Face it. When the Victoria Royals open up rookie camp this morning at Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre, Joe Hicketts will not be considered just an ordinary Joe.
Not when you're the 12th overall selection of the 2011 Western Hockey League bantam draft, considered to be one of the finest young defenceman in the province, with great expectations and can't-miss potential.
But the WHL isn't usually a welcoming ground for 16-year-old rearguards looking to display their wares against players who can be four years their elder, with much more size and strength.
"I'm ready," Hicketts said of his first true opportunity to make the big club after playing one game with the Royals as an affiliated player last year. "I'm just going to let the expectations slide and just perform my best, that's my mindset coming in. I'm just going to let my on-ice performance do the talking.
"I'm really looking forward to it. I've been working hard for the last year and a half for this. I got drafted and this is the year I want to do something."
And the Royals want nothing more from the Kamloops native who was an assistant captain last season within the midget program at the Okanagan Hockey Academy in Penticton.
At just five-foot-eight, Hicketts isn't a standout size wise, but he does carry a 180-pound frame and his skills make up for his height.
"He's a great character kid," said Grant Armstrong, Royals' director of player personnel. "He's going to be, at some point, a huge contributor to the group in terms of being the leader and the kind of guy that runs your power play and does good things from the offensive-side of defence."
But it could take some time.
"It's always tough for a 16-year-old, at any stage, to come in," said Armstrong.
"They have to learn the game, they have to learn to be patient and make adjustments. In most cases, as a 16-year-old, you're not going to play every night.
"They get their feet wet, they troll along and then all of a sudden, as it gets closer to Christmas, they get more confident. By the end of the season they feel that they are a contributing factor."
Hicketts, who arrived Wednesday with the rest of the Royals' recruits as they begin rookie camp today, is anxious to get going. He hadn't previously talked to either general manager Cam Hope or head coach Dave Lowry since the club changed its hierarchy, but had discussions with Armstrong.
"He said he just wants me to come in and work hard. I'm going in wanting to make the team," added Hicketts. "There are no guarantees in anything. You have to give it your all and see where it takes you from there.
"There aren't a lot of spots open for 16-year-old defencemen so I want to prove to the entire league that I can play as a 16-year-old and excel at that level."
Exactly what the Royals want to hear, but more importantly see as scrimmages will go all day at Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre, from 8: 15 a.m. to 10 p.m. until Sunday when it's cut short to 2: 45 p.m. The sessions remain open to the public.
"Joe is one of those guys that oozes his personality," said Armstrong. "He's not going to be hard on himself. He's going to be a student of the game throughout the season and roll with it."
His smarts and a good stick should help him out of the trickier situations as he adjusts to major junior hockey.
"He does a good job of positioning himself to eliminate that big guy from getting to the net," said Armstrong. "He's going to be a good one - a real good junior hockey player, who when he leaves Victoria at age 21, he's going to have a nice junior hockey career behind him."
ON THE ICE
TODAY
8 a.m. - 10: 15 p.m. - scrimmages
FRIDAY
8 a.m. - 10: 15 p.m. - scrimmages
SATURDAY
8 a.m. - 10: 15 p.m. - scrimmages
SUNDAY
8 a.m. - 2: 45 p.m. - scrimmages
