COYOTES’ YOUNGEST PUP PART OF A FAMILIAR BREED
Rookie standout Keller looks like pint-sized Flame Gaudreau and plays similar game
Thursday may have been Clayton Keller’s first visit to the Saddledome, but his connection with Calgary goes back many years.
So far back, in fact, that the goalie he has scored more goals against than any other has been retired for almost five years.
You see, growing up in the Show Me State of Missouri, Keller spent countless hours in the makeshift rink in his unfinished basement shooting pucks past Miikka Kiprusoff.
The Finnish netminder was just one of the five life-sized Fathead decals on the walls of his makeshift rink, this one featuring ol’ Kipper lunging to stop a shot.
“I’ve scored on him a bunch,” the 19-year-old Calder Trophy candidate, who is the lone bright spot on a Coyotes team taking on water once again, said with a smile.
“He’s still in the basement today. I never met him, but he was obviously a great goalie, so it was kind of cool to have him there.”
Kind of cool to be here, too, where Kiprusoff and giants like Sidney Crosby, Alex Ovechkin, Patrick Kane and other Fathead idols on his walls skate nightly.
“I didn’t even think of that, but it’s kind of cool,” said a beaming Keller, whose father ordered the decals when he was a youngster.
Not only is cool one of his favourite words, but one of the best to describe how he’s handled his first year in the bigs since being drafted seventh overall in 2016 — just one spot behind his longtime triple-A linemate in St. Louis: Matthew Tkachuk.
Entering Thursday’s game against the Flames, Keller was tied for tops in rookie goal scoring with 11, which just so happens to be the same number scored to date by the league’s hottest player, Johnny Gaudreau.
The similarities don’t end there as Keller and Gaudreau share a similar stature off the ice, if not on it just yet.
Generously listed at fivefoot-10 and 168 pounds, the Boston University standout admits he styles his game after the Flames star, who played for crosstown rival Boston College.
“Definitely I’ve watched a lot of his games — he’s so smart and skilled and he’s around my size, which is good for me so I can compare my game to his and how he creates offence,” said Keller, who leads the Coyotes with 21 points in 28 games and has more shots (83) than anyone else on either team in Thursday’s game.
“It was great to spend some time with him at the world championships last year and see him be successful so far this year.”
Gaudreau’s first impression of the then-18-year-old last spring was a strong one.
“He’s a great little player,” said Gaudreau, the best player on the ice in a 3-0 Calgary win.
“I got to play with him at the world championships a little bit and you could tell he’d be in the league right from the start of the season.
“You can tell how excited he is to score like I was my first year. It’s contagious when you see guys like that and you want to score. He’s a smart player and he’s playing really well to start his career off. It’s great to see another American player — another small player — who is getting it done for his team.”
No doubt destined to be Team USA teammates for a lot of years.
Oh sure he’s minus-18 and has plenty to learn on the defensive side of the game, but Keller has already won over his coaches, who use him almost 20 minutes a night — more than any other rookie forward in the NHL.
“I’ve been put in a lot of good situations and played with a lot of great players who have made it easier,” said Keller, when asked if he is surprised to be finding the net so often early in his career.
“The coaches trust me a lot, so it’s good to have that connection with them.”
Armed with a swagger beyond his years, he has been described by Keith Tkachuk as a player who will end up a hybrid between Gaudreau and Kane, his childhood idol.
“They get the puck in open space, a lot of good things happen,” said Coyotes coach Rick Tocchet of the comparison between his young star and Calgary’s No. 13.
“They’re not scared — they’ll go into high-traffic areas.
“You can see Gaudreau is still a young guy, but has veteran presence and knows where to go. Same with Clayton. They have escapability. They’re in a corner with some big guys and somehow they come out of the corner with the puck. Both those guys do it well.”