Nick Suzuki hopes to build on strong rookie season
Youngster plays his way into top-six role by showcasing offensive skill, hard work
Canadiens forward Nick Suzuki has enjoyed a memorable rookie NHL season and he’s still hoping that he can finish it.
“We’re all hoping we come back, but it’s not in our hands,” Suzuki said Tuesday during a conference call from his parents’ home in London, Ont. “Getting ice is tough, but you have to do everything you can to be prepared. It could mean a short summer, but I’ve had short summers before. You just have to hope you get back into game shape quickly.”
Suzuki was considered the key piece in the 2018 trade that sent captain Max Pacioretty to the Vegas Golden Knights. Tomas Tatar’s sterling play has revised that assessment, but Suzuki has proven he has top-six talent in his first pro season. When the NHL season was halted by the coronavirus on March 12, Suzuki ranked sixth among rookie scorers with 41 points.
After failing to make the team in his first training camp, Suzuki impressed the coaching staff last fall with a combination of skill and hard work.
“I came to camp with an open mind. I wanted to learn,” said Suzuki. “The coaches helped me a lot, especially in training camp. I had a bit of a slow start (to the season). I felt I was watching too much, not asserting myself. But once I got my first goal, I had my confidence and I started playing a lot better.”
Suzuki said he received encouragement and a helping hand from teammates like Nate Thompson and Phil Danault, and he learned from how Shea Weber and Carey Price carried themselves in the dressing room.
He arrived with a reputation as a creative offensive player, and from the start, the Canadiens found room for him on the power play. But he was quick to realize the game is played at both ends of the ice.
“I thought my game developed, especially on the defensive side,” said Suzuki. “I knew I had to work on my (defence) and I did that in practice, going up against players like Phil’s line. I did a god job of learning every day.”
Suzuki was struggling a bit before the pause, picking up only one assist in his last nine games. There was a speculation that Suzuki had hit a wall, the same way Jesperi Kotkaniemi did a year earlier. But, he said, that wasn’t the case.
“I was playing well, but the puck wasn’t going in,” Suzuki said. “I don’t think I hit a wall. I wasn’t feeling tired. It was just a case of bad puck luck.”
Suzuki was originally drafted by the Golden Knights, the youngest franchise in the NHL, and was traded to the team that’s been around the longest.
“When you’re in the dressing room and you see the pictures of all those great players, you want to be a part of that history,” said Suzuki.
While Suzuki wants to be playing again, he’s taking advantage of the opportunity to spend time with his younger brother Ryan, a Carolina Hurricanes prospect.
“We haven’t spent a lot of time at home for the last three years because we’ve been away playing hockey, so it’s good I have some time to hang out with him and do things together like train and play video games,” said Suzuki.
“I miss being able to watch sports on TV. You can’t do normal things like going to the mall, but I’m looking forward to the NFL draft.”