New faces can make the grade at rookie camp

When Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins head coach Dan Bylsma stepped on the ice for his second National Hockey League training camp in 1994 with the Los Angeles Kings, he admits to being a little bit nervous and awestruck.

Bylsma, who was a 23-year-old rookie, was sharing the ice with Wayne Gretzky. And he wasn’t the only one in awe of “The Great One.”

“We were doing drills and when you finish you skated back in line,” Bylsma said. “The line with Wayne Gretzky had 10 people. The other line had three. The young kids were too nervous to make a pass to Wayne.”

Today, young players don’t have to worry about trying to prove themselves while trying to keep up with NHL stars at the same time. Rather than thrust players fresh out of juniors on the ice with NHL veterans, they now go through rookie camp first.

Pittsburgh will hold its rookie camp starting on Sept. 9 in Kitchener, Ontario. The camp will feature several familiar faces and newcomers, some who could be future Wilkes-Barre/Scranton players.

The camp will consist of practices for the first several days and then conclude with three exhibition games before players either head to their respective training camps.

Defenseman Ben Lovejoy, who will participate in his second rookie camp this year, said his first experience was a chance to ease into professional hockey and gain confidence playing with players of equal age and experience.

Now that he has a year in the American Hockey League under his belt, Lovejoy will head to Kitchener prepared to be a veteran presence for the younger players. He joins Alex Goligoski and Jonathan D’Aversa as the veterans of a defense corps comprised of four other junior players.

“Last year, you looked up to guys like Ryan Stone and Jonathan Filewich as the leaders of the team,” Lovejoy said. “I would expect us to play that role this year.”

Other Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins attending the camp include J.M. Daoust, Mark Letestu, Tim Wallace, John Curry, David Brown, Luca Caputi and Nick Johnson.

For Bylsma, the camp is a chance to watch prospects compete against players with similar experience. The camp is a great springboard for players hoping to break out of juniors or show that they’re ready for the big time.

“They can show us what they can do in a controlled environment. It’s a lot easier to do that when you’re not going against Sidney Crosby,” he said. “They won’t have the ‘deer in the headlights’ feeling like I had when I was making a pass to Wayne Gretzky.”

While Bylsma has participated in other rookie camps as an assistant coach, the upcoming camp will mark his first time running the bench as a head coach. The Penguins’ prospects will play three games – one each against prospects from the Florida Panthers, Toronto Maple Leafs and Ottawa Senators organizations.

Although the roster was set late last week, Bylsma already knows what he wants to see out of some of the players. He offered the following assessments:

Jason Legault – D: “He had a good year last season for a defenseman (22 goals, 45 points in 66 games as a junior) and I feel he has a chance for a good showing. He should be a skill guy.”

Alex Grant – D: “I saw him last year in rookie camp. Our scouts have really watched him and he has a well-rounded game (48 points, 96 PIMs in 70 games in juniors). He can make a statement in camp and it’s likely he’ll attend camp in Pittsburgh.”

Ben Lovejoy, Alex Goligoski, Jonathan D’Aversa – D: “It’s a chance for them to get ready to go and even have an advantage over the main camp guys. They’ll be hitting full stride when main camp opens on Sept. 17.”

Dustin Jeffrey, Nick Johnson, Luca Caputi – F: “They all had a good month and a half last season at the highest level in the AHL. I expect them to show really well because of that experience. They should come in and be full of confidence.”

Aaron Boogard – F: “I think he’s the guy who’s going to be looked at to fill the void (left by Dennis Bonvie’s retirement). We’ve talked to Aaron and he needs to focus on playing an aggressive, assertive, physical style as opposed to just tapping someone on the shoulder and picking a fight. Other teams have to be worried about him.”

Tim Wallace – F: “He had a strong end to the season and he needs to establish his physical presence in every game. When he does that, he’s a very effective player. He should completely dominate physically.”

J.M. Daoust, Tommy Goebel, Keven Veilleux – F, David Brown – G: “This is a chance for them to make a statement about their development.”