Hayden-James Berra counts his blessings every time he laces his skates for the Cariboo Cougars.
"I only have one shot at it here and I'm not taking it for granted and trying to make the most of it," said the 17-year-old rookie in the B.C. Major Midget League. "I love being here. I love the guys. I love what the league has to offer. It's been an awesome ride so far."
In the absence of two veteran teammates on the weekend Berra contributed five points, three goals and two assists, as the Cougars earned three of four points against the Valley West Hawks in a 5-2 win Saturday and a 2-2 draw Sunday at Kin 1.
"I thought our effort was consistent and their two goals [Sunday] were just two flaws - two unfortunate ones at that," said Berra after the Hawks erased a 2-0 deficit with a couple of goals off bounces in front of the Cougars' net.
Nathan Craft and Colton Manning missed the two weekend games with concussion-like symptoms and a sprained ankle, respectively.
"Losing two guys like that, especially against a team like the Hawks, that's really hard on us especially for the younger guys, but when guys like that go down other guys have to step up," said Berra. "It's just part of hockey."
Berra joined the Cougars out of training camp in September after spending two seasons playing midget triple-A hockey in Prince George, following a similar path as older brother RJay. The elder Berra sibling cracked the Cougars' lineup at 17 and then went on to play two and a half seasons for the Prince George Spruce Kings in the British Columbia Hockey League before finishing his career in Alberta with the junior A Grande Prairie Storm. RJay led the BCHL in points before being traded and his accumulated totals in his final year were: 42 points and 83 points in 61 games.
These days RJay skates with the Oswego State Lakers in New York where he's played in two games as a freshman for the 10-2-2 Lakers.
"It just goes to show you that hard work and just giving it your best and not taking the here and now for granted gets you places," said the younger Berra, admitting it would be nice to continue to follow his brother's path but right now he's just interested in trying to help the Cougars make it to the Telus Cup.
"If I can move on next year that would be huge, it's definitely my goal, and I'll take it from there and see what happens," he said. "I'm only 17 so I'm taking it day-by-day and just hoping for the best here."
This season with the Cougars, the five-foot-11, 175-pound forward has put up 11 goals and 19 points in 21 games and sits 23rd in league scoring and sixth among Cougars' players.
Cougars' assistant coach Bryan MacLean said despite Berra's official rookie status on the club he's looked up to by his teammates.
"He's a good leader on the team and it's nice to see him succeeding," said MacLean. "He's a humble kid and he knows the game and he's not afraid to tell his teammates when they're doing well or if they're doing bad. He holds himself accountable as well.
"It's great for him to have that experience coming in here," added MacLean. "He is a rookie, but we still kind of lean on him for a lot of leadership."
Berra and the Cougars will be in Coquitlam for the annual all-star weekend where all 10 major midget clubs will play their games at Planet Ice. The Cougars (15-7-4) play the Vancouver NE Chiefs (15-6-3) on Saturday at 4 p.m. and Sunday at noon.
