McKenzie Ready to Take Next Step in Second Season
August 26, 2024 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Moose Jaw Warriors News Release
Moose Jaw, Sask. - Last season, Pavel McKenzie came to Training Camp looking to make a name for himself.
The Cumberland House, Sask. product did more than that as he earned a roster spot, won the team's Rookie of the Year award and helped the Moose Jaw Warriors to their first WHL Championship.
"I was very happy with how last year went," McKenzie said. "I got pretty lucky with some minutes, I took advantage of it and it was fun to win a championship."
McKenzie finished with 15 goals and 36 points in 63 games during his rookie season. He then added two goals and five points in 20 playoff games.
Coming out of the season, McKenzie said he saw how fast and good the competition was during his rookie year and used that heading into the offseason.
"I wanted to come back and be a lot better with my confidence and hopefully be a leader this year," he said. "A lot of the great guys last year like Mateychuk and all of them, they were great leaders to me and I want to be like them going into this year and hopefully be better overall."
McKenzie admitted there were nerves going into last year's camp after he was listed by the team.
He said he feels more comfortable coming into camp this year with a season under his belt.
"Being able to be more settled in and more comfortable coming into camp and just really focusing on the fitness testing and trying to be a great leader," McKenzie said.
During his rookie campaign, McKenzie had the chance to play with Brayden Yager and Jagger Firkus on the Warriors' top line for much of the season.
He said he saw how fast they played every shift and wanted to add that to his game coming into his sophomore year.
"I worked on my speed in the corners and my shot as well," McKenzie said. "I want to shoot more this season, so I worked hard on that stuff and hopefully it works.
"I feel like I can pop more in the back of the net with my confidence coming into this year, hopefully shoot more and hopefully they're going in."
McKenzie and the Warriors will return to the ice coming up this week as the team opens training camp at the Moose Jaw Events Centre on Wednesday.
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Western Hockey League Stories from August 26, 2024
- Cougars Announce Details for Pre-Season Game in Quesnel on September 14th - Prince George Cougars
- McKenzie Ready to Take Next Step in Second Season - Moose Jaw Warriors
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