By Mike Stackhouse /

Reid MacLeod, 20, won a scoring championship last season and when it was learned he would be returning for his final year of junior, it was thought the Flin Flon Bomber forward would have an excellent crack at repeating.

However, the Teulon, Man., native had a secret few people were aware of:  He needed shoulder surgery.

“It happened in November and I played through it for the rest of the season. Looking back, I should have just taken a few weeks off right there. Instead, I decided in April to have the surgery and it set me back preparing for this season,” MacLeod said.

MacLeod worked hard to get himself back in time for Thanksgiving and, while he has not put up eye-popping numbers like last year when he scored 45 goals and 42 assists in 55 games, MacLeod has been the Bombers best player while he’s been in the lineup and is still hovering around a point per game.

“It’s getting better, but still not there,” says MacLeod of the injured shoulder. “My strength isn’t what it was and my stamina is not there, but I feel it coming more everyday and I just hope that I get back to being as close to a 100 per cent as I can after Christmas.”

If there is one thing a person shouldn’t do, is bet against MacLeod.

He flew somewhat under the radar in Saskatchewan hockey circles as he came out of the Manitoba Midget AAA Hockey League’s Interlake Lightning program and had very good offensive numbers.

But nothing that would indicate SJHL dominance, such as the league’s Rookie of the Year Award in 2006/07 and then the aforementioned scoring title that was highlighted by a five-point effort in the season finale to edge La Ronge’s Jordie Johnston.

“I came to Flin Flon for two summers before I started with the Bombers and I worked really hard with my trainers in Winnipeg on foot speed and strength. I practiced really hard and then playing with guys like Pierre-Luc Boucher and Dennis Kubat helps too.”

With Boucher and Kubat having moved on from junior hockey, MacLeod is left to assume the role, not only of go-to scorer, but also of leadership.

“We have a great group of young players that Mike (Reagan) has brought in to help this team get better. Anytime you are looked to by them for insight or advice, I think it is quite an honor.

“I think the main thing we all have to realize is that this is your job right now. You can’t take nights off and then figure you can just turn it on whenever you need to in the playoffs. We need to make sure we have our ‘A’ game going as soon as we can. We have hit a rough patch here (just two wins out of seven games going into mid-December), so it is important to refocus right away.”

MacLeod may be close to locking up an NCAA scholarship as well with both Omaha-Nebraska and Sacred Heart both rumoured on his trail.

“I have definitely talked to them, as well as some other schools. I want to play hockey as long as I can. It’s my life and I will do whatever I can to make it happen.”