Each afternoon, Shay Stephenson has the Centrium ice all to himself for a brief skate.

When his teammates head out to practice, Stephenson heads to the dressing room.

Frustration has been the emotional flavour of the month for the Red Deer Rebels rookie forward since suffering a broken hand during a Western Hockey League preseason game Sept. 10 in Lethbridge.

Stephenson won't play tonight when the Rebels entertain the Swift Current Broncos at 7 p.m. In fact, he’ll be in drydock for another three to four weeks.

"My physiotherapy guy is going to talk to the doctor Nov. 1 and hopefully (the doctor) will say it’s all right to get going. It's been a little long," said the 17-year-old winger.

"This is my first hockey injury. It's really tough, not even being able to practise with the team, and it’s kind of a bummer sitting out and just watching the games."

The native of Outlook, Sask., was a 10th-round pick of the Rebels in the 1998 bantam draft and attended Red Deer’s camp the following year, but was released after the intrasquad game.

He checked into Notre Dame College at Wilcox, Sask., suited up with the midget AAA Hounds and managed 23 goals and 30 points in 43 games while playing for storied coach Barry McKenzie.

"I had a fairly decent year," said Stephenson. "It was definitely a step up from the year before."

The six-foot-three, 180-pound winger was determined to ascend another major step when he checked into the Rebels camp in late August. This year he was intent on sticking around.

"The coaches didn't really tell me anything," he said. "I just knew that I had to have a good camp if I wanted to make the team, and I think it went really well for me."

Indeed, Stephenson sniped two goals and added an assist in four preseason games, including the fateful outing in Lethbridge.

"I was going down the wing and one of my players cut in front of me and along the boards," said Stephenson. "I just kicked it (puck) with one hand and had my free hand tucked into my body and he (Lethbridge player) came flying over with the hipcheck and somehow jammed my hand. He hit it well enough to break a bone."

Stephenson is confident he’ll be ready for game action by Nov. 15 and the Rebels coaches are anxious to get the rookie into the lineup.

"He played well for us during the preseason," said Rebels assistant Dallas Gaume. "We really like the offensive instincts he shows. He's got good hands.

"You give him the puck around the net and he'll put it in for you. What he needs to work on is his skating and his play without the puck, but we're looking forward to getting him back."

Gaume said the most likely scenario would have Stephenson moving on to the active roster following Red Deer's three-game tour of British Columbia Nov. 8-11.

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Michael Garnett will likely start in the Red Deer net tonight.

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Red Deer native Diarmuid Kelly is expected to make his Rebels debut Saturday when the Prince Albert Raiders visit the Centrium for a 7:30 p.m. contest. The 18-year-old forward, acquired from Kelowna Oct. 3, hasn't played since suffering a concussion during the Rockets final preseason game in mid-September.