Somppi’s return big plus for Mooseheads
Halifax centre debuted Friday against Cape Breton
Having Otto Somppi back in the lineup helps the Halifax Mooseheads in so many different ways.
First and foremost, he is a good player who produces offence. That is the obvious part. But on a more subtle level, the third-year centre makes the team’s entire offence much more nuanced.
For starters, he is Halifax’s best faceoff man and is reliable on the defensive side of the puck. Those are attributes coaches love and also help drive possession whenever he’s on the ice, especially on special teams.
But most of all, the 19-year-old Finn’s versatility gives head coach Jim Midgley so many options for his line combinations. Somppi has always had good chemistry with Maxime Fortier but Midgley liked what he saw from Bo Groulx alongside Fortier while Somppi was rehabbing after shoulder surgery. So since it’s still early in the season, Midgley decided to stick with Groulx, Fortier and Connor Moynihan on one line and go with Somppi between Arnaud Durandeau and Filip Zadina on another.
The early returns have been noteworthy. With a dangerous third line of Xavier Parent, Raphael Lavoie and Joel Bishop rounding out the top nine, the Mooseheads have generated 12 goals in two games since Somppi returned.
“I really like playing with Zadina and Durandeau so far,” Somppi said. “They are both really good with the puck and we already have some chemistry. I think we all felt good together in the (offensive) zone and we created chances almost every shift, so I think that’s a good line for us.”
In a backhanded kind of way, the most encouraging wrinkle of all is Somppi’s assessment of his play so far. He described his debut against the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles on Friday as “not good at all” and said his encore the next night was only a little bit better, even though he had a goal and two assists and was plus-six.
“In the first period in my first game I felt really bad,” he said. “I started to feel a bit better as the game was going on and then (on Saturday) I felt a bit better again. I think the third period was the best for me so far but it will still take me some more time to feel better.”
Somppi also said he feels stronger
than ever, a quirk many players mention after major surgery. He had his dislocated shoulder repaired during the off-season and went through an extensive recovery.
“I’m still not perfect but I do feel stronger than before,” he said. “The first month I was just riding the bike a little bit and doing some things for my mobility, then I started working out my legs and my abs because I couldn’t do anything with my upper body for three months. The last three months I was working out my upper body, too.
“It was frustrating. My rehab was six months and that was a long time but now it feels really good to be back.”
Despite the injury, Somppi was able to attend this year’s training camp with the Tampa Bay Lightning, who picked him in the seventh round of the 2016 NHL draft. He didn’t participate in any contact drills but did everything else. He knows he has to perform well enough this season to earn a contract with the Lightning but isn’t making that his focus in his third year in Halifax.
“I just want to play well,” said Somppi, who is an alternate captain for the Mooseheads. “I don’t think about how many points I want to get or anything like that; I just want to have a good season.
“I want to be a key (leader) for this team. It’s a big year and for the team, too. We have a great team this year.”