Connor Hvidston is in the final months of his junior hockey career and the Tisdale product is hoping to make the most of it with the Calgary Hitmen.
Hvidston was traded to Calgary from the Swift Current Broncos on September 19 in a deal that saw Connor Dale, a pair of second round picks and a fourth rounder head back to Swift Current.
Hvidston says he has enjoyed the opportunity to play for a new team.
“I enjoyed my time in Swift, the couple of years I spent there, everything was good. I was excited to get on a new team. You could see that this is a pretty good team. Just speaking on it now, it’s obviously good looking back and it feels good to be on a good team.”
Calgary had made several major trades over the course of the season to improve their roster adding the likes of Pittsburgh Penguins prospect Tanner Howe from the Regina Pats, Vancouver Canucks prospect Sawyer Mynio from the Seattle Thunderbirds and overage netminder Daniel Hauser from the Wenatchee Wild.
As of Sunday evening, the Hitmen sit in fourth place in the WHL’s Eastern Conference standings with a 33-15-3-2 record, good enough for 71 points. The Hitmen sit five points back of the Medicine Hat Tigers for the top spot in the Central Division and first place in the conference.
Hvidston says the team is feeling good about their chances after the trade deadline.
“It’s exciting, being a trade early in the year, we weren’t as strong as we are now. Seeing us making all those deals and trades with our confidence in our guys, like that this is our year feels good to be on a team like that.”
It was no guarantee that Hvidston would even break into the WHL ranks in the first place. Hvidston was the ninth player drafted by the Swift Current Broncos in the 2019 WHL Prospects Draft, being taken in the seventh round 133rd overall.
Hvidston was a part of a loaded draft class for the Broncos that featured five other NHL draft picks including Owen Pickering (ninth round, Pittsburgh Penguins), Josh Filmon (fourth round, New Jersey Devils), Reid Dyck (third round, Boston Bruins), Josh Davies (third round, Florida Panthers) and Tyson Jugnauth (first round, Seattle Kraken. Jugnauth never signed with the Broncos).
Hvidston was drafted by the Anaheim Ducks in the fifth round of the 2022 NHL Draft, 139th overall.
“I’ve got tons of opportunity, not only in Swift, but here in Calgary.” Hvidston says. “I just think you have to work for your opportunity no matter what, like coming into the league and just work as hard as you can and you should get your opportunity.”
Hitmen head coach Paul McFarland says the fact that Hvidston has earned all of his playing time in his WHL career will pay dividends for him later in his career.
“Whether you’re a top drafted guy or someone that’s drafted at the lower end, whether it’s Western League and NHL for that matter, it’s a daunting road. There’s going to be ups and downs over the course of time and there’s going to be a little bit of adversity that you face, whether it’s in a given season or over the course of your career. You have to obviously continue to stay motivated, have confidence in yourself and your ability, and then just continue to work at it. I think to Connor’s credit, he’s done all those three things and that’s why he’s had such an impact on our group so far this year.”
McFarland is in his first season coaching in the WHL ranks for the Hitmen after spending the last three seasons as an assistant coach for the NHL’s Seattle Kraken.
He says Hvidston has a future in hockey at the pro level if he continues to improve.
“I think with him, the biggest thing and why he’s always going to have a chance for me is his hockey sense. He’s a really smart player, sees the ice very well. A lot of times he’s a step ahead with the puck or without the puck for that matter. I think his biggest challenge or the biggest area of growth for him is going to be to continue to grow physically. Obviously, he’s a big frame. He’s going to have to continue to get stronger and push his conditioning. But at the end of the day, I think his tools are good enough to play the next level.”
In 53 games for the Hitmen this season, Hvidston has posted 16 goals and added 33 helpers. McFarland says he has been impressed by the growth defensively he has seen in Hvidston throughout the season.
“Connor’s started out, for me, as an added piece that we needed the skill and the ability that he has offensively, both 5-on-5 and on the power play. He’s turned into one of the better two-way centers for me in the league. A lot of nights he has to play against the other team’s top lines, whether it’s at home or on the road. And not only does he play against them, but he’s able to contribute offense. He’s a player that has good experience in the league, that’s played big hockey games, everyone that we tried to add this year, we wanted to make sure they had playoff experience.”
Saturday Feb. 15 marked the final time that Hvidston played a regular season game in Prince Albert, the closest arena to his hometown of Tisdale. Hvidston and the Hitmen fell 4-2 to the Raiders thanks to a 37 save performance from Raider netminder Dimitri Fortin.
There is still a chance that Calgary will match up with Prince Albert sometime during the playoffs. Hvidston says he would welcome the chance to play close to home one final time.
“I think we’d do good in that playoff series. PA’s a good team, hard to play against. Probably not one of the teams we want to match up against, but I think against anybody we can fend for our own. Speaking on it being (possibly) my last game here, it’s been good. I like coming to play here because my family (can watch) but I won’t miss how hard the boards are.”
sports@paherald.sk.ca
