Hitmen open preseason

The Calgary Hitmen have trimmed their roster down to 32 players and will open up the preseason Wednesday night in Airdrie against the much hated Red Deer Rebels.


There are battles going on at every position with a handful of returning players in the mix; a group that includes second year defencemen Peter Kosterman and Jaynen Rissling.

Both of these 2009 Bantam draft picks were not even expected to make the squad last season but surprised even themselves when they were suiting up for the Hitmen last year.

"I never thought I had a chance of making the Hitmen last year," Rissling said as he reflected upon last year’s training camp.

Rissling managed to suit up in 36 regular season games, tallying eight assists along the way. He also dressed for nine post-season affairs where he was fortunate enough to score his first ever WHL goal.

"Even when I was a healthy scratch, I felt I was learning", said Rissling who turns 17 this month. “Watching from the stands, I could see what the older guys were doing, how they play the game and try to adapt to how they do it."

With the departures of Michael Stone and Giffen Nyren to the paid ranks, Rissling and Kosterman will be counted on to play bigger roles for the Hitmen.

"We'll expect a lot more from them,” Assistant Coach Brent Kisio said. “They'll probably have to log some more minutes.”

While veterans Ben Stone, Matt MacKenzie and Zak Stebner will be leaned on for a majority of the hard labour this winter, you can bet that both Rissling and Kosterman will play a very important support role on the back end.

With these five guys along with 19 year old returnee Kyle Aschim, the Hitmen should ice one the deepest and well rounded blue lines in the WHL.

Wednesday night’s game goes at 7pm at Ron Ebbesen Arena in Airdrie. Tickets are available at 5pm at the doors.

The 2010-11 Calgary Hitmen train is officially rolling!

Derrick Newman
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