HALIFAX -- Josh Morrissey and Eric Roy's Team Cherry didn't have much luck on Wednesday at the Home Hardware Top Prospects Game in Halifax.
But it wasn't the 3-0 loss to Team Orr in front of a sold-out Metro Centre that the pair wanted to talk about.
Morrissey, the Prince Albert Raiders defenceman, and Roy, a Beauval product who plays for the Brandon Wheat Kings, both said it was an amazing experience.
"Obviously you want to win and there are some rivalries and stuff with some of your buddies on the other team but at the end of the day it's all about showcasing yourself," Morrissey said shortly after the game.
"And at the end of the day, you obviously play better when you win but I think everyone showed pretty well."
Roy was also pleased with the experience.
"It's been awesome," he said. "I feel very honoured that I was selected to be in this Top Prospects Game. It's a lot of fun to be here. It's a bunch of great guys. It's just really exciting."
Neither started the game but Morrissey was out for the second shift while Roy was out for the third.
It must have felt like a home game for both. Team Cherry was the crowd favourite with three members of the hometown Halifax Mooseheads on the team in front of a noisy sold-out building.
Morrissey was on the ice for the first Team Orr goal but was tied up with his man in front when the shot went in from the side.
He nearly snuck a wrist in a couple minutes into the second as his shot somehow found its way through a maze of bodies but narrowly missed the net.
The two briefly shared the ice six minutes into the second after Roy's defensive partner changed for Morrissey as Roy lugged the puck up the ice.
Roy said it's a very different game than in the WHL.
"It's a lot quicker," Roy said. "At the start of the game it was intense. It was a lot of fun, out here working hard. All of the guys wanted to move up in the rankings. It was a good game. Team Orr came to play and so did we; it was a good, hard-paced game."
Morrissey broke up a partial breakaway with seven minutes left in the second with some nifty stick work.
He earned some powerplay time early in the third on the first minor penalty of the game while Roy started the second power play several minutes later.
Neither was successful.
Morrissey had the best chance of the two in the third when a pass came to him in the low slot. Unfortunately for the Raider, the puck bounced on him and by the time he knocked it down to his stick, goaltender Philippe Desrosiers was in position.
Morrissey noted that he's played with many of the guys at a couple of tournaments but this was different.
"It's nice to play those guys in the middle of the draft year and compare yourself, have a little fun and intensity," he said. "It was a good experience."
Roy later spent time on the penalty kill, further providing him a chance to showcase his skills.
"I thought I played very well," Roy said. "I kept it simple."
Team Cherry coach Don Cherry liked both the game and his two defencemen with the ties to Saskatchewan.
"I think they're a little disappointed right now," he said, noting that Team Orr had a tremendous first period. "They really wanted to win the game ... They played well."
While Morrissey mentioned how quickly the time passed since his arrival on Monday, he did leave with an important lesson.
"I think what you take away is you go into anything like this, the (NHL players') combine or whatever, you don't sit back," Morrissey said. "From day one you give'er as hard as you can. As I'm seeing right now, it goes by pretty fast. There's no time to look around or let someone else go first. You have to be that guy to take charge."
Notes: Morrissey wore his usual 10 while Roy wore 7, which he wears for the Wheat Kings ... The other East Division player on the ice was Morgan Klimchuk of the Regina Pats, who also suited up for Team Cherry ... Mike McPhee coached Team Orr ... The WHL sent 11 players to the game; the OHL led with 16 while the QMJHL sent 13 ... The Metro Centre was sold out ... Six players on the ice participated in the recent World Junior Championship. They included Canadians Jonathon Drouin and Nathan MacKinnon, Americans Seth Jones and Ryan Hartman, Swede Nick Sorensen and Switzerland's Mirco Mueller ... The game was played in Saskatchewan in 2002 when Saskatoon hosted ... Roy was the only Saskatchewan player in the game. There was also just one Manitoban. Ontario had 12 players in the game ... Morrissey is ranked 11th among North American skaters while Roy is 39th. His Wheat King teammate Ryan Pulock is ranked sixth but missed the game due to injury ... NHL Hall of Famers Steve Yzerman and Mark Messier were among the many former players, scouts and hockey executives in attendance ...
