Like most hockey players, Prince Albert Raiders defenceman Benett Kelly gets lots of advice from his father.
Of course, when your dad put up 254 points in four WHL seasons, there's a bit more incentive to listen.
Kelly's father Steve suited for 271 games with the Raiders between 1992 and 1996, then dressed for 149 more in an NHL career that took him from Edmonton to Tampa Bay to New Jersey to Los Angeles to Minnesota. It's that experience that carries a little extra weight when Kelly gets some fatherly advice.
"My dad's big on me for shooting the puck," the rookie Raider defenceman said following a 5-1 win over the Lethbridge Hurricanes on Dec. 13. "He knows I can get ahold of one if I really want to."
Shooting the puck is something the 6'2, 190 pounder from Cochrane, Alta has tried to do more of this year.
He got a taste of the WHL this season when he dressed for three games with the Raiders. He also practiced with the team the season before after his Calgary U18 Prep squad was eliminated from the CSSHL playoffs.
This season, he's a full-time regular, dressing for all but one of Prince Albert's 32 games, and putting up three goals and eight assists in the process.
Typically, those goals coming off blasts from the point. Kelly's goal in the win over Lethbridge was typical: forward Maddix McCagherty sent a pass back to the blue line, and the Raider defenceman stepped into a shot that cleanly beat Hurricane netminder Koen Cleaver.
"Big shout-out to my teammates, obviously," Kelly said. "They've been helping me a lot back there. They're moving, they're getting open, and they're making it easy on me to get those assists and finding me in the open ice, which is unreal.... It's good to contribute, obviously, to the team, but it's all thanks to them."
While Kelly frequently credits his father's tips or his teammates' talents for any offensive success, there may be a third reason for his solid play on the Raider blue line.
Most of the Raiders have gone with green sticks this season. Kelly is one of the few to go with the yellow. So far, the results have been good.
"I might have to stick around with the yellow for a few more games, see how it works," he said with a smile. "But, I've got a few green ones back here I might have to go back to if the other ones stop working as they are."
The Prince Albert Raiders are off until Dec. 27 when they face the Swift Current Broncos in Swift Current. The two teams meet gain on Monday, Dec. 29. Both games start at 7 p.m.