It’s been an interesting couple of weeks for Saskatoon Blades forward Jesse Shynkaruk. He joined the team late in training camp on a tryout basis and since then, the Western Hockey League veteran has gone from simply trying to make the team to centring its top line.
“It’s been pretty crazy for sure but I’m just trying to soak it all in, play as best as I can when I’m out there and just try to capitalize on my opportunities,” Shynkaruk said.
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After being cut by the Moose Jaw Warriors during the off-season, Shynkaruk was looking for somewhere to play out his final year of junior eligibility.
When his hometown team invited him to camp, he quickly accepted. Head coach Dean Brockman put Shynkaruk on a line with wingers Mason McCarty and Braylon Shmyr and the trio hit it off almost instantly.
“It’s been awesome. You know the line’s got a tonne of speed and a lot of tenacity and mix that with a little bit of skill and obviously it’s been working out pretty good,” Shynkaruk said.
The 20-year-old wasn’t initially slated for a top line role, but injuries to top scorers Cam Hebig and Ryan Graham forced Brockman to shuffle the deck.
“They bring an offensive touch. You know we’re not one of those teams that’s blessed with a lot of that so certainly when those guys create things and they’re pretty effective offensively, they all bring something a little bit different to the table,” the coach said.
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So far the new-look top unit has made Brockman’s decision look very good indeed. Despite a shutout loss in the Blades last outing Shynkaruk, McCarty and Shmyr have combined for 20 points in four games, a span that includes two-preseason contests and the first two games of the regular season.
“We worked hard in practice to gain the chemistry and we just put that practice into the games and you know it’s been working for us so far,” said Shmyr, a lightning-quick skater who had nine goals and 11 assists in 34 games with the Blades last season after being acquired in a trade with the Brandon Wheat Kings.
“Me and (Shmyr) played together last year some too, so we obviously have that chemistry and we’re good friends off the ice,” added McCarty, who’s entering his second full season in Saskatoon. “Shynk’s new to the team and he’s a good player too so we’re happy to have him.”
The feeling is clearly mutual for Shynkaruk, who has no problem stepping into the spotlight vacated by the Blades’ injured stars.
“I like the pressure, I like when things are maybe a bit more on your shoulders and I’m just trying to take it as it goes, one day at a time, and hopefully we keep producing.”
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