MOOSEJAWTODAY.COM -- While the vast majority of his teammates will be heading into the third round of the Western Hockey League playoffs for the first time, Moose Jaw Warriors forward Atley Calvert has been there and done that.
Just in a bit of a different situation.
The 20-year-old Moose Jaw Minor Hockey product was there in the stands when Morgan Rielly, Quinton Howden, Cody Beach and a young Brayden Point made their run to the 2012 Eastern Conference final before falling in five games to the Edmonton Oil Kings.
Of course, being a wide-eyed 11-year-old watching your heroes do their thing is a far cry from being one of those heroes on the ice, but it does give Calvert a pretty good feel for what it’s like watching the Warriors make their post-season run in 2024.
“I grew up coming to games and I grew up watching the great Warrior teams before us and it’s really unreal to be out there right now,” Calvert said after the Warriors’ final practice Thursday before heading to Saskatoon for Games 1 and 2. “It’s great to see the support we’ve been getting from the city of Moose Jaw.”
Back in 2012, the Moose Jaw Events Centre was still a brand-new building, and the added capacity compared to the Civic Centre made for some rocking times, with crowds of over 4,600 for each game of the Conference final.
That kind of support has been around since Game 1 of the Swift Current series, with fan support being a major topic of conversation any time the playoffs are discussed. That stands extra true when it comes to someone who has been cheering on the Warriors since he was a little kid.
“Some of the boys have been here for awhile, we haven’t seen turnouts like this before,” Calvert said. “The fans have been good, but people have really stepped up and shown their support. We really appreciate it and it’s nice to see again. This city loves their Warriors and it’s going to be a great series, we’ve put ourselves in a good spot here.”
Of course, it certainly doesn’t hurt that the Warriors are on a historic run.
The 40th anniversary edition of the team is into the Conference final for only the third time in team history, and a series win over the Blades would mark only the second time the Warriors have cracked the WHL Final.
“We’ve put ourselves in good spots the last two years and we haven’t been able to get over the hump, but now finally getting over the second round is really good,” Calvert said. “It makes you a little more hungry, knowing you’re a little bit closer, and we’re only eight wins away.”
That all makes this rarified air for the franchise as a whole, with a local product a centrepiece of their success -- after his 47-goal, 95-point run in the regular season, Calvert has put up a further three goals and nine points in nine playoff games while continuing to go to the hardest areas to score goals.
“Every kid when they step into this league, they want to win a championship at some point in their career,” Calvert said. “It just happens to work out that I’m 20-years-old and on a really good team and that’s been our goal for this year and since training camp. Only a couple of teams have done it before and it only matters if you win it.
Now it’s just a matter of finding a way to keep things going against what promises to be a tough Saskatoon Blades crew.
“We just have to double down on what’s gotten us to this point, the little things we’ve worked on all year, and just put our best foot forward here for the next two weeks,” Calvert said. “All you can do is take it game by game and see how it goes, but we’re going to go and put a good effort in Game 1 and we’re focussed on Game 1.”
Games 3 and 4 are back in Moose Jaw on Tuesday and Wednesday, be sure to check for limited availability.
