Sam on Sports: Emerson Taylor
By Sam Laskaris
CURVE LAKE FIRST NATION – It remains to be seen how far he’ll go in the hockey world, but if this past season is any indication, Curve Lake First Nation teen Emerson Taylor will be going far in life.
That’s because when it comes to a commitment level, the 15-year-old would be near the top of any class.
Though he continued to live on his First Nation, Taylor would commute to Toronto about five times per week to play and practice with the Reps Hockey Club, an Under-16 AAA squad.
That commute would take about one hour and 40 minutes. Each way. Kudos to his father Gordie for handling all that driving.
Despite his time-consuming schedule to play in the Greater Toronto Hockey League (GTHL), the world’s largest youth circuit, Taylor was able to more than keep up with his schoolwork.
He’s finishing off his Grade 10 studies at Lakefield College School, an independent school located about 15 minutes from his home.
Taylor currently has an over-all average of about 85 per cent in his classes.
Besides suiting up for the Reps during the 2022-23 campaign, Taylor also played for a couple of other medal-winning teams.
In March, he toiled for a Curve Lake side, which played under the Hockey Equality banner, at the Little NHL tournament staged in Mississauga.
His team ended up winning the silver medal in the boys’ Under 18 competitive category at that event, the largest youth Indigenous tournament in Ontario.
Taylor also just returned from Winnipeg. He played for the Team Ontario male team that captured the silver medal at the National Aboriginal Hockey Championships.
Taylor and his teammates were beaten by Team Manitoba in the gold-medal match this past Saturday.
As for this coming season, Taylor is not quite sure at this point where he will end up.
He was selected by the Pennsylvania-based Erie Otters in the recent Ontario Hockey League draft.
Taylor is in the U.S. now, for the Otters’ three-day rookie camp which begins today (Friday) and continues until Sunday.
Since he does not turn 16 until September and the fact he was a late draftee in the 15th round, Taylor realizes he won’t be cracking the Erie lineup this coming season.
He might end up playing at the Junior A or Junior B levels. or he might return to the GTHL and continue honing his skills with an Under-18 AAA club.
Another possibility is perhaps heading off to play south of the border. He was drafted by the Maine-based Twin City Thunder in April.
The Thunder competes in the U.S. Premier Hockey League’s National Collegiate Development Conference.
NCAA schools are already showing some interest in Taylor. And so are various prep schools and hockey academies.
In order to concentrate on his hockey pursuits, Taylor will not be playing lacrosse this season… well, maybe not.
Even though he will not be playing in a regular league, he’s actually been invited to try out for the national boys’ under-17 field lacrosse squad. He’ll attend a three-day tryout camp in Whitby this July.
Any way you look at it, Taylor appears to have a bright future ahead of him, both on and off the ice.