Hastings’ Jakob Brahaney bolsters Fronts blue-line
Jakob Brahaney is doing more by keeping it simple with his play on the blue-line for the Kingston Frontenacs.
In his second full Ontario Hockey League season, Brahaney has moved into a top-four defenceman role for the Frontenacs and is leading the team in plus/minus with a plus-15.
“I think I am just keeping things simple. That’s the biggest thing and not trying to do anything too fancy,” said Brahaney, who was born in Campbellford and grew up in Hastings.
“We’ve got good forwards on our team. So just get the puck in their hands and kind of let them do the rest.”
The 18-year-old Brahaney came to Kingston’ s camp in September knowing with the departure of Stephen Desrocher and Nathan Billitier off last year’s club that there was an opportunity for him to play a more prominent role.
“We lost Desrocher and Billitier so there was an opening. I knew that coming into camp and I knew I was going to work toward that. So far it’s been nice,” Brahaney said.
Kurtis Foster, the Frontenacs new assistant coach, skated with Brahaney at times over the summer. He knew the six-foot-two, 190pound, left-shot defenceman was upbeat about his upcoming season.
“He was excited for the year and he was excited for a new opportunity,” said Foster, who last year as an eye-in-the-sky assistant coach for the Peterborough Petes only knew Brahaney as a defenceman who was in and out of Kingston’s lineup.
Foster, as the coach in charge of the defence, has got to know Brahaney in a different light now.
“He is a guy for me that from Day 1 he’s basically been great the whole time. He puts the work in in practice. He listens in the meetings and he knows what do do,” Foster said.
“He is a kid who wants to get better every day and that’s what makes good players good players.”
Brahaney got to know Foster a bit over the summer when hockey players from the Peterborough area were skating together.
“I realized what a good asset [Foster] was going to be for the D. He was a really good player and he’s been a real good coach for us,” Brahaney said.
Foster has employed Eemeli Rasanen, Jacob Paquette and Brahaney as the big three on Kingston’s defence.
“They are the guys I count on a ton,” said Foster, who is impressed with how Brahaney has handled the added ice time.
“I think he has really come into his own and he’s a big part of our team right now. I really think there is a bright future for him,” Foster said.
Brahaney, who was plus-five in the Frontenacs’ 7-1 win over the Petes last Friday, is starting to show an offensive side, too. He has two goals and eight points in 18 games.
Brahaney shrugs if off as a product of getting the puck to the forwards and letting them do their thing. Foster sees a player that is becoming more confident in his play.
“He’s a guy that moves the puck really, really well. Whether it is a breakout or neutral zone he moves the puck well,” Foster said.
“I think the more confidence he gets the more confidence he has in the offence to make some plays and shoot the puck. I think it is just going to get better and better as we go along.”
Foster describes Brahaney as a very intense listener at team meetings, one who has all the right answers.
“It is nice when guys like him that are playing big minutes that they kind of jump on board for what Jay (head coach Jay Varady) and I and Phil [assistant coach Phil Mangan] are trying to teach,” Foster said.
“When you have guys like him that are smart kids that want to get better is is just great for the overall attitude of the team.”
Since five of the Frontenacs seven defencemen are left-hand shot -Rasanen and Emmett Gordon are the right-shot defencemen -- Brahaney has been asked to play on his off side. Foster, who played 405 games in the NHL, said that is never an easy thing for any defenceman to do.
“He seems to be comfortable over there. It helps us a lot that he can play that side,” Foster said.
Brahaney, for his part, just wants to see the Frontenacs continue to add to the win column by playing like the team did in its 7-1 win over Peterborough.
“That’s the model that we want to play. You see the results when we play our way,” Brahaney said.
“We are very successful when we play the right way. It is about just playing that way every night.”