That phone call, one that Calgary Flames pivot prospect Cole Reschny was delighted to receive, brought good news but no guarantees.
“It was short and sweet,” Reschny said, detailing how he learned that he had been invited to Canada’s world junior training camp. “It was just, ‘Congratulations. Obviously, you’ve been identified as one of the top players in our country, but there’s still some work to do.’”
That work continues Wednesday as the Team Canada hopefuls open their exhibition slate against Sweden.
It’s one of three tuneup contests. For those on the roster bubble, like Reschny, it’s a crucial audition.
Barring a last-minute loan from the NHL, Canada will need to trim two forwards before the tournament starts. Reschny, a first-round draft pick this past summer and now a standout freshman at the University of North Dakota, is hellbent on ensuring he is not among those final cuts.
“It’s exciting for me, getting this opportunity to be in this environment and competing with these guys and against these guys and doing whatever I can to make this squad,” the 18-year-old centre told Postmedia as he arrived for camp in Niagara Falls, Ont. “It’s something I’ve kind of strived for my whole life. You grow up as a young kid in Canada, you watch the world juniors every Christmas and dream of playing in it one day.
“I think of all the times Canada has won gold, those special teams that they’ve had and special players. It’s almost surreal getting the opportunity to try out for this team and play on it, hopefully.”
Flames fans are hoping for the same outcome for this young man-on-a-mission from Macklin, Sask.
They’re thrilled by social-media reports that Reschny has been practising on Canada’s top power play. That special-teams unit has also featured his future Flames teammate Zayne Parekh, plus star-in-the-making forward Gavin McKenna.
In Tuesday’s camp session, Reschny was skating in a middle-six slot, with Braeden Cootes and Carter Bear on his wings.
While Reschny is averaging 1.13 points per game as a rookie at North Dakota, fuelling optimism that he has enough offensive upside to eventually be the first- or second-line centre at Scotia Place, what should work in his favour as he quests for a spot on Team Canada is that he can also handle some of the less-heralded roles.
He’s an effective penalty killer and he’s winning 55.3% of his faceoffs so far as an NCAA newbie.
“The way I play, I feel like my versatility gives me the opportunity to play anywhere in the lineup, whether that’s lots of minutes as first-line centre or lower in the lineup and playing more defensive zone or penalty killing or even on the wing,” Reschny said. “I think just the way I think the game, the way I play, it gives me the opportunity to play power play, play penalty kill, play high up in the lineup, play low in the lineup.
“I think that just gives the coach the options he needs.”
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That could also make it hard for the Team Canada brass to send him home as camp wraps, although he doesn’t want to chance it with an underwhelming performance in pre-tournament action. Even though he’ll be eligible again next winter, he doesn’t want to wait to make this childhood dream come true.
“I’ve had opportunities before to represent the country and wear that logo on my chest and it’s tough to put into words how special it is,” said Reschny, already a gold medallist at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup and World Under-18s. “You’re just trying to go out there and do whatever you can to make the country proud and represent, and this is another opportunity, even just in camp, getting to play these exhibition games and practices and then hopefully do it at the tournament level, too.
“They’re going to be wanting players that are competing and doing what it takes to win a gold medal. Because obviously that’s the ultimate goal and it’s going to be team-first and not individuals first.”
Team Canada’s prep schedule includes a pair of exhibitions in Ontario against the Swedes — Wednesday in Kitchener and Saturday in London — and then a Dec. 23 matchup with Denmark in Mankato, Minn. All three games will be broadcast on TSN.
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