Leeds Knights transition for Bow Neely made easier thanks to some familiar faces

Confirmed as being signed less than 24 hours before the opening night fixture against Bristol Pitbulls, the 19-year-old defenceman has proved a timely and most welcome addition.

His ability to settle into his new surroundings has been helped by having some familiar faces around, not least head coach Ryan Aldridge, who he played under at the Okanagan Hockey Academy in Swindon.

Throw into the mix team-mates Oli Endicott and fellow defenceman Bailey Perre - who were there at the same time - and it is almost like a home from home for the Calgary-born defensive lynchpin, who last year played for the South Shore Kings in the USA.

Of course, being part of a winning team also helps, the Knights sole defeat of the season so far at Milton Keynes Lightning being quickly erased thanks to a 9-1 thumping of the same opponents the following night at Elland Road Ice Arena.

“I was in the USA last year and I was looking for something different this coming season,” said Neely. “I know Bailey and Oli from Okanagan and obviously knew they were playing in Leeds. I felt like it would be a great spot to play and so I sent Ryan a message and it kind of went from there.

“It’s always great to see familiar faces in new places, it just helps a lot with getting into everything and helps you settle in better for sure."

During his time at Okanagan, Neely impressed when playing as captain under Aldridge before heading off to the ‘sister’ academy in Austria where he enjoyed a productive year, posting six fgoals and eight assists in 33 league and play-off games.

It was then that he made the return to North America, hooking up with the Kings, playing the majority of his ice time in the National Collegiate Development Conference, where he recorded four assists in 29 games before switching his sights back to the UK.

Working again with Aldridge – a British coach reknowned for developing young talent – was something that clearly appealed to Neely.

"Ryan is a great coach,” added Neely. “His communication is really good, he loves the game and so is really passionate about it.

"He’ll let you know if he wants to change something and so you need to be able to step up and show him that he wants to play you - you want that as a player, to make him want to play you.”

Aldridge knew what he was getting when he realised adding Neely to his roster – one hit by the loss of Sam Zajac and a pre-season injury to import-defenceman Noah McMullin – was possible.

The youngster believes his time in Europe and North America has helped him grow up fast – both on and off the ice.

"It has benefitted my game a lot, actually,” added Neely. “It’s kind of brought me out of a shell and has helped make me more of a confident player.

"I’m more confident in my game - probably because I’ve been thrown in at the deep end. It’s a completely new environment, you are kind of thrown in at the deep end and you have to figure out a way to swim.”