meanwhile, the North Island Silvertips are being put through their training camp paces in Nanaimo by new head coach Jason Dubyna, who steps in after guiding the Oceanside Generals of the VIJHL.
The BCMMHL regular season is expected to start in mid-September.
