Pederson adjusting well to new home with Rebels
By DANNY RODE
Doogan Pederson admitted it was “a bit of a shock” when he heard he was being traded from the Prince Albert Raiders to the Red Deer Rebels.
“I really wasn’t expecting it at the time,” said the 18-year-old native of Langley, B.C. of the Dec. 31 deal that brought him to Red Deer along with two draft picks in return for 19-year-old blue liner Matteo Fabrizi.
“But when I first got the news, I figured I’d get an opportunity here and it seems like I am.”
What made it extra hard to leave Prince Albert was that his dad, Denis Pederson, was a highly respected member of the Raiders back in the early 1990s. His grandparents also still live there.
A native of Prince Albert, Denis played three full seasons with the Raiders before moving on to play professionally. He played eight years in the NHL and eventually nine years in Germany, winning five championships.
Still, Doogan is excited about joining the Rebels.
“I was excited about the opportunity, excited about meeting the guys and coaching staff and I’m holding my head high and moving forward with some confidence … I am excited for sure.”
The six-foot-three and a half, 185-pound defenceman was never drafted, but the Raiders were quick to list him and sign him.
“I wasn’t drafted. That year our league changed from U16 to U17 and it was the COVID year so maybe that had something to do with it. But it worked out.”
Pederson made the Raiders as a 17-year-old, playing 44 games. This season he was in the lineup 32 times before the trade that saw Matteo Fabrizi go the other way.
It was a thrill making the Raiders.
“It was cool experience to see where he (Denis) played and because of my grandparents still living there,” he said.
While coming up through the Fraser Valley minor hockey system, Doogan was solid on the back end but also showed his offensive skills. In 36 games in U17, during the 2021-22 season, he had eight goals and 22 assists. The following year he played U18 and scored six times and added 23 helpers in 31 games.
Last season he had two goals and four assists. This year he has two goal and eight assists.
While he doesn’t have any points so far with the Rebels, he has shown an ability to move the puck and see the ice.
“As a younger guy coming into Prince Albert last year, I wanted to create a strong base … a defensive base and obviously I slowed down a little bit offensively. I wanted to have a consistent game and now that I’m a bit older and have that experience, I can bring that back into my game,” he said. “I do see myself as a two-way defenceman, with defence first, but also the ability to move the puck up the ice quickly.”
Although he’s played only two games with the Rebels, he’ looked right at home, which can be difficult for a defenceman in a new setting.
Pederson has impressed head coach Dave Struch.
“He’s played well, made all the plays,” Struch said. “He plays the right way without the puck … that’s good.
“We talk about instincts and hockey sense. You look at the game of hockey and players have to have hockey sense so you can teach them hockey IQ and how to play the game the right way structurally and positionally. With Doogan he’s got some hockey sense without the puck and made some plays with the puck that really important for our team.”
Struch likes to see his defencemen move the puck to help create some offence, but first things first.
“We stress defence first,” he said. “Then we can shift to making the right plays. As a D man the first play is advancing the puck to our forwards. Anything offensively comes in the offensive zone and that comes from making that first pass.”
Pederson will likely be with the Rebels for at least one more season, then he’ll see what develops.
“I would like to play professionally,” he said. “I had thought about junior A and university when I wasn’t drafted but obviously I signed and was committed to the Western League.”
He could still see himself going to college route if it works that way.
“Now with the (NCAA) rule change and depending on how the future goes I could play college and eventually pro,” he concluded.
