If everything was right and proper from the beginning, Moose Jaw Warriors forward Jagger Firkus would have been a member of Team Canada from the moment selection camp wrapped up.
Instead, Hockey Canada brass made the strange decision to send the 19-year-old forward home rather than keep the Western Hockey League scoring leader for much of the season on their roster.
It was a decision that lasted all of a few days.
When injury woes started to add up -- particularly a nick to eventual Warriors forward Matthew Savoie midway through the tournament -- Firkus got a surprise call early on the morning of Friday, Dec. 29 and within 36 hours was in the stands in Gothenburg, Sweden as a member of Team Canada.
A whirlwind to say the least, and in the eyes of many, justice served even if Firkus didn’t get to take the ice in game action.
“Obviously at first it wasn’t the news I wanted to hear, but even though it’s tough, it’s what you go through in hockey and getting the call back was super exciting,” Firkus said after practice on Thursday afternoon. “Going over there and being part of the atmosphere was cool, but at first the main goal was to come back and prove them wrong and show what I can do.”
Firkus returned from selection camp and promptly put up three points as the Warriors defeated Regina on Dec. 29. It was early the following morning that the 19-year-old Seattle Kraken prospect got the call from Team Canada, and from there it was a rapid-fire turnaround.
“I got the call in the morning and was on a flight to Toronto right away, then to Copenhagen and we drove to Gothenburg,” Firkus explained. “It was quick, especially with the time change it was kind of a blur, the first two days I was kind of lost, but once I got there and settled in it was fine.”
Firkus had little idea of what his role would be once he arrived, but just getting there and being a part of Team Canada was the most important first step.
“You’re buddies with a lot of those guys over there already so it’s easy to get comfortable,” Firkus said. “Being part of the culture for Team Canada is really special, it’s probably the best in all of hockey. So getting to be a part of that was cool, and now it’s time to focus on Moose Jaw.”
Savoie missed Canada’s final round robin game but was able to play in the quarter-final, meaning Firkus didn’t see game action in the tournament.
It wasn’t long after the loss to Czechia that word came down that Team Canada teammates Firkus, Brayden Yager and Denton Mateychuk were about to be WHL teammates in the very near future.
“We were in the airport when Savs got the call he was being traded here, so it was obviously exciting,” Firkus said. “He brings a lot of confidence to the team and lots of goal scoring as well, and getting that kind of player is exciting.”
The trade also brings a situation that hasn’t been felt in Moose Jaw in quite some time -- a going-for-it mentality where winning is all that’s expected.
“Now that they’ve made that move, it puts a little bit of pressure on the players that we have to go out and perform and there’s no excuses now, we have all the pieces we need,” Firkus said. “Moving forward that’s the biggest thing, we have everything we need and now we have to keep playing to our culture… We have something like 29 games left here and the playoffs are right around the corner, so moving forward it’s an exciting time to be around the room.”
The Warriors are back in action on Saturday night when the Vancouver Giants are in town. The game will mark Savoie’s debut, with puck drop at 7 p.m.
