Sports stats



WHL Moose Jaw Warriors

Alarie Takes a Lot Away from Training Camp with Florida

September 25, 2021 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Moose Jaw Warriors News Release


Eric Alarie has returned to Moose Jaw with a wealth of experience after attending training camp with the Florida Panthers over the past two weeks.

"Just going out there, playing against great players and getting to know the guys, it was just an amazing experience all around," Alarie said after arriving back at Mosaic Place on Thursday.

The Warriors forward attended camp with the Panthers on a camp invite after not being selected in the 2021 NHL Draft, despite leading Moose Jaw in scoring during the Subway WHL Hub with 10 goals and 20 points in 19 games.

Alarie said there was a lot of interest from teams following the draft.

"It was awesome when my agent called me not long after the draft, he just aid that there was a few teams interested and said Florida was one of the best ones," he said.

Alarie played in three rookie games during his time at Panthers' camp, scoring once.

He said he learned a lot over those three contests.

"The game is so fast," Alarie said. "Everybody's trying to prove themselves and you have to make quick decisions at that level.

"The first game, there was an adjustment for sure, but after that I got used to the speed, I think I did quite well."

Alarie said he received some good feedback from the Panthers after leaving camp.

"They said they'll keep an eye on me," he said. "They liked how I played, liked my intensity and they don't want me to lose that this year."

Now coming back to Moose Jaw, Alarie said he's going to use the experience gained with the Panthers to put together another strong season with the Warriors.

"[The experience] just shows me what you have to do to be a pro," he said. "Those guys dedicate their day to hockey, they wake up, they have hockey in their mind, they come to the ink and it's not, 'Oh, I've got to go to the rink and practice,' no, it's, 'I want to practice, I want to get better'."

After graduating from high school this year, Alarie said that frees up more time for him to dedicate to improving his game on and off the ice.

"The more you dedicate yourself, the more that you put the work into your game, the better you're going to be, so there's no magic potion out there, it's only the hard work that is going to get you better," he said.

While Alarie has high expectations for himself, he's also expecting big things out of the Warriors.

"If we all put the work in, we're all going to get better and we can accomplish a lot," Alarie said.

"We want to make the playoffs and win some playoff games as well, not only get there... I want to be a leader, should be a bit more vocal in the dressing room this year and lead by example with hard work."

The Warriors finish off their preseason schedule on Saturday night against the Regina Pats at the Brandt Centre. Moose Jaw dropped its first preseason game on Friday to the rival Pats, falling 4-1 at Mosaic Place.

Puck drops on Saturday at 7 p.m. and you can catch all the action live on Country 100.




Western Hockey League Stories from September 25, 2021


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central