The Moose Jaw U18 AAA Warriors have been hard at work this week preparing for their pre-season opener on Sunday against the Swift Current Legionnaires. Head coach Trevor Weisgerber says that Sunday's game will be good for the players to get their feet wet.  

"We're just more or less using it to keep working on our systems and getting some chemistry with our lines and things like that," says Weisgerber. 

Game time is 7:00 p.m. on Sunday at the Moose Jaw Events Centre. Tickets for Sunday's game is on sale now at Sasktix.ca.

Sunday’s pre-season game will be especially important for the number of first-year players on the team, making the jump to the AAA level.  

“It’s a big step just with the quickness and another step up from what they’ve played. The good thing is that all our first-year players have been at camps and have been playing at the junior level so they should be ready for the pace that will come this weekend.” 

Weisgerber says that the game plan for Sunday’s pre-season game is to just concentrate on their own play.  

“That we’re playing the game the right way and we always want to make sure we’re pushing the pace and that we’re playing hard. Those are the few key things that we want to be sure that we’re doing. 

Last season the Warriors finished their Saskatchewan Male AAA Hockey League (SMAAAHL) season with a 26-17-0-1 record, which landed them in fifth place heading into the playoffs. Unfortunately, they were swept by the Regina Pat Canadians in the first round of the playoffs. 

They will be going up against a Legionnaire squad that has a new look coming into this season, which includes a revamped logo and uniform scheme. Swift Current will be looking to rebound after a 17-22-0-5 SMAAAHL season and missing the playoffs by one point.  

Moose Jaw will play two home pre-season games on Sunday and Tuesday against Swift Current and Regina, followed by two road games on Sept. 16 and 18 in Gull Lake and Regina.  

The Warriors bench boss will look to get off to a hot start this season, as they open up the 2022-2023 SMAAAHL season on Sept. 23 against the Battleford Stars at the Moose Jaw Events Centre.