WELLWOOD MORE THAN JUST AN OFFENSIVE PLAYER
Carolina
The knock on Kyle Wellwood for years, dating back to his days in with the Belleville Bulls in the Ontario Hockey League was always his lack of size and defensive commitment. Always considered a slippery playmaker with elusive moves and a knack for finding the open man, much talk had been focused on his defensive play rather than what he brought to the table in the other end, so to speak.
After 13 games, however, young Wellwood leads the Carolina Hurricanes in plus minus and has ignited a second line that can not only put the puck in the net on a regular basis, but also keep it out of their own end.
With the acquisition of feisty troublemaker Darcy Tucker, Wellwood had seen his linemates change and speedy offensive winger Jeff Friesen was moved to his line to make room for Mike Fisher on the top unit. The move initially surprised Wellwood as he felt all along that he had chemistry with Fisher, but overall the move is proving successful.
"Tucker came here with a lot of hype for being a dirty guy," said Wellwood. "For me personally, I realized quickly that he has a knack for getting under the skin of other guys, and what is has really done is opened up[ the ice a lot for Jeff and I. I struggled a lot last year as a player adjusting to the league, but I think I am slowly finding my place here. These two guys are both veterans and they have really made me look at the game in another way."
Tucker, 30, already has potted 5 points in 3 games and Friesen and Wellwood have both picked up 4 points in that span.
With Tucker playing the checking role, Wellwood finding his open men and Friesen looking to score on every opportunity, the Canes new found second line might be just what the doctor ordered.
"We know we will get offense from whoever Stillman plays with," said head coach Joel Quenneville. "He really is that good. The Killer D line of Gord Dwyer, Kris Draper and Shane Doan has really given us that shut down line that has made life in Carolina for others teams difficult. What we lacked was a legitimate number two line to put up numbers and I think we have that now."
The Canes get a chance to rest some players tonight as the defensive unit in Carolina has been banged up as of late. Look for Jose Theodore to make the next start for the Hurricanes after a sub par performance from rookie Robert Gherson.
The knock on Kyle Wellwood for years, dating back to his days in with the Belleville Bulls in the Ontario Hockey League was always his lack of size and defensive commitment. Always considered a slippery playmaker with elusive moves and a knack for finding the open man, much talk had been focused on his defensive play rather than what he brought to the table in the other end, so to speak.
After 13 games, however, young Wellwood leads the Carolina Hurricanes in plus minus and has ignited a second line that can not only put the puck in the net on a regular basis, but also keep it out of their own end.
With the acquisition of feisty troublemaker Darcy Tucker, Wellwood had seen his linemates change and speedy offensive winger Jeff Friesen was moved to his line to make room for Mike Fisher on the top unit. The move initially surprised Wellwood as he felt all along that he had chemistry with Fisher, but overall the move is proving successful.
"Tucker came here with a lot of hype for being a dirty guy," said Wellwood. "For me personally, I realized quickly that he has a knack for getting under the skin of other guys, and what is has really done is opened up[ the ice a lot for Jeff and I. I struggled a lot last year as a player adjusting to the league, but I think I am slowly finding my place here. These two guys are both veterans and they have really made me look at the game in another way."
Tucker, 30, already has potted 5 points in 3 games and Friesen and Wellwood have both picked up 4 points in that span.
With Tucker playing the checking role, Wellwood finding his open men and Friesen looking to score on every opportunity, the Canes new found second line might be just what the doctor ordered.
"We know we will get offense from whoever Stillman plays with," said head coach Joel Quenneville. "He really is that good. The Killer D line of Gord Dwyer, Kris Draper and Shane Doan has really given us that shut down line that has made life in Carolina for others teams difficult. What we lacked was a legitimate number two line to put up numbers and I think we have that now."
The Canes get a chance to rest some players tonight as the defensive unit in Carolina has been banged up as of late. Look for Jose Theodore to make the next start for the Hurricanes after a sub par performance from rookie Robert Gherson.
posted by Lohaus at 10:51 AM
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