Last season was an education for David Stephens.

After a bumpy rookie campaign with the Edmonton Oil Kings, Stephens is back at the selection camp for the Western Hockey League club this week.

Unlike last year's camp – for which Stephens said he had "butterflies” – the Yukoner sounded much more comfortable while speaking to the Star in a phone interview this morning.

"I just had more confidence. Knowing most of the guys from last year made it a heck of a lot easier,” Stephens said.

"I didn't get as much ice, because (the coaching staff) said it was kind of a learning year for me, so I took as much as I could from it and tried bringing it in the camp this year. I'm hoping this year I'll be in the line up everyday, just work hard everyday, and hope we put up some numbers.”

In an injury-laden WHL debut, Stephens sniped just one goal and two assists in 30 games. When he cracked the line up, he was the fourth-line centre.

This year he's determined to make a bigger impact.

The 18-year-old arrived at training camp Aug. 31 for fitness testing.

Over the summer, fellow Whitehorse resident Jeane Lassen – who went to the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing – helped prepare Stephens.

"It was great,” he said of training with the Olympian. "I feel like I'm in really good shape. This week there was four games a day. I had to be in shape or I wouldn't be able to perform as good as I wanted. But I felt good and felt like I improved every game throughout camp.”

Roughly 60 players showed up for the camp. Within a week, that number was cut down to 36.

Over the past couple days, the coaching staff has been taking notes on Red vs.

White inter-squad games.

Last night, the number dwindled down to 26, Stephens said.

As a returning player, he's less worried than he was last year.

"If you play good you'll probably be on the team,” Stephens said.

"I was using my speed and the physical part of my game well and got a couple goals, so that was good.”

The Oil Kings will face off against the Swift Current Broncos Sunday and the Medicine Hat Tigers Monday in exhibition games.

The Edmonton club lost their pre-season opener 5-4 to the Broncos last year and 3-2 to the Tigers in their second exhibition game.

Stephens said the intensity of the WHL game made adapting to the league difficult last season.

"You really have to move the puck. You have the puck on your stick for about a second and then you have to make the play. That's what I thought. That's the biggest difference from the Western Hockey League to midget, just the pace.

You can't really skate the puck; you have to move it as fast as you can and get back into the open.”

Then there's the hitting.

"I didn't really notice that big of a difference. The guys are a lot bigger and stronger, so you have to come into camp prepared, as in the top shape as you can and as strong as you can so you're ready for that.”

Stephens made the jump to the WHL last season after putting in his time with the Prince George Cariboo Cougars in the BC Major Midget League (BCMML)

Being in and out of the Oil Kings line up last year was different from consistently clocking minutes in the BCMML, he said.

"It was kind of hard. This year I'm hoping it'll be different, but it's just all about how I perform,” he said.

"I was coming to the rink prepared like I was going to play, but if not we'd just have to go work out with the other guys who weren't playing. You just come to the rink thinking you're going to play and just not – you can't do much about it.”

Stephens is not the first Yukoner to play major junior hockey. His brother Ted played for the Moncton Wildcats in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, even helping the club reach the Memorial Cup in 2010.

The work necessary to reach such heights doesn't sound lost on David.

"It's like a job, basically,” the younger Stephens said. "When you get to the rink, you get to work. Coaches expect you to work as hard as you can. The atmosphere is pretty intense, just a lot of hard work. You go to the rink and you're just so tired afterwards.