Jordan Harris believes he can handle life's pressures better today than he could a few months ago, which could be good news for the Prince George Cougars.
The 16-year-old told the Western Hockey League team last fall during training camp he wasn't ready to commit to the Cougars, but four months later he had a change of heart.
"I've done a lot of growing up myself and I've realized that being away from home isn't the end of the world," said Harris. "My family and parents are still there and still supporting me and I know I can call whenever."
The six-foot-one defenceman was the the Cougars first round (11th overall) draft selection in the 2011 bantam draft and had an opportunity to stay with the team after training camp last September but chose to return home.
"There is a lot of pressure and it's tough moving away from home for the first time but it's also pretty exciting for myself and my family," said Harris. "I'll have to face adversity and everything but I know I've got my team down there in the room and the coaching staff, I think they'll help me out a lot."
In his dream scenario Harris will make his WHL debut tonight, 7 p.m., when the Cougars (14-26-2-4) host the Prince Albert Raiders (27-15-1-3) at CN Centre, but first he needs medical clearance.
"I've been off a month with a concussion so not skating or doing any exercise might play a factor so I'll have to work more to get back into game shape and, hopefully jump into the lineup here soon," said Harris, adding if not tonight he'd like to make his Cougars' debut this weekend.
Harris suffered the concussion Dec. 13 when he was playing with the Prince Albert Mintos of the Saskatchewan Midget AAA Hockey League when a member of the Saskatoon Contacts checked him from behind. Before the check Harris had contributed two assists in the Mintos 4-2 win. He tallied nine helpers with the Mintos this season in 18 games after putting up 14 points (four goals) as a rookie with the Mintos.
Before he suffered the concussion, Harris said the season wasn't going as he'd expected with the Mintos and after long talks with his parents and Cougars general manager Dallas Thompson, he realized he would be better off packing his bags and moving to Prince George.
"I wasn't performing up to my level," said Harris. "Things [with the Mintos] were kind of below my level and I wasn't being pushed as much as I could've been."
Harris decided to join the Cougars for the remainder of the 2012-13 season and arrived in Prince George on Jan. 14.
