Just when Evgeni, Sidney, and Miroslav thought it was safe to go into the water…
they encountered the trapping Orcas and their Head Whale, Roberto….
CANUCKS DECIMATE THE PENGUINS
JuSaturday08 31, 2008 · No Comments
→ No CommentsCategories: HOCKEY HUMOUR
Tagged: Pittsburgh Penguins, Vancouver Canucks
GAME 20: THE HOCKEY TEAM FORMERLY KNOWN AS THE NORTH STARS
JuFriday08 31, 2008 · No Comments
by desertdawg
I remember when they announced that the North Stars were moving to Dallas and it seemed that, outside of about 12,000 local fans, no one seemed to care. The answer to every query was, well, Minnesota has College Hockey and the best high school hockey tournament in the world. Who needs professionals?
Minneapolis itself is a surprisingly cosmoplitan city. It has a great University and teaching hospital, an active arts community and of course, The Mall Of America…so big you can actually see Sarah Palin’s front door from the top of LegoLand.
Oh yeah, and Prince.
I have to tell you, with all the accolades that the movie Purple Rain received, I just can’t get the scene, where Prince has a slap fight with his step father, out of my mind. Gretzky fighting Neal Broten had more testosterone.
Who’s the bitthh now, bitth!!!
So let’s get all our excuses out before the game. Our blueline has been decimated by injury and influenza. Back to back games in two different time zones. Our backup goalie playing…wth a neck strain! Against a Wild Team that is as relentless as the Zombies in The Evil Dead.
But we never go against the 1st Hockey Commandment that Moses skated down the mountain with:
Thou shalt not complain about the referees.
And they make that tough in the first period. I mean Shane O’Brien gets the extra two minutes for slashing? Ignore the injustice boys and use it as motivation.
There is a way to beat the Wild, and Coach V. happens to know what it is.
Vigneault was a marginal player, therefore a student of the game. Jacques Lemaire was not a marginal player. He was actually quite brilliant (just ask Guy Lafleur all you Chuck fans) but also a student of the game.
The way to beat the Wild, is to play like the Wild.
Very Zen.
We are the Wild.
Okay, but it’s not that much of a stretch. The first period, where conventional wisdom says the team travelling in back to backs will have trouble getting their legs going, is a wash, largely because we switched from being the offensive powerhouse, to becomming the patient, defense-first, short-passes-to- heaven type of team that Jacques imagines in the privacy of his boudoir.
By himself, of course.
So it zzzzzero, to ahhh, zzzzzero after the first.
By the way, making Kerry Frazer wear a helmet is redundant. Have you seen that hairdoo recently? Kerry’s doo was given a five star, crash safety rating by Consumer Reports. At this point, as Seinfeld said…he’s protecting the helmet.
The second period defies conventional wisdom again. You know, the stuff that says, you must get the first goal against the Wild. Because if they score first, they play a defensive game that is impenetrable.
But Miko Koivu comes in on the left wing and wires a shot past Sanford. Man, I’ve seen that goal before and so have you. Shrug it off.
And just as the Wild are settling in to their role of easy victors, Steve Bernier suddenly comes alive and buries the worst chance he’s had in seven games. Even looked like he meant to do it. We’re tied, but more importantly, we seem loose, almost in charge.
The refereeing suddenly catches up to reality and we get a PP. And Shorty details the stats for John Garrett. The Wild haven’t scored shorthanded. The Canucks have not allowed a shorthanded goal.
If that’s not a curse, then I turn in my membership to the Santeria/Voodoo/Chicken Gumbo Society. And of course, Miko Koivu gets a bounce from Baby Jesus and the Wild score their first shorthanded goal of the season.
Hello, Koivu.
I wonder if Matty Ohlund would consider another half dozen game suspension.
Okay, we got lucky on the Bernier goal. But no one ever comes back twice against Minney. Lemair had it written into his contract. And then Demitra shoves it in their face and we are tied up. Talk about déjà vu. And Jacques is seen to wipe his mug and mutter something out of a Joseph Conrad novel.
The horror…the horror.
Somehow, we not only come out of the period tied up, we look relaxed…almost as relaxed as the Edmonton Oilers out of the playoffs and putting together a win streak in March.
And the third period shows what a team is.
They play for each other. Here’s a guy, Curtis Sanford, who only gets to practice. He knows that he will only play seven maybe eight games this year. And like I said at the beginning…all of our excuses are lined up. Flu, back to back, different time zones, and of course, the Minnesota Wild. One of the best teams in the NHL…
…who curiously come out flat in the third period.
It’s like they know they will win, just keep pressuring these old Canucks…they’ll break. They always do. But I’ve been saying this since the beginning of the year. These are the new Canucks. These are the guys who trust each other. These are the guys that Gillis has been building into a team since the summer.
We just keep pushing the Wild back every time they pressure us. We chip it out and wait. Chip it out and wait. Our PP solves nothing, but the puck movement is a work of art.
They pressure us, we chip it out.
Until one memorable shift that finished at the 11:41 mark of the 3rd period when the Pavol Sedin line paints a beauty. Shorty says that Backstrom over-committed on the play. But the fact is, Backstrom knows this guy. Pavol will shoot from anywhere. He has to play him.
Except this time.
Pavol spots his brother Daniel, whose slump is now a distant memory, and Daniel unleashes a one-timer into the far corner of the net, even though the net is virtually empty.
They show Jacques after the goal and he doesn’t disappoint. He unleashes his best Glenn Sather smirk. You can see the vein pulsing right through that Rogain-roughed forehead. Watch us now Canooks. Crush you! We will crush your puny heads.
So they pressure…and we chip.
And before we know it, there is seven seconds left and Daniel Sedin takes the best penalty of the game.
It’s over.
We out wild the Wild and solidify our hold on first place.
The Dawg’s 3 Stars.
1) Pavol Demitra…a goal and an assist against the old Lemaire regime.
2) Curtis Sanford…a win that his teammates wanted.
3) Miko Koivu…Hate him. Love to have him.
Unsung hero: Willie Mitchell…the other ex-Wild, who played with a temperature of 102 degrees and used his long stick and big body to continually ride the Wild outside his blueline…and get a key assist…and is now +14 on the season.
→ No CommentsCategories: OPINION - BILL HEINTZ
Tagged: North Stars
GAME 19: THE ART OF WAR
JuThursday08 31, 2008 · No Comments
by desertdawg
Contrary to popular belief, mark messier was never a Vancouver Canuck. You have to backcheck at least three times before you can call yourself a Canuck (or have your name printed in upper case)
The truth is messier really only played his heart out for two teams: The Edmonton Oilers and The New York Rangers. For the Canucks, he just played his time out (My pal Ron Spence said at the time, “We wanted the Captain and ended up with Tenille.”).
The other truth is, that messier‘s teams…he was often called the greatest leader in hockey…did not make the playoffs the last nine years that he played. Yes, he won some Cups, but I have a long memory. I’m even a bit of an old fart (hell, yesterday, I walked around the house for half a day with my shorts on backwards) and I clearly remember that Oiler dynasty in the 80s. Wayne Gretzky, Jari Kurri, Paul Coffey, Glenn Anderson and Grant Fuhr were not led by mark messier. He was a cog in the great superstar wheel managed by Glenn Sather.
Yes, he won a cup after Gretz left, and we can all remember the heroic picture of him limping onto the ice after Esa Tikanen scored a winning goal. That one team was led by messier. But check out the roster. There were other Hall of Famers on that team as well.
The same is true of the ‘94 Rangers. There were a couple of other Hall of Famers on that team…and it was Mike Richter and Brian Leetch who won that seventh game in Madison Square Garden. messier and keenan could gave stayed home.
Markus Nazlund, who many people say was the greatest Canuck (I’ll say one of…but not THE greatest) always said that messier taught the team how to win. It’s a great line and a fine sentiment, but we didn’t make the playoffs even once while messier floated around the perimeter of the play. How did he lead…by living in Washington State? By being given special days off? By being handed the captaincy when we had one of the two best Captains to ever play in Vancouver in Trevor Linden (and a tip of the brandy snifter to Stan Smyl as the other great cappy). mark messier the great leader?
Sounds more like the Eric Lindros Leadership Correspondent Course.
So Nazzy is a Ranger now. I have no problem with Nazlund by the way. It’s just that you had to watch some Ingmar Bergman films to understand him. Happiness is not an elemental part of the Swedish makeup. I loved the guy, and I’m pretty sure he loved Vancouver.
It was just so damned hard and depressing at the end.
I wish him well as a Ranger, just not tonight…and also, not if we meet them in the finals.
To the game: the first period is notable for three breakaways. I would not have guessed a Tom Renney coached team to be vulnerable to odd man rushes let alone breakaways. Everyone who has ever played the game knows that when everything is going well you see nothing but net. Wellwood makes a terrific move, backhand to forehand, and slides it in, making Lundquist look worse than ordinary. Mason Raymond, who’s speed continues to amaze as I write this, sees nothing but goalie pads.
And a guy like Burrows, who makes some of the prettiest dekes in all of hockey, briefly looks up and sees Lundquist leaning right, so he fires a low shot to the left stick side and catches a some glory.
Good period for the Canucks.
Nazlund is mentioned three times, curiously all defensive plays. The MSG announcers speak highly of Nazzy’s six goals and eight assists so far. Fourteen points? If he was putting up low numbers like that in Vancouver, there would be demands to re-instate capital punishment.
Three things in the second period.
One thing , for me anyway, it shows the difference between Luongo and Lundquist. As far as every Ranger fan and commentator is concerned, Lundquist is THE goalie. THE Vezina winner. THE heir to Marty Brodeur.
But you tell me. Would Roberto Luongo pull himself, even though he was down by four goals, when his team was facing a five on three? I don’t care how bad he was playing (and Lundqusit couldn’t be faulted on the actual goals) Luongo would not have left his team with a cold goalie in a five on three situation.
Shame on Lundquist.
Two, Wellwood is a keeper. No more argument. He doesn’t score every time. But there is no better puck handler out there tonight. Too much evidence. Sign him to an extension now Mr. Gillis. Now my grandson, Drew Baird loves Wellwood but wonders whether we should wait until he cools off…and then sign him cheap. Good point. But I do think that Wellwood has the best hands on the Canucks roster…maybe the best hands since a guy who wore number 19 for us for quite a few years.
Three, that replay goal was in…every Canuck fan knows this. But we are not Edmonton Oiler fans. We don’t whine about the reffing. We are Canucks. Demitra responds to the rip off by putting in a beaut off the post, chasing Mrs. Lundquist from the nets.
The period ends with O’Brien mouthing off to McCreary. I don’t blame Shane here. He knows the Ranger player fell on Luongo on purpose. He mounts the guy, gives him a couple of dry ones for his trouble and skates to the box. Kill the four minutes boys and show ‘em who’s in charge.
The third period…and it’s cat and mouse. The good news:
We’re the cat.
The Rangers manage to make it interesting as Markus makes a nice pass to Callahan and even then, Roberto almost makes the Ringling Brothers save on the goal.
But even Shane O’Brien’s fifth penalty can’t help out the Broadway Blues tonight and Daniel Sedin tips in an empty netter with 2.3 seconds remaining.
We leave the New York area with three out of four points…first place in the division…with a game coming up against the only team that might say otherwise:
Minnesota in November.
Ah, Hockey..
The Dawg’s Three Stars:
1) Burrows…every time he shot the puck, Lundquist wasn’t ready.
2) Luongo…every time the Rangers really needed a goal, he stoned ‘em.
3) Callahan…have to admit, kid’s a player.
Unsung Hero: Wellwood, started us off and dazzled us throughout.
→ No CommentsCategories: OPINION - BILL HEINTZ
Tagged: Mark Messier, Markus Naslund
NHL CONTRACTS: MORENZ TO MALKIN
JuThursday08 31, 2008 · No Comments
by Ron Spence
NHL salaries have changed since the 1920s, and so have the contracts.
Below are NHL contracts from 1926, 1962, and 2006.
The first contract was between Howie Morenz and the Montreal Canadiens: 
The second contract was signed by Harry Howell when he was playing for the New York Rangers.
The third contract was between the Pittsburgh Penguins (aka the Lemieux Group L.P.) and Evgeni Malkin (courtesy of Daniel Tolensky):
Ron Spence
→ No CommentsCategories: HISTORY
Tagged: Montreal Canadiens, Howie Morenz, New York Rangers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Harry Howell, Evgeni Malkin
Game 18: QUIT THAT OR I’LL REALLY GIVE YOU SOMETHING TO CRY ABOUT
JuTuesday08 31, 2008 · No Comments
by desertdawg
In a game that had all the excitement of Britney Spears’ performance at the MTV awards, the Canucks were lulled to sleep by the straight ahead, nothing fancy, stay in your lanes game of the New York Islanders.
These are the toughest games to win and without making excuses for the boys from the west coast, it becomes difficult to get the emotions going against guys you really don’t care about. Yes, they are professionals and they are paid big money to get it going against one of the league’s lesser lights. But it’s not always that easy. This is still the NHL.
Just ask the Ottawa Senators who just lost a home and home against these same Islanders. Ottawa committed numerous turn-overs against a team whose only star is out once again with a bad hip, a bad knee and a bad contract.
Joey Buttafucco is a Long Islander more well known than this collection of no-names.
So how did we lose?
Well, lack of emotion is always a killer. Outside of the reliable Kesler/Burrows/Hanson line, the Canucks were skating like the Ambien hadn’t worn off yet. So pick out your favourite whipping boy and have at it.
All the fans that want to trade Matty Ohlund to your left…all those who want to get rid of Taylor Pyatt please line up to your right.
But look folks, it’s an 82 game schedule and we won’t be able to get the hate going every game. The good news is, the old Canucks would have lost this game. Markus (and I loved the guy) would have scored the first goal of the game and then skated to the bench with a look on his face like his hemorrhoids were acting up again. The Sedins would have cycled the puck endlessly without getting one shot on net and Big Lou would have let a softy get by him in the third period and we would have had the big L for the effort.
We’ll take the loser’s point here and re-group.
This is a team with sound management, good coaching and emerging talent. We are playoff contenders…we are in first place in the division.
Move the ceremonial knife away from your abdomen and take a deep breath.
The boys won’t be happy with this game and that’s not a bad attitude to skate into the next game with. They need to show Markus and the New York media that these Canucks will be heard from.
→ No CommentsCategories: OPINION - BILL HEINTZ
Tagged: Taylor Pyatt
ISLANDERS TODAY LIKE CANUCKS OF YESTERDAY
JuMonday08 31, 2008 · No Comments
The Islanders of today remind me of the Canucks of yesterday - bringing up prospects too soon to see if they will sink or swim.
Greg Logan of Newsday writes:
“[Because the Islanders have traded away so much of their talent in the past] GM Garth Snow and coach Scott Gordon are dedicated to the development of the franchise’s latest first-round picks, Josh Bailey and Kyle Okposo, who combined to produce the first goal in the Isles’ 3-1 win Thursday night in Ottawa.
It was one step in the right direction of the long journey to respectability that lies ahead.
Nurturing the kids
In another setting with an established playoff team with plenty of top-line talent, the Islanders could bring their young players along gradually and put the pressure to produce all on the shoulders of the veterans. But new coach Gordon is in a different situation. He and Snow need to see what they have, so, they might ride a little longer with kids who aren’t producing right away to allow them to gain experience while building a body of work that will determine their future with the franchise.
“I’m looking at the big picture here,” Gordon said. “As much as we want them to get minutes. They also have the responsibility to earn it, too. Somewhere down the road, it would be nice to say that Kyle is going to be on our top power play. But there also has to be an element of earning your ice time.
“Pretty consistently, every rookie is getting over 10 minutes a game. But they can’t just feel that it’s handed to them. If they go out there, they’ve got to know there’s consequences for poor play. Hopefully, along the way, you get a level of consistency from all our young players so they realize, ‘Hey if I’m playing well, I’m going to get more minutes.’ There’s a fine line between developing young guys and just handing it to them. You’ve got to compete every shift.”
Although Okposo has just two goals in 16 games and Jeff Tambellini has yet to score a goal, Gordon said he looks for the positives in their games and has seen recent progress in terms of skating, knowing where to go and getting involved physically on a consistent basis.
“Even though they’re not getting the offensive results we’d like, there’s progress made in their work ethic, their conditioning, their compete level,” Gordon said. “Eventually, they’re going to get a comfort level with being in scoring situations and burying their chances.
Isles number
2: That’s the number of regulation losses this season for the Islanders when they were leading after two periods (4-2-1). It’s also the number of regulation losses for the Islanders over the past two seasons combined when they were leading after two periods (51-2-7).
Endquote
Gordon on rookie Josh Bailey’s ability to handle power play duty so well in his first two NHL games: “That’s why he was drafted No. 1. It’s a hard thing for a spectator to see that a guy has that hockey intelligence. It doesn’t show up unless you’re looking for it. Our scouts and management identified an intangible that he has that doesn’t show up on the stat sheet.”
→ No CommentsCategories: PROFILES
Tagged: Garth Snow
GAME 18: THE JOY OF HATE
JuSunday08 31, 2008 · 1 Comment
by desertdawg
My hate affair with the Toronto Maple Leafs started during the Harold Ballard years. Before that old SOB came along, the Leafs were Canada’s team. The legends of the 1967 Stanley Cup Champions had every 2nd kid west of the Ottawa-Hull border wearing the blue and white jersey.
And even though Ballard’s Maple Leafs had Sittler, McDonald and Tiger Williams…even though they were coached by the legendary Roger Neilson, they still became a joke of a team. After Neilson was fired as Toronto went on a real skid, Ballard wanted to re-hire Roger before the next game, but have him come out to the bench with a paper bag over his head.
What showmanship! What suspense!
What crap.
The circus back then makes even the modern Tampa Bay organization look like a model of prudent decision making.
So now, we all love to hate the Leafs. But even that has become harder these last couple of years. These Leafs became so moribund that it was almost over-kill to cheer against them.
Yep, we even started to pity them.
Pity until Cliff Fletcher started to re-organize them. Took away the country club sense of entitlement that had invaded the dressing room. Traded away or bought out the liabilities. Added youth and speed and then brought in a disciplinarian like Ron Wilson to sort them out.
Set the table pretty nicely, didn’t he Mr. Burke?
I’m writing this after the game, not during. No sense reporting what you all saw. Jim and and Mark did a credible job of letting the Leaf fans down easily. Kept talking about the number of shots on the Canuck net. Kept talking about the amazing Roberto. Kept talking about the never say die attitude of these young Leafs.
But that wasn’t the story.
Sure, Roberto was great early…and unsuccessful 5 on 3 power plays are often game changers…but that wasn’t the only story.
The Canucks have quietly become one of the top scoring teams in the league, meanwhile holding onto (courtesy of Lou) to one of the better goals against. I’ve said previously that only the media worries about filling out the lines. But Coach V is more interested in duos, which allows him to plug and play the third member of any given line depending on a host of variables. Who’s hot. Who’s skating. What the score is. What the momentum is.
With the return of Demitra to play with our new hero Wellwood, the Canucks have three duos that can score at any given time. Certainly Henrik and Daniel can be relied upon when there is secondary scoring to back them up. And Kesler and Burrows have been opening eyes since the beginning of the season.
With Demitra and Wellwood as the third scoring duo, we suddenly have three lines that can score at any given time.
That’s what sunk the Leafs tonight as much as anything. Sure Roberto was great. But as soon as the Leafs stopped to scratch their young heads, one of our guys was putting in a highlight reel goal. And something I noticed in the third period was that when Hansen played with Ryan Johnson, we suddenly had a fourth line that could be dangerous as well.
And Hansen is a perfect plug and play guy. His speed and tenacity shows up on any line. I suspect coach V will try him with the twins one of these days and we could really see some fireworks.
→ 1 CommentCategories: OPINION - BILL HEINTZ
Tagged: Roberto Luongo
WHY ARE THE LEAFS DOING WELL THIS SEASON?
JuSaturday08 31, 2008 · No Comments
If the playoffs started tomorrow, the 8th place Leafs would be playing the 1st place Rangers.
Some might have forecast that Markus’ new team would be in first place, but no one predicted that Toronto would be part of the post season.
Why have the Leafs done so well - to date?
Maple Leafs.commentator Mike Ulmer gives Cliff Fletcher a lot of the credit:
“…Fletcher has done what he set out to do. The unexpectedly sunny prospects for the job that will attract a successor is largely Fletcher’s doing.
- Fletcher changed the culture of the dressing room. It’s a little cheesy to say that dealing Bryan McCabe and buying out Darcy Tucker and Andrew Raycroft straightened out the room. Clearly though, the team needed a new dynamic and the acquisition of solid citizens such as Jamal Mayers, Nik Hagman and Mike Van Ryn did just that. There is a reinvigorated sense of respect for the franchise: when players are interviewed in the dressing room, they wear Maple Leafs’ caps, not caps bearing their individual agendas. It’s a little thing, but it means a lot.
- Fletcher boosted the organization’s hockey IQ. The addition of Al Coates last June as director of player personnel brought to Toronto one of the architects of the Anaheim Ducks. Equally important was the establishment of a line of succession. Once again, Fletcher delivered with the hiring of Joe Nieuwendyk as an assistant to the GM. Nieuwendyk carries immense credibility from his days as a player. When a confused Jason Blake needed to talk after being scratched from the lineup Tuesday in Calgary, one of the people he spoke to was Nieuwendyk. The difference between the John Ferguson era and the Cliff Fletcher era is security. Fletcher, who came out of retirement to revive the Leafs’ fortunes, wasn’t encumbered by the dynamics of day-to-day survival. He could and perhaps soon will, go back to Phoenix and retirement. This is his legacy.
- In hiring Ron Wilson, Fletcher brought to Toronto a prime-time personality and a coach with a Hall of Fame (525 wins) record. Clearly, Wilson has shifted the leadership responsibility from the dressing room to the coach’s office. That was a necessary move, especially with the departure of Mats Sundin. Wilson has spared no one, Matt Stajan, Jason Blake, his goaltenders, from criticism but he has also rewarded unrecognized talents such as Dominic Moore and John Mitchell and with ice time. Stajan is averaging a point a game and leads the Leafs in scoring. Wilson sat out Ian White for 11 games and then turned him into a super-sub by rotating him between forward, defence and the point on powerplays - sometimes in the same game. Those are not the actions of someone looking over his shoulder. Wilson, like Fletcher, has little left to prove. He is immensely secure and, therefore, beyond question.
- Canny player acquisition remained a Fletcher hallmark. Niklas Hagman would be high up in anyone’s list of the best free agent acquisitions of the summer. Mikhail Grabovski cost the Leafs a second rounder in 2010 and University of Michigan prospect Greg Pateryn. Grabovski’s eight goals put him in a tie atop the rookie leaders. Despite those expenditures, the Leafs are flexible, they have about $7.5 million left under the cap. Mike Van Ryn came to Toronto in the McCabe deal. A run of injuries decimated his value in Florida but he was very good prior to being knocked out of the lineup. Fletcher moved up in the draft to land Luke Schenn who, as a 19-year-old will one day stand as the Leafs flagship player and even a future captain. Free agent Jeff Finger has helped solidify what had been a porous defence. One final element: Darcy Tucker has three goals this season and is minus 2. McCabe has a goal and two assists and is plus one in five games after returning from a back injury. Believe it or not, the ex-Leaf faring best is six-goal scorer Kyle Wellwood and I doubt Fletcher is kicking himself over that one.
- Fletcher lowered expectations. It sounds funny to say, but lowered expectations were exactly what the Leafs needed after John Ferguson and Paul Maurice were shown the door. The two, saddled with a mediocre team, tried to goose the club’s self-esteem by declaring the Leafs a Stanley Cup contender. Instead, the Leafs missed the playoffs for the third straight year. The only way up was, once again, to start over and to that end, Fletcher dramatically lowered expectations. Guess what? Freed of the choking ambition of hockey’s most success-starved market, the Leafs have played above everyone’s expectations. Even if they fall short of the playoffs, Fletcher or his successor can draw on an overflowing bank of goodwill and point to better days in the future. It’s a no-lose scenario.”
→ No CommentsCategories: PROFILES
OUELLET PUTS ON HAPPY FACE AFTER CANUCKS CAMEO
JuFriday08 31, 2008 · No Comments
by Ken Wiebe
Back from what was essentially a brief dress rehearsal with the Vancouver Canucks, Michel Ouellet has already turned the page and put on a happy face.
Ouellet was on the ice with his Manitoba Moose teammates yesterday after a three-game cameo with the parent Canucks that saw him record no points and three shots on goal while averaging just under 10 minutes per game.
It is expected Ouellet will slide back onto the top line with Jason Krog and Jason Jaffray when the Toronto Marlies come to town for games tonight at tomorrow at the MTS Centre.
“It was good to learn about what they wanted from me as a player,” said Ouellet, who has 10 points in 10 games with the Moose this season. “I tried to do my best to stay longer, but they had some guys coming back from injury and it was better for me to come back and play here.
courtesy of moosehockey.com
“It’s the same thing as when I came the first time. You have to be good on both ends of the ice.”
Ouellet even spent one period playing on a line with the Sedin twins in Vancouver.
“It was good to have a chance to be on a top line and be able to prove myself,” said Ouellet.
“I know it wasn’t long, but I had a good time playing with them. I know I can play in that league, for sure.”
Moose head coach Scott Arniel doesn’t expect to see a letdown in Ouellet’s game.
“He’s a real professional,” said Arniel. “You could see him out there and it’s like he didn’t miss a beat. He’s playing hard, making plays, scoring goals.”
courtesy of winnipegsun.com
→ No CommentsCategories: PROFILES
Tagged: Michel Ouellet
