Fort McMurray Oil Barons forward Justin Rose has been named the Alberta Junior Hockey League’s player of the week.
Rose scored 5 goals and 1 assist in three games this past week, all wide-margin wins for a Barons team that has started 10-2 this year.
Rose scored the game-opening and game-winning goal on Tuesday night in a 5-0 rout of the Bonnyville Pontiacs. He followed that up with two more in Friday’s 5-2 defeat of the Olds Grizzlys, and kept the momentum going with another two-goal game (and a shorthanded assist) in Saturday’s 8-2 steamrolling of the Drumheller Dragons.
The Gibbons native now has 8 goals on the year; only three away from the 11 he scored through all of last year.
“I feel like I’m starting to use my speed a lot more,” said Rose. “Hanging onto the puck, not just throwing it away. And my focus has been a lot better too. I’ve been getting mentally prepared for the games, and I feel like that’s been able to help me out a lot.”
Rose’s eight playoff goals last year led the team, and that success has carried over into the early 2011-12 season. But he’s quick to share the credit.
“I feel like my teammates have been helping me out a lot,” he emphasized. “I’ve been able to get open, finding the soft spots, but they’ve been getting me the puck.”
Rose’s line with team captain Carson Cooper and winger Mitchell Board has led the way offensively for the Barons this year. The three have combined for more than a third of the team’s total goals, with 18 markers and 26 assists between the three of them.
“Give them tons of credit,” said Rose. “They get me the puck all the time – I just do the easy part and tap it in the net.”
“I’ve got to give a lot of credit to the defence lately too. They’re starting to find me off the side of the net, and I’ve been lucky to tip some of those pucks in.”
The Barons hit the road on Wednesday, when they’ll take on the Sherwood Park Crusaders at 7:00pm (6:45pm broadcast, Country 93.3).
