Playing in the Ontario Hockey League has long been a dream for Hunter Haight.
A dream that really took off back in 2013 as a minor atom player while closely watching then Elgin-Middlesex Chiefs minor midget star forward Travis Konecny go through his OHL draft year and become the first-overall pick of the Ottawa 67's.
Following Konecny – now one of the top scorers with the Philadelphia Flyers – as he chased his dreams in the same minor hockey organization as him was all the inspiration the young Haight needed.
"I got to watch him through that process and got to know him throughout the year," said the 16-year-old Strathroy native, whose own dream came true earlier this month when the Barrie Colts selected him ninth overall in this year's 2020 OHL Priority Selection. "(Konecny's) the one that made me fall in love with the game, watching him and watching him develop throughout the years."
Haight says he learned a lot from his hockey idol's journey and that education continues every summer when he heads to the Western Fair Sports Centre in London.
"I get the opportunity in London to train with guys like Bo Horvat (Vancouver) and Travis Konecny (Philadelphia) and Boone Jenner (Columbus) because they all come back to train down at the Western Fair," said the five-foot-nine, 145-pound centre, who signed with the Colts earlier this week. "I'm in the same gym with them. I get to watch them, see their work ethic and how hard they push in the offseason and it's just inspiring.
"It makes me want it even more."
Hearing his name called by Barrie early in the draft made all that hard work and time on the ice worth it.
"My goal has always been to go in the first round, go as high as I can," said Haight, who says he had a pretty good idea the night before the April 7 draft the Colts would select him. "I put in a lot of work over the years and it's nice to be rewarded getting drafted in the first round, especially to a team like Barrie.
"It's a good feeling."
Haight took his game to another level with the Chiefs last season. The highly skilled and speedy centre racked up 32 goals and 26 assists for 58 points in 33 regular-season games before leading Elgin-Middlesex to the Alliance League championship with 11 goals and 15 assists in 16 playoff games.
"He has excellent speed, including a few different gears through the neutral zone and can really push defenders back on their heels," said Colts general manager and head scout Jason Ford in a recent release. "He has very good hockey sense and can make plays at high speeds.
"Hunter is a well-rounded hockey player with the ability to finish. He competes at both ends of the ice and is a character kid."
Haight got stronger and stronger as his minor midget year went on and he credits that to his maturity level increasing.
That growth in his game is important for a player who wants to be counted on in every situation on the ice.
"The way I see it, character is a big thing for me. Leadership as well," he said. "I always want to be that guy the team can go to or they can lean on my shoulders to get something done. I love playing on teams where guys click and you can rely on each other and have that chemistry."
An elite skater, Haight is thrilled to be joining a Colts team that loves to skate and is on the rise in the OHL. He looks forward to taking the ice with the likes of top NHL prospect Tyson Foerster and rising blue-line star Brandt Clarke.
"Barrie's going to have a great team these upcoming years and I want to be able to contribute to that," he said. "It's exciting."
So is, he says, getting the opportunity to play for Dale Hawerchuk. The Colts head coach, who is hoping to return behind the bench this season after an eight-month battle with stomach cancer, has helped shape the careers of current NHL stars such as Mark Scheifele, Aaron Ekblad and Kevin Labanc.
"It would mean a lot," Haight said. "He knows the game, he's been there ... a first-overall pick. He's a Hall of Famer and he knows the game and can teach it well. It'd mean a lot. It's going to help my game to better develop and become more rounded."
The playmaker says he was raised with a pass-first mentality. Someone who has always been able to create plays and make things happen for his teammates. He admits he was never much a goalscorer, but that changed this year when his skill set increased and led to more opportunities and scoring chances.
Still he sees himself as a 200-foot player.
"If you have a good defence, good defence leads to offensive opportunity," Haight said. "So, if you're able to get the puck out of your own zone and prevent scoring chances for the other team it'll lead to more offensive opportunities."
With COVID-19 bringing an early end to the hockey season and requiring everyone to stay home, Haight admits it hasn't been easy. He's kept busy with online schooling and finishing off his term, while doing what he can to keep in shape at home.
"I have a little setup in the basement," he said. "I shoot pucks, get my workouts in. I rollerblade as much as possible around the block. I do what I can."
Haight learned from Konecny that hard work can pay off. Now he hopes to follow the same path his idol took en route to playing at the game's highest level.
