and have a history.
After first meeting at a goaltending camp in Nelson six years ago, the two later reunited as members of the Edge School hockey program in Calgary.
Today, as the 2017-18 season begins, Salmond and Porter are back together again to shoulder the goaltending duties for the WHL乌鸦传媒檚 .
乌鸦传媒淚乌鸦传媒檝e known James for quite awhile, it乌鸦传媒檚 good to be playing with him,乌鸦传媒� said Salmond, 19. 乌鸦传媒淚t乌鸦传媒檚 cool that we came from the same midget program. We get along well and I乌鸦传媒檇 say it乌鸦传媒檚 a healthy relationship where I think we乌鸦传媒檒l push each other.乌鸦传媒�
Salmond, who served as the backup to last season, moves into the starting role for the Rockets.
His initiation to major junior hockey came unexpectedly late in the 2015-16 campaign when Rockets乌鸦传媒� starter Jackson Whistle went down with a season-ending injury.
Salmond was summoned from Camrose of the Alberta Junior Hockey League and the rest, as they say, is history.
乌鸦传媒淚t乌鸦传媒檚 funny how hockey works sometimes, I wasn乌鸦传媒檛 sure if I was ever going to get called up and then something like that happens,乌鸦传媒� said Salmond, a 5-foot-11, 185-pound native of Calgary. 乌鸦传媒淥bviously I was excited to get the call and now here I am going into my third season. I乌鸦传媒檓 looking forward to it.
乌鸦传媒淟earning from Michael (Herringer) and all the guidance I乌鸦传媒檝e had from Travis (Crickard) and Adam (Brown), I think has prepared me well.乌鸦传媒�
After playing in seven games his first season, Salmond乌鸦传媒檚 workload increased to 23 games in 2016-17, posting a 12-7-2 record with 2.76 goals against average.
Based on his body of work to date and his work in the off-season Rockets乌鸦传媒� goaltending coach said Salmond should be ready for prime time.
乌鸦传媒淏rodan got a lot of experience with us last year and had some success playing behind Michael Herringer, so that was important for him,乌鸦传媒� said Brown, who played four seasons in goal for Kelowna. 乌鸦传媒淗e worked really hard in the summer and came in ready to take over the starting job.
乌鸦传媒淏rodan plays with a lot of control in his game, he relies on positioning and playing the angles,乌鸦传媒� Brown said of Salmond乌鸦传媒檚 goaltending approach. 乌鸦传媒淵ou乌鸦传媒檙e not going to see him making those diving saves, he just sticks to his game.乌鸦传媒�
Porter, 17, comes to the Rockets after three seasons with the Edge School program, including a stellar 2016-17 midget campaign where he posted a 1.79 goals against average in 16 games in the Canadian Sport School Hockey League.
As a WHL rookie, Porter understands the learning curve may be steep but isn乌鸦传媒檛 about to be deterred by the work ahead of him.
乌鸦传媒淚 just want to be the best I can, work on the little things I need to and improve everyday,乌鸦传媒� said Porter, a native of Bonners Ferry, Idaho. 乌鸦传媒淚 have a lot of learning to do, I乌鸦传媒檓 taking in all the advice I can from the vets and coaches.
乌鸦传媒淚t乌鸦传媒檚 been a goal of mine for a long time to play (in the WHL),乌鸦传媒� added the 5-foot-11, 160-pound Porter, a seventh-round bantam pick of the Rockets in 2015. 乌鸦传媒淚乌鸦传媒檓 happy the time is here now and it乌鸦传媒檚 with Kelowna. It乌鸦传媒檚 going to be a nice place to call home.乌鸦传媒�
Brown, for one, is looking forward to watching and aiding in Porter乌鸦传媒檚 development.
乌鸦传媒淗e乌鸦传媒檚 a really good, young goaltender with a lot of raw talent,乌鸦传媒� Brown said. 乌鸦传媒淭here are a lot of things we乌鸦传媒檙e going to be working on, it乌鸦传媒檚 going to be a big adjustment like it is for any young goalie, so we乌鸦传媒檙e going to be patient and develop those skills. James has lots of potential.乌鸦传媒�
The Rockets open the 2017-18 WHL regular season Friday, Sept. 22 at home to the Kamloops Blazers. Face off is 7 p.m. at Prospera Place.
