Junior Raiders defenceman Lochlan Morrison knows how to keep his buddies happy.

"Ah, just give them the puck and they'll go bury it," Morrison said of snipers Matthew Campese and Reed Gunville. "That's pretty much it."

At the same time, Morrison does his job in shutting down opponents.

"I just try to defend," he said. "Try to keep it out of my net and everything."

Campese, Gunville and Morrison are working overtime this season. The three Prince Albert residents are playing spring hockey with the Junior Raiders, who are made up of 1997-born players from Saskatchewan. They wrap up their season this weekend with a Winnipeg tournament that begins Thursday.

"It's probably the biggest one, because there's teams from everywhere going to this one," said Gunville, a 13-year-old centre. "Vancouver, Minnesota (and) I think some teams are coming in from Ontario, Alberta and here."

Earlier this spring, the Junior Raiders participated in tournaments in Minnesota and Calgary.

Campese, a 12-year-old winger, ranks the Calgary tourney as "probably the best part" of the spring season thus far.

"We came so close to (winning) the finals," he said. "We went 5-0, and then had a really heartbreaking loss to the same (northern Alberta) team we beat 6-3 in the round-robin."

Campese, Gunville and Morrison are assistant captains with the Junior Raiders. They were winter teammates with the peewee AA Prince Albert NAPA Ice.

High-scoring linemates Gunville and Campese were the top point-getters in the Centre-Four Hockey League. In 22 games, Gunville had 89 points, including 55 assists, while Campese collected 44 goals and 87 points.

"We play pretty well together," Campese said. "Reed is more of a playmaker, but he can snipe a few in, too. That's mainly how it worked. He'd just make amazing plays to me and I'd finish them off right by the net.

"At the beginning of the year, I thought I'd be in the 15-goal, 30-point range. This year has been amazing. My coaches and linemates have been good. It's been great."

Gunville described himself and Campese as "danglers." They've been reunited lately as linemates with the Junior Raiders, who count on Morrison for his solid defensive play.

"Loch is a big D-man that hits and has a hard shot," said Gunville, five-foot-three and 100 pounds.

"Matthew is fast, with dangles and a hard shot."

Although they have not yet turned 13, Campese and Morrison bring relative size to the table. Campese is five-foot-eight and 144 pounds, while Morrison is more than five-foot-seven and 140 pounds.

Morrison was the top-scoring defenceman with the NAPA Ice, posting 34 points in 21 games. Now in his seventh year of spring hockey, Morrison said his school friends are envious of his extracurricular excursions.

"We've got great coaches that teach us lots of things," he said. "And we learn more in practice. It's a great experience."

Life experiences are part of the fun.

"In Minnesota, we went to the America Mall," Morrison said. "That was fun. Lots of roller-coasters and everything."

And the hockey lives up to its AAA billing.

"It's pretty good competition," Gunville said. "There's a lot of high-end players. There's no weak ones."

The Junior Raiders wear the colours of the WHL's Prince Albert Raiders.

Campese is the son of Raiders coach and general manager Bruno Campese.

Morrison's father, Ken, played with the Raiders, and he's an assistant coach with the Junior Raiders. Gunville's father, Ron, is also a graduate of the Raiders.

Campese, Gunville and Morrison are poised to remain teammates next season as members of the bantam AA Prince Albert Venice House Pirates.

"This summer, I'm gong to be working out and working on my cardio, for sure," Campese said.

"I played centre, basically all my life, but at the beginning of the year, I got moved to left wing and I've enjoyed it a lot.

"As a winger, I can use my speed to my advantage and I've got a pretty good shot. I like to make plays around me. I want to make my teammates better."

Although they come from different towns and cities, the Junior Raiders have bonded well.

"This team has pretty good chemistry," said Campese, who will celebrate his 13th birthday in December.

"We've become good friends. We grew together as a team."