Sidney Crosby had his washing machine, Wayne Gretzky had the outdoor rink his father built. Like most of us, 100 Mile House Wranglers forward, Garrett Hilton, had his garage.
“I had a piece of Teflon on it that I would shoot off of into a net,” he chuckled. “My net had nets around it so I wouldn’t destroy anything.”
Hilton started skating when as a kid, following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather who also played hockey. He said when he saw his dad play, it’s all he wanted to do.
“There are videos of me running around the kitchen with a stick, skates and skate guards on,” he recalled.
Growing up on the outdoor rink, he enrolled in roller hockey as a three-year-old, before moving on to minor hockey as a defenceman like his father. However, he liked to join the rush a little too much and found himself always leaving his zone in favour of playing more offensively.
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The 20-year-old Prince George native made the switch to forward when he was nine.
This could have been because of the offensive domination of Alexander Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals, who made the NHL in the 2005-2006 season. Born in 1998, Hilton would have only been seven years old, but Ovechkin was and still is the goal scoring standard.
“When I was a really young kid, I loved Ovechkin when he came into the league in 05′,” he said. “Just the exciting play when he was younger. He just dominated. Nobody loves to score more than he does.”
Evgeny Kuznetsov, the 26-year-old heir apparent for Ovechkin as the Washington Capitals leading scorer is also one player Hilton likes to watch.
Hilton has shown that he can score some goals as well, scoring 37 regular season goals in 92 games and a further six in 17 games during the playoffs while playing in the KIJHL, all with the Wranglers.
The forward, only one of four vets currently on the team, came to 100 Mile House for the 2016-17 season.
He was attending the Coquitlam Express (of the BCHL) main camp that season when he met the Wrangler’s head coach and general manager, Dale Hladun.
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“When I got released by Coquitlam he gave me a call and I just went home, withdrew from school, packed my stuff and came down,” said Hilton.
There were a few other teams coveting Hilton’s skill set, such as the Nanaimo Buccaneers and the Victoria Cougars of the Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League (VIJHL). The latter approached him when he was still playing midget hockey though.
There were a few reasons why the Prince Georger decided to join the Wranglers instead of the other team’s approaching him. It was closer to home and a few guys he grew up playing will (Rob Raju and James Gordon) were also joining the team, but mostly it was because of Dale Hladun.
“Duner [Hladun] is a really good guy. I knew some guys who played here before and they loved Duner,” said Hilton. “He knows so many guys in every league and college, and he puts first and foremost to moving guys on. He doesn’t try to keep guys here longer then they have to be. Like, his best case scenario is a guy plays for one year then moves on and that’s really appealing to kids who want to move up to the next level. Some coaches don’t like guys to move on and they tried to build a team in Junior B, but it’s more player development.”
One thing Hilton has learned from Hladun is there is more than one route to make it as a professional hockey player. He said growing up in Prince George, players only heard about going to Junior A, or the Western Hockey League or Division 1 college hockey and all the way up.
But Hladun has had guys move up to some minor colleges and then to Europe to play professionally, which some players who have played in the BCHL or WHL have failed to do.
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“He just reinforces the idea that there’s not only one route to take and there’s just not one big league to play in. There are many paths to the same goal,” said Hilton.
At 20-years-old, Hilton would like to play some college hockey and is looking at Vancouver Island University, but would like to look at the programs the school offers first.
“I want to be a physiotherapist,” he discloses. “I’ve been to the physiotherapist a lot. I just love how the body works and how it heals and what you have to do to help it heal.”
He also said he would ideally like to play in Europe once he graduates.
In his third year with the Wranglers, Hilton along with captain Kolby Page and Darian Long, have taken more of a leadership role within the team.
“We had a lot of guys last year who had it and this year it’s kind of hard because all the pressure is on the four vets we have to sort of lead these guys.”
Hilton has taken newcomer James Pedersen under his wing, trying to help him transition into the life as a junior hockey player.
However, even with the fresh intake of youth, Hilton and company still have their eye on the prize.
“We want to win it all.”
brendan.jure@100milefreepress.net
