SPHL Mississippi RiverKings

Memphis Trio Have Successful Pregame Skate, Prepare for Exhibition Action

Published on October 2, 2003 under SPHL (SPHL)
Mississippi RiverKings News Release


ST. JOHN'S – Memphis RiverKings veteran forwards Don Parsons, Jay Neal and Kahlil Thomas participated in their first pre-game skate with the AHL St. John's Maple Leafs on Thursday.

The trio, who helped lead the RiverKings to back-to-back CHL Championships, were called up by former RiverKings and current St. John's coach Doug Shedden earlier this week.

Training camp for the ‘Baby Leafs' started on September 28. Because of a shortage of players provided by the parent club in Toronto, Shedden felt like he should use the affiliation that the Leafs share with the RiverKings.

"My thought was, ‘Well, we work with the RiverKings,' said Shedden, "Let's call up guys that have been good to me and who I know can contribute."

That contribution proved easier than expected for Parsons, Neal and Thomas, due to their familiarity with the drills that Shedden uses in his practices.

"The practice this morning went pretty well," said Parsons. "Luckily, we've seen this type of practice for a few years now. We were familiar with all the drills, so we didn't have to think about that too much.

"In fact, we were pretty much demonstrating the drills (to the other players) --- we were going first in all of the drills, so we felt pretty comfortable."

Parsons said that the group's arrival in camp was greeted very positively by the other players that were there.

"The guys are great," Parsons said. "They've been very accepting and willing to help us out."

The Memphis trio will be thrown into the fire fairly quickly, as St. John's will be playing three games in the next four nights. Shedden sees the call-up as a chance for the players to demonstrate their value to the Maple Leafs organization as a whole.

"All three of the guys are quality people and great players," said Shedden. "They're guys who I've won with in the past, and it might be an opportunity for them to impress someone.

"If we end up having some injuries (in St. John's) later in the season, maybe someone in the organization here will remember those guys from the RiverKings and call them up for some games."

Two of the RiverKings will have the chance to play on the same line in tonight's game. Shedden's lineup card placed Parsons and Jay Neal on a line with Centerman Jeff Daw, an AHL (American Hockey League) veteran. Neal says he is looking forward to being on the ice at the same time as his Memphis teammate.

"It's great," said Neal. "Hopefully we'll be able to recreate some of our ‘pass magic' out there."

Shedden said that he expects all three players to compete and play hard, but realizes that their conditioning level is going to be behind the rest of the players in camp.

"Most of the guys we've got here have been skating for three weeks," said Shedden.

"I wish I'd been able to give (the players from Memphis) a week's notice and tell them that this might happen," Shedden said, "Unfortunately, we had a short time period to do this in."

Parsons, however, is thrilled at the chance to get an early jump on conditioning for the upcoming season in Memphis.

"It's great for Jay and Kahlil and I, because we'll be able to come into camp already in shape," said Parsons.

The St. John's Maple Leafs will play an exhibition game this evening at 5 p.m. CST versus the Hamilton Bearcats. Fans interested in listening to the game may do so online at the homepage of the Maple Leafs, located at http://www.radionewfoundland.net/ .

The Memphis RiverKings will drop the puck on the 2003-04 season on Oct. 17, as they start their title defense in Oklahoma City. The RiverKings home opener is October 18 as Memphis takes on Fort Worth. For ticket information, contact the RiverKings office at (662) 342-1755.

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