Game On Magazine 2017 Game On Magazine - Regular Season Edition | Page 20

Although not wanting to talk much about his own personal success by humbly deflecting the praise to his linemates, Ty Lewis has had himself a monstrous first half of the 2017-18 season. With 19 goals and 61 points in 37 games, Lewis has held his spot within the top five scorers across the league all season. It may have helped that his third-place Brandon Wheat Kings have already had three separate five- plus game winning streaks this season, including a mammoth 10-game heater in early December. “The mood in the room is really good, and guys have been really happy coming to the rink,” Lewis reflected. “We have a really good mindset going into games this year compared to last year, and we’re all really buying into doing whatever it takes to win. We did a great job of just taking it one game at a time – one shift at a time. We kind of knew we weren’t going to go 52-0 to end the year, as the streak was bound to end at some point. But you know, we are just trying to win hockey games night-after-night, and have some fun in the process.” For the kid who grew up watching former Wheaties’ Brayden Schenn, Scott Glennie, Mark Stone, Jordin Tootoo and Matt Calvert deliver every night, the former Wheat Kings Midget AAA star knows just how privileged he is to play for his hometown. “My dad was always really big into hockey, and even runs his own hockey school D U R A C O ’ S W H L P L AY E R O F T H E M O N T H 2 0 | G AME ON | R EGU L A R SEASON ED ITION 2018 here – The Hockey Factory – so I was always out at the rinks as a kid,” he said. “It’s definitely a dream come true to have this opportunity to play here; every kid in Brandon looks up to the guys playing for the Wheat Kings, and someday dreams of playing there themselves. I was just fortunate enough to get selected by Brandon in the bantam draft.” Although Lewis was passed over in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft, he received an offer shortly after to attend development camp with the Colorado Avalanche – an opportunity that he claims changed his life. “It was obviously a very disappointing day for me when I wasn’t selected, but I’ve had a lot of tough bounces in my hockey career,” Lewis said. “I just took the opportunity as a chance to prove people wrong. I went down to Colorado a few days after the draft and they really gave me lots to work on. They have done so much for my game, which is probably a big reason why I’m having so much success this year. I was fortunate enough to sign with the Avalanche, and couldn’t be happier to go to such a great organization.” And regarding the rest of this 2017-18 WHL season? “I take a lot of pride in my work ethic on and off the ice, so I think I did a good job preparing myself for this season, and fortunately the team has had a really good start,” he said. “Hopefully we can keep that going here in the second half.” ❍