As the 2022 off-season approaches, the Rhinos are turning their focus to the NAHL draft as well as summer tryout camps. El Paso will host their first camp, Development Camp, in Rhino Country from June 7 to June 11. Subsequently, the NAHL Draft will take place before the off-season culminates in El Paso’s Main Camp.
“The camp process is very important for our program. Finding free-agents to round out our roster is a key piece of our summer recruiting,” explains Anthony Bohn, Head Coach of the El Paso Rhinos.
Two players, Evan Miles and Bryce Bollman, who attended Development Camp last summer earned a spot on the Rhinos’ final roster.
Evan Miles, a forward from Mesquite, TX was added to the active roster early in the season. “Attending the Rhinos’ Development Camp gave me a great chance to see the city of El Paso, meet the staff, and learn what it means to play in Rhino Country. It also provided me the opportunity to prove that I could play in the NAHL,” said Miles.
In February, the Rhinos acquired forward Bryce Bollman through a trade at the deadline, but the acquisition was possible only because Bollman had been seen by staff at Development Camp. Bollman recalled, “I was very lucky to be able to attend the Rhinos’ Development Camp last summer. Even though I was drafted by another team in the league, by getting to know the organization and staff in the summer, I was comfortable making the transition to El Paso at the deadline when the opportunity came.”
Bohn explains that these tryout camps give players the opportunity to make a first, and lasting, impression on the organization. “We know that what we see at these camps is just a small sample of what players can do. Bryce and Evan both came through the process and took two very different paths to arrive in El Paso. But, because they came to our camp, we were confident bringing them in. They have now become valuable pieces of what we are building in El Paso,” said Bohn.
Camps are important because they make players visible and give them the opportunity to grow within our organization and build for the future or make an immediate impact on the 2022-2023 El Paso Rhinos team.
