If the Red Deer Rebels carry a 16-year-old forward this season, there’s little doubt as to who it will be.

Joel Rupprecht is the front-runner, and not just because he’s the lone 1984-born forward still remaining in camp.

“I thought he and (defenceman) Derek Meech were probably the top two players in rookie camp,” Rebels GM/head coach Brent Sutter said Wednesday.

“How Joel plays through the preseason will dictate whether or not he stays with us this year. But some of the veterans are in the same boat.”

Rupprecht, the club’s second-round pick in the 1999 Western Hockey League bantam draft, stood out last week while scrimmaging with 15- and 16-year-old prospects.

“My play in rookie camp was more obvious that it was in main camp,” said Rupprecht, who didn’t see eye-to-eye with the coach of the major midget Foothills Bisons last fall and instead played midget AA in his hometown of Okotoks.

Rupprecht was still bantam age last winter and perhaps skating with and against older players gave him an advantage coming into the Rebels rookie camp.

“Not really, because it was only double A midget, so it wasn’t that fast,” he countered.

Rupprecht was a dominant figure on the Okotoks squad, firing 20 goals and adding 23 assists in 36 games. He also collected 142 minutes in penalties.

The six-foot-one, 175-pound left winger also played five games — the maximum number allowed — with the Rebels during the 1999-2000 campaign. He was held pointless but the experience was invaluable. “I know what the league is like now and how high I have to elevate my game in order to be productive,” said Rupprecht, whose older brother Derek played two seasons with the Medicine Hat Tigers and spent last winter with the AJHL’s Olds Grizzlys.

While he might be in tough to make the Rebels’ opening-night roster, the younger Rupprecht is not lacking in confidence.

“I see the ice well and I can make things happen if I stickhandle the way I’m capable of,” he said of his strengths.

“If I play the way I can (during the preseason) I know I can make the team, and I’ll play any role that’s asked of me.”

Sutter likes Rupprecht’s competitive spirit.

“He has a lot of grit and he’s a strong kid,” said the Rebels boss. “He has the right attitude to be a good player. His skating has really improved over last year. It’s like night and day, but where he will fit in this season has yet to be determined.

“Joel has decent offensive skills, now he has to work on the defensive side of his game. He could eventually be one of our top three centres.”

• It appears that defenceman Jearum Kurtz is no longer in the Rebels’ immediate or long-term plans.

The Winnipeg native did not attend training camp, perhaps feeling he had little chance of making the club this year despite playing 33 games with the Rebels last season.

Sutter talked to Kurtz Monday and told the 17-year-old to call him Wednesday regarding his plans for the upcoming season. Kurtz did not return the call.

“As far as I’m concerned, he won’t play here again,” said Sutter. “I’m surprised because he seemed happy when he was here last season. “But it’s not something we’re going to dwell on. This just opens the door for another player.”

• Contrary to his original plans, Sutter won’t play veterans Justin Mapletoft, Ross Lupaschuk and Kyle Wanvig in Friday’s preseason opener in Rocky Mountain House against the Calgary Hitmen. All three will attend NHL camps next week.

“Calgary isn’t dressing any of their guys who are going to pro camps, so we’ve decided to go the same route,” said Sutter. “When Mapletoft, Lupaschuk and Wanvig return we know they’re going to step right into our lineup, so we might as well play some younger guys Friday.”
 
Goaltender Shane Bendera left Wednesday to attend the training camp of the Columbus Blue Jackets.