By Allison Werbowetsky /

The Swift Current Broncos come out of an intense weekend on the road for the first time in more than two weeks.

The team played two games in two days, losing both tilts against Albertan rivals. The Broncos now stand at 6-6-0 so far this season.

With five high-scoring games for the Broncos and their opposition in the last month, fans are wondering if Broncos defence is keeping up with their talented front-end.

“Everyone was questioning our goaltending but I think both guys have been great and I think our defence in general hasn’t been that bad,” said Broncos captain Derek Claffey.

“When the forwards are helping us out and we’re getting pucks deep and playing in their end I think we’re fine,” he added.

The team has a young back-end this season with four out of six defencemen starting fresh in the last two years. This season’s rookies, Graeme Craig and Reece Scarlett, are at times struggling to pick up the slack.

“It’s a lot faster,” Craig said comparing the juniors to midget hockey, and continued to say he’s been working on “pretty much everything” since he got here back in August. “My passing, skating, making quicker decisions — the whole works,” he said.

For Craig, these first few weeks have been the developmental stage of his game in the junior league. He admits he is still adjusting to the speed of the game.

However, Claffey is not worried and says it’s an entire team effort to win games.

“We all have to come out with heart and determination and I think we need to be a little bit more focused and have a bit more emotion going in,” he said.

As for the defence specifically, “myself and (Eric) Doyle have to lead the charge there and log a few more minutes than most guys,” Claffey said.

Overall, the transition to Swift Current has been a smooth one for the rookies. Craig and Scarlett have both found it fairly easy to fit in and are having a lot of fun. They look to Claffey and Doyle for confidence, inspiration and advice every day on the ice.

“What they do on the ice you can always translate into your game,” Craig said.

“We’re learning from them and that’s all you can ask for,” Scarlett added.

Broncos chairman Al Stewart is confident these rookies will find their footing in the lineup eventually, and will become the future of the team.

“Our exciting players are our young guys,” he said. “By Christmas time, they are going to be battle-hardened and these guys, I think, are going to be our future. I can see for several years into the future here having a very strong hockey club.”