BROADHEAD REPRESENTING HAY RIVER WELL

Two years after being selected in the fourth round of the Western Hockey League Bantam Draft, 17-year-old Hay Riverite Gavin Broadhead has finally realized his dream of cracking the Medicine Hat Tigers roster.

After a busy summer of working out five to six times a week in the gym, Broadhead went through a roller coaster training camp and pre-season, in which he played well but didn’t know if or when he would get the axe from the coaching staff.

“I was trying to take it day by day,” he said.

“I wasn’t really thinking about getting cut. You want to be there and have confidence in yourself, and because I got into pretty good shape this summer I felt confident.”

Broadhead – who happens to wear the same number 10 jersey his father Curtis wore for the Tigers between 1978-81 – said the difference in caliber between midget AAA and junior hockey is substantial.

“It’s a really big jump from midget,” he said.

“Everyone is that much bigger and older, and has been playing for longer. It’s tough, but you have to be effective on the ice.”

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