Game On Magazine - April 2017 Game on Preview Edition | Page 70

Keegan Kolesar (left)
and Cody Glass with this
summer’s pro group
at The Rink.
Kolesar, a right-winger who
enjoys playing the off-side
when he can, knew that his
role on the team involved a lot
more than just scoring goals.
“I thought I was playing
my best hockey in the Dub
for sure in (last spring’s)
playoffs,” he said. “As long as I
can do anything I can to help
the team win, whether that’s
scoring, hitting, or blocking
shots, I know I’m doing
something to contribute. And
it wasn’t just my personal
success, it stems from the
whole team aspect. Some guys
are going to get the points and
the glory, while some do all
the dirty work. I was just lucky
to come out with the points
and still play my game.”
The offseason became very
interesting for the 2015 third
round pick of the Columbus
Blue Jackets, when he found
out that he had been dealt to
the NHL’s newest fra nchise,
the Vegas Golden Knights.
“That was a wild experience
actually,” Kolesar said. “What’s
funny about it is that I was
flying out Saturday to go to
development camp, and I
landed in Chicago with some
time to kill. So I got to my
next terminal and pulled
out my laptop and instantly
got a notification from my
buddy who told me that I just
got traded. So I was sitting
there a little stunned when
my agent called me about
10 seconds later. The second
I saw his name come up on
my phone I knew my buddy
wasn’t messing around. When
I found out it was Vegas I was
beyond happy, especially after
watching the whole expansion
draft and seeing all of the
players that they acquired.”
The Vegas Golden Knights
should be thrilled to add yet
another Manitoban to their
already very Canadian squad.
After drafting Winnipeggers
Cody Eakin, Calvin Pickard
and Brendan Leipsic in the
Expansion Draft, the
Golden Knights took
Winnipeg’s Cody Glass
with the sixth pick in the
NHL Entry draft this
past June. Adding a
skilled, tough and
fired-up Keegan
Kolesar to the mix
should provide
more competitive
juice to the lineup
this fall.
“At last year’s
training camp in
Columbus I got sent
back with my hernia
surgery, so I was pretty
Keegan Kolesar
The Duraco
WHL Player of
the Month
7 0 | G AM E O N | S E P T EM BER 2 0 1 7
much out of the competition
right off the start, which was
disappointing for me,” he said.
“But this year should be a
different story. It’s something
special to be a part of history
in Vegas and that in itself is
huge. There is so much more
opportunity for myself in
Vegas so I am happy about
the trade. And so far, from
my brief period of time being
down there, I’ve really enjoyed
Vegas. It has been a surreal
experience.”
For a 20-year-old, not yet
of legal age in Nevada, to be
raving so much about the
Vegas experience definitely
says something about the
young franchise and the
exciting city.
“The whole staff were top
notch, from the equipment
managers, to the trainers,
to the general managers and
coaches,” Kolesar boasted.
“Just getting to know all of
the young prospects that
they just drafted – I actually
roomed with Cody Glass for
development camp. We had
a good time out there and we
are pretty close buddies now,
especially considering that
we are now on the same
team. It was a fun
experience for