The top 160 U15 aged hockey players in the province gathered in Regina at the tail end of 2023, with half of them advancing on to the Sask First Top 80 tournament scheduled for mid-February in Balgonie.

Kerrobert's Graydon Neumeier was selected for the Top 80, the only one out of four U15 West Central Wheat Kings players who cracked the Top 160. Dodsland's Connor Sittler, Kindersley's Kaine Thiessen, and Taylor Neumeier from Kerrobert were the Wheat Kings who didn't make the cut, Sittler going out with an injury.

Head coach of the U15 West Central Wheat Kings Zane Hayes was happy to see his players get out for the extra competition. Having kids that went through the Sask First ranks, Hayes knows the system well.

"It's a good opportunity. Every level, whether its the first level, or the 160 level, or now the Top 80, it's all highly scouted. If nothing else, it gets a lot of the top kids in the province together in the same rink, so the scouts aren't travelling all over the place. Gets them another easy look."

Hayes believes it's a great opportunity for young talent.

"I encourage anybody who thinks they have a shot to go. You might as well, because they shut the whole league down for those weekends." began Hayes, who also talked about tampering expectations. "At the same time they have to realize there are nearly 600 kids that show up to this thing, and they only take about 22 players to the WHL Cup. They have to realize the odds of actually making it are not great, but that the further you get down the line, the more looks scouts get at you, and the evaluators that actually pick the team."

Hayes also believes that timing is important when it comes to opportunities like Sask First. Players only get to show themselves in a short series of skates, and sometimes you might not have your best one.

"There are some kids in that round that always fall through the cracks. You have to remember these are 14-year-old kids still. Could have a bad weekend, not feeling good, or whatever. There is a very small window to show what you can do on that first weekend, when they drop from whatever it is to 160."

Hayes knows that a few more of his players could be joining Neumeier at Top 80 based on talent, saying it's just not meant to be, ultimately using the process as motivation.

"When we talking about encouraging these kids, it's hard to make an impression on a 14-year-old that if they don't make it, it's not the end of the world. It's just one episode in their lives. It's not make-or-break, if you don't make it. That has to be not lost on these kids too, praising the ones who do make it, but making sure the ones who don't aren't discouraged."

The Wheat Kings coach did have to give special credit to Neumeier, the team's leading scorer, for cracking the next round of tryouts. Hayes knows the territory that comes with being a U15 aged coach, as speaking with scouts is sometimes more taxing than coaching itself.

"Every rink I go into there are scouts that come talk to me about kids on my team. General managers and what-not," said Hayes. "There are several different kids on my team that get talked about, but the common one is Graydon (Neumeier)."

Hayes said they spotted Neumeier's talent in no-time coming out of camp, and believes he has the tools to get to the next level.

"If he can refine just a few little parts of his game that junior scouts and GM's are looking for, sky could be the limit for him."

The upcoming SaskFirst Top 80 tournament will run February 16-18 from Balgonie. Until then, Neumeier and the Wheat Kings have five games left in the month of January, before closing out their regular season in February.