De Wit off to impressive start
Inconsistent forward enjoys biggest game since being aquired in a trade last season
Jeff de Wit is getting a second chance to make a first impression on the Regina Pats.
After an up-and-down performance with his new team last season, the veteran forward is determined to hit the restart button and prove he can be a more consistent performer for the 2018 Memorial Cup hosts.
De Wit got off to an impressive start in Thursday’s pre-season opener, recording three goals in Regina’s 5-3 win over the Saskatoon Blades.
“That’s my first hat trick in a long time,” said de Wit, who was acquired midway through last season from the Red Deer Rebels. “It definitely feels good but … it’s only pre-season. I still feel like I have a lot of things to work on.”
Although he struggled at times last season, de Wit proved to be a clutch performer in the playoffs, scoring some big goals en route to the Regina’s trip to the WHL final.
Along the way, he showed flashes of becoming the kind of power forward the Pats envisioned when they made the deal with Red Deer.
“In my exit meeting last year we talked about what I needed to do this year to stick past the (trade) deadline,” said de Wit. “We talked about that elephant in the room this year, being the Memorial Cup. Having played in one (with the host Rebels in 2016) I’m pretty hungry to go to one of those again. This time I want to be going in as a champion, not a host. I have a lot to prove this year. I’m just hoping I can contribute game in, game out.”
It’s a relatively simple formula for de Wit, who’s not being asked to do anything flashy.
However, he does need to take advantage of his six-foot-three, 210-pound frame.
“I have to play a big man’s game, get the puck low past their D -men, below their D -men, be solid in the corners and in front of the net,” he said. “The goals were coming from in front (on Thursday). That’s what I need to do and I need to be good on the walls, be good defensively, too. I need to bring a 200-foot game. That’s what is going to help me stick around.”
Indeed, de Wit’s three goals on Thursday were all a product of his willingness to go to the net. The first one came when he knocked in a centring pass from the top of the crease. He also shovelled in a pair of rebounds — and just missed scoring on another.
“That’s probably where most of my goals are going to come from,” said de Wit, 19, who had nine goals and 16 points in 66 games last season. “(There was) a little bit of puck luck tonight and I felt like I was getting to the front of the net. That was helping out, too.”
Pre-season or not, it was a positive sign for de Wit — and for the Pats.
“It doesn’t matter when it is,” said assistant coach/assistant GM Dave Struch. “Any time you have an opportunity to score a goal, you put it in the back of the net. You have to take advantage of that. I felt he did a really good job. He’s gotta be a heavy body for us. He did it both with and without the puck. He made good decisions. It was a big game for him.”
Note: The Pats have signed D Marco Creta, who came to camp as an undrafted free agent. He had two goals and 11 assists in 57 games last season with the MJHL’s Virden Oil Capitals.