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North Stars mid-season roster reflection part one

Dec 19, 2018 | 3:00 PM

The Battlefords North Stars are 19-9-6 through their first 34 games heading into the Christmas break, riding the strength of a three-game winning streak.

The team’s 44 points have the black and silver sitting in third place within the Global Ag. Risk Solutions Division, just a single point back of Humboldt for second spot while holding three games in hand, and just four points back of Kindersley for tops in the division.

Expectations have been high for the North Stars this season, coming off a year that saw the team win their division, and advance to the semifinals in the post-season.

The Stars came into the 2018-19 season with a lot of turnover from last years’ group. With as many as 12 rookies dressed within the lineup at any given time, this year’s rendition of the club has provided opportunity for younger players to make an impact from the get-go. Team members have seen that so far and hope to continue as a road-heavy stretch run awaits the club in the second-half of the year.

Here is the first of our two part series involving brief player profiles and a mid-season reflection on the North Stars’ roster:

Cody Spagrud #3:

Leadership personified, Stars’ captain, Cody Spagrud picked up where he left off last season, proving to be amongst the elite blue liners in the SJHL.

A premier two-way force, Spagrud shows he’s not only capable of shutting down top opposition forwards as the team’s go-to matchup chip, but also continues to expand and explore his offensive potential, pushing the pace of play from the backend.

Sitting fourth among blue liners in scoring with seven goals and 25 points on the season, Spagrud has already set a new personal-best in goal scoring and is on pace to easily eclipse his previous career marks in both assists and points as well, with still 24 games to play.  

The Gull Lake, Sask., native has been especially hot as of late, having collected a point on the game-winning goal for his club in each of his last three games. This included scoring the overtime winner in the dying seconds against La Ronge to kick off his team’s current three-game streak. 

Matthew Fletcher #4:

A heady player with high hockey IQ, Fletcher’s cerebral play style and ability to make sound decisions with the puck has established the blue liner as a key proponent of the North Stars quick transitional play, and a staple within the team’s top four on the backend in just his second year of SJHL hockey.  

Building on a rookie campaign that saw the Saskatoon, Sask., product collect a goal and nine points in 46 games, the 19-year-old sophomore has already eclipsed both marks with 13 points in just 32 games.

“As a returning player, obviously expectations are a lot higher for me,” Fletcher said in mid-October. “I just have to come every day prepared to play and have a good game out there. I want to be a guy who’s hard to play against, that’s for sure.”

Hard to play against he has been, acting at times like a second goalie on the ice with his penchant for taking away shooting lanes, a skill and fearlessness that has no doubt endeared him to the Stars’ goaltending contingent. 

 

Jacob Bayne #5:

After a solid showing through training camp, defenceman Jacob Bayne made the North Stars roster in a top four capacity to start the season. The Calgary, Alta., product has since however, missed time with various injuries limiting the 5’10, 158-pound defender to just 11 games through the team’s first 34 on the schedule.

When healthy and in the lineup, Bayne showed himself to be a two-way presence capable of contributing on the offensive side of the puck with an accurate shot from the point and an ability to walk the blue line with poise and confidence.

Asked which NHL player he would compare himself to, Bayne pointed to Torey Krug of the Boston Bruins.

“He’s a smaller guy like myself. I’m a little undersized, but he’s a great puck mover, joins the play, gets a lot of shots, and he’s a good team guy,” Bayne said. “I try and style my game around that two-way, puck moving style D-man.”  

 

Tanner Scott #6:

While he may not be the flashiest guy on two skates, Tanner Scott has been a reliable defensive anchor for the Stars since being acquired by the Battlefords just a couple of games into the season.

Right from his SJHL debut with the Stars Sept. 22 against the Broncos, Scott has been a mainstay on the club’s penalty killing unit, in addition to logging time at five-on-five most often found alongside Stars’ captain, Cody Spagrud.

“I’m more of a defensive specialist type guy,” Scott said of his playstyle. “I’m not an overly offensive D-man, but I like to keep it simple, kind of a shutdown guy that can play against other team’s top lines. “

Scott’s defensive conscience has allowed his partners some additional room to roam, while also giving the Battlefords’ netminders peace of mind knowing that the Red Deer, Alta. boy will always be the first man back to defend. 

 

Noah Form #7:

Boasting a long, fluent stride with size to boot, the ever-mobile, Noah Form entered the season as the team’s third-most experienced defenceman at the SJHL level. Of course, that experience was no more than five games played last season.

In his first full season as a North Star, Form has battled the injury bug for much of the year.

After making the squad out of camp as a mainstay to the left of Cody Spagrud, on the team’s top defensive shutdown unit, Form’s season took a bit of a rabbit hole early, with the big defenceman being sidelined after just the second game of the season.

After remaining out for over a month’s time with his upper-body injury, Form returned to the lineup Nov. 2, and speaking ahead of the Stars’ final game ahead of the holiday layoff, said he got that early-season confidence back after a long rehabbing stint.

“At first there was a bit of pressure to get back to where I was, but now I think I’m finally finding my groove,” Form said. “I’m feeling just like I did before the injury, it’s been great to get back into it.”

 

Ryan Granville #8:

Just 20 games into his SJHL career, Ryan Granville has carved out a niche on this team as a steady two-way defenceman, whose speciality is 10-foot outlet passes on the tape to start transition.

While plays like that may not make the highlight-reel all that often, the 18-year-old from Sherwood Park, Alta., has been a perfect fit alongside Austin Shumanski on the Stars’ blue line, supplying coach Brayden Klimosko with three solid pairs he can rely on for key minutes.

As for what makes the pair work so well, Granville said it comes down to playstyles.

“He’s a little bit more defensive and I have that little offensive touch that compliments really well,” the 18-year-old said. “When you’re out there will him, he’s always got your back and that’s nice to have.”

 

Brett Gammer #9:

Brett Gammer, or “The Edmonton Express” as he’s otherwise known, earned his moniker from his speed and explosive energy that naturally lends his Stars’ teammates to hop aboard the proverbial train and give a similar degree of effort shift-after-shift.

With six goals and 13 points on the season to date, the soon-to-be 19-year-old Gammer has seen his role continue to expand as the season has progressed. He is now featured as a fixture both on the power play and penalty kill while most recently at even strength, being shifted onto the right-hand side of MacGregor Sinclair on the team’s top line.

Perhaps coach Klimosko said it best prior to a recent Stars’ game when he said “Gammer’s just getting better. He’s figuring it out here in the SJHL and only growing further.”

 

Ryan Gil #11:

After a four-game stint with the Stars last season, Ryan Gil solidified himself as a core piece on the Battlefords’ hockey club this year, sitting third in both goals (13) and points (28) on the team.

“The California Kid,” as he’s come to be known in the Battlefords, is an elusive playmaker and magician with the puck on his stick that could stickhandle in phone booth.

When asked how he developed his puckhandling skills, Gil said he really honed the skill pretty unintentionally while coaching youth hockey at the grassroots level.

“I used to coach little kids and before each practice I’d go and stickhandle around all of them, so that really helped,” Gil said with a laugh. “Not really training that much, just stickhandling the kids really helped.”

As serendipitously as the forward’s dazzling ability may have come about, it’s no doubt his linemates appreciate the passes, served ever-routinely as if on a plater.

 

Matthias Urbanski #12:

Speed to burn, with quick hands to match, the ever-electric, Matthias Urbanski finished fourth in the rookie scoring race last season, and has picked up where he left off through the first half of his second season with the Stars and then some.

Urbanski currently ranks second on the team in virtually every meaningful offensive stat, with 14 goals, 19 assists and 33 points, all placing the dynamic forward amongst the top ranks on the club.

Despite his break-neck speed, a trait that’s become synonymous in the mind of most North Stars’ fans with Urbanski’s name, the 19-year-old B.C. boy said the quick pace was something he wasn’t born with — it had to be developed.

“When I was younger I was always one of the smaller players on every team I played for and skating wasn’t really one of my strong suits,” Urbanski said. “I finally met my advisor now, Wes Scott is his name, and in my second year of midget I really focused in on my skating and my smarts of the game. [Scott] really kind of fine-toned my skating and made me the skater I am today, so I’m really, really grateful for that,” he said. 

 

Dayton Heino #14:

The newest North Star, acquired Nov. 30 from the Neepawa Natives of the MJHL, Heino brought added grit and complimenting skill to the North Stars. He’s showed his value as a versatile weapon already in his short time, seeing minutes at both the center-ice position with the likes of Regan Doig and Quintin Loon-Stewardson to the right wing, riding shotgun with Matthias Urbanski and Ryan Gil where he’s been deployed as of late.

That versatility is just one of the key points Stars’ coach Brayden Klimosko talked about upon acquiring Heino.

“He obviously brings experience as a 20-year-old,” Klimosko said. “I think he brings some more skill to our top end, and he’s just one of those guys like we’re trying to build, [he] plays hard, [and] plays fast.”

As Heino continues to get comfortable with his new surroundings, chemistry with his teammates will only improve. 

 

Austin Becker #16:

A crafty player with shifty stickhandling and an innate ability to create scoring chances and make plays in close quarters, the Wisconsin Wonder, Becker has become an impact player for the North Stars in his rookie SJHL season.

A diminutive forward, listed at a slight 5’7, 155 pounds; Becker talked earlier this season about the key to success as a smaller player in a physical league like the SJHL.

“I think that if you’re a smaller guy, trying to play in the SJHL or anywhere, you have to be creative,” he said. “If you’re 5’7″, you have to play like you’re 6’0″ sometimes. That’s what I try to put into my game.” 

It’s that frame of thinking that has led Becker to establishing a little extra time and space for himself deep in the offensive zone, refusing to back down from physical confrontation. 

 

Joel Grzybowski #30:

With a heavy workload of 26 starts through the first half, Joel Grzybowski has been a workhorse between the pipes for the Battlefords this season.

Placing amongst the upper echelon netminders in virtually every meaningful category, the 19-year-old Grzybowski, ranks second in games played (26), third in shutouts (2), fifth in goals against average (2.42) and sixth in save percentage (.916).

Standing just 5’10″, 175 lbs, Grzybowski has managed to become a premier goalie in the league despite being small by modern day goaltending standards.

“When you’re not as big you have to be a little bit more aggressive,” Grzybowski said. “That’s really the key. You have to be able to get across the net quickly too.”

Perhaps best of all for the Stars organization and their fans, the Hafford, Sask., goaltender seems to only be getting better as the season continues. He’s posted a .957 save percentage over his last six games, en route to leading his team to a 5-0-1  record over the span.

 

The North Stars will return from the Christmas break Dec. 28 against the division-rival Klippers in Kindersley. Fans can catch all the action on 1050 CJNB beginning with the pregame show at 7:15 p.m.

Part two of this mid-season review will be published Thursday.

 

Martin.Martinson@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: MartyMartyPxP1