Noah Gregor cuts between Dustin Perillat and Chase Fincaryk during Thursday night's scrimmage at Mosaic Place.

There wasn't many surprises on day one of Moose Jaw Warriors training camp at Mosaic Place.

After fitness testing in the morning, the rookies hit the ice for three practices and a scrimmage over the course of the afternoon and the performances were as expected with the highly touted players living up to their billing.

The rookie camp scrimmages continues on Friday with the team's on the ice at 10:00am and 6:00pm. The veterans have practices at 8:00am and 2:30pm before scrimmaging on the weekend.

Noah Gregor scored a highlight reel goal during Thursday's opening scrimmage, which his Team Black won 6-3 over Brett Howden's Team White. Not be outdone, Howden also found the back of the net during the scrimmage.

He split the defence and then beat goalie Issac Labelle between the legs to make it 2-0 for Team Black.

Gregor and Howden, two 16-year-old prospects, were going back-and-forth between the benches during the scrimmage as they attempt to push each other, but they also happen to be roommates at the camp.

“It's a lot of fun, there's a bit of a friendly rivalry,” said Gregor after Thursday night's scrimmage. “When we get home it will be all fine, but on the ice, it's some good competition.”

This is Gregor's first training camp with the Warriors after coming over in a the Travis Brown trade from Victoria. He said it felt good to get on the ice here in Moose Jaw.

“I was skating good, I felt good out there,” said Gregor, who led the Alberta Midget AAA League in scoring last year as a 15-year-old with 21 goals and 51 points in 35 games. “I thought our team played good for the first day of camp.”

This offseason has been busy for Gregor as he looks to make the jump into the WHL. He got some good exposure while taking part in the Hockey Canada Under-17 Selection Camp.

“That camp helped a lot,” he said. “You learn a lot of new things outside of the rink – mental preparation, how to train properly – so it was a great learning experience there.”

He's hoping to use that now as he looks to crack the Warriors lineup. Thursday's opening day was a good start.

The pace picked up as the opening scrimmage went on and each player was able to put their skills on display. Ethan Lazaro had a number of strong rushes up ice, but couldn't find the back of the net.

“I have to use my speed,” he said. “(The WHL) is a big fast league and I've been training with a lot of the Western guys during the summer, so I've been getting use to the size and the speed.”

Lazaro, a 17-year-old forward at his third Warriors training camp, is hoping that he can show enough over the next four days to crack the opening day roster for the tribe this season. In 35 games last year with the St. Albert Raiders, Lazaro posted 14 goals and 29 points.

He has a good shot at making the Warriors this year, but will need to unseat a veteran player to do it.

“I've put on a lot of weight and kept my speed up, so I'll do fine (come main camp),” said Lazaro. “My goal is to crack the roster this year and be a Warrior for the season.”

There are nine returning forwards from last year in addition to Jaimen Yakubowski and Kolten Olynek, who were acquired during off season trades. The likes of Lazaro, Gregor, Howden and Ryan Bowen will all be pushing hard for spots among the 13-14 forwards that the Warriors decided to carry.

Bowen – who hails from Chilliwack, BC – is confident that he'll be able to show enough moving from rookie camp to main camp to secure one of those roster spots.

“There are a lot of good players and I'm a good player too,” said Bowen. “They'll definitely push the pace (at main camp) because there's a lot of good players out there, so it will be good.”

Bowen split his time between the Okanagan Hockey Academy midget squad and prep squad last season, posting 20 goals and 53 points in 65 games. He's committed to playing with the Chilliwack Chiefs in the BCHL this season if it doesn't work out with the Warriors.

The size that Bowen has put on is noticeable off the ice and on. He said that was a focus for him during the offseason.

“A lot of people always said when I was younger that I was too small, but they don't say that anymore because I'm 6-foot-1 and 165, so I'm really looking forward to seeing what this brings,” said Bowen.

He made a number of stellar plays, but like Lazaro couldn't find the finish to beat former OHA teammate Brody Willms.

“When you get in tight, it's a lot harder to find the holes on the big goalies like this,” Bowen said. “You've just got to find the best opportunities that you have and try to put the puck there.”

The Warriors will trim down the roster after Friday night's scrimmage as they head into main camp on the weekend. The annual Black and White wraps up camp on Sunday at 4:00pm.