Young buds on defence ready to blossom
Don’ t f orget about Drew Doughty.
That was the name that Aaron Ekblad brought up when he was asked if age and experience would be an issue for Team North America’s defence. It was an appropriate example.
Six years ago, age and experience did not matter when Doughty was named to Canada’s Olympic team.
At the time, the Los Angeles Kings defenceman was only 20 years old. He had not yet won a Norris Trophy. He hadn’t even played two seasons.
But as then-U. S. head coach Ron Wilson told the National Post in January 2010, naming Doughty to the Canadian roster was a nobrainer because “he’s going to be one of the best defencemen in the league. I mean, he’s up there right now.”
There could end up being a few Drew Doughtys on Team North America. Columbus’ Seth Jones and Winnipeg’s Jacob Trouba might have been considered for the U. S. roster had the World Cup not created this under-24 team, while Florida’s Ekblad would have been a candidate for Canada’s team after winning a Calder Trophy in 2015.
Like Doughty in 2010, Ekblad is 20 years old and has played two seasons in the league. He has not yet won a Norris Trophy, but that could be coming.
All the hand wringing about how Team North America’s defence is the one big weak spot because none of the players have reached the 300-game mark might be a bit misleading. The players are obviously young and inexperienced. But when you consider the trajectory they are on, this could be a dangerous group.
“We’re all good defencemen,” said Ekblad, who led the Florida Panthers defence with 15 goals and 36 points last season. “We all play in the NHL. There’s some guys with decent experience — playoff experience — who have all played in big games at one point or another. That type of experience is obviously not 1,000 games, but we’ll learn quickly as we go along.
“All of us defencemen were thrown in the fire, as you could say, with our club teams and all of us were able to step in and make an impact, so I guess that shows something.”
Indeed, this group is not as green as it might look. Ekblad was part of the Canadian team that went undefeated at the 2015 world championship, while Toronto’s Morgan Rielly and Columbus’ Ryan Murray won gold at this year’s tournament. Trouba finished in the top 10 in the NHL with 177 blocked shots last season, St. Louis’ Colton Parayko ranked second among defencemen with a plus-28 rating and Philadelphia’s Shayne Gostisbehere was a Calder Trophy finalist who also ranked sixth among defencemen with 17 goals.
Most played in a top-pairing role and logged 20-plus minutes against the other teams’ top forward lines. So this assignment is nothing new. If anything, it’s another chance to prove their worth on the world stage.
“We’re not going to play against anyone in this tournament that we haven’t played against before,” said Rielly, 22, who finished 28th in ice time among defencemen last season. “We’re not worried about it, so I don’t think you guys should be either.”
If there is a concern, it is that the defence lacks a veteran presence that can help settle a pairing. When Doughty played for Canada in 2010, he was paired with Scott Niedermayer, who was in his final year in the league. Ekblad was paired most of last season with 36-year-old Brian Campbell.
On this team, there are no such veterans. Gostisbehere and Parayko, both 23 years old, are the oldest defencemen. But they were both rookies last season.
What the team lacks in experience, it makes up for in mobility. North America is not going to overpower any other country with its size or strength. In fact, they might be susceptible to a cycle game from teams like Canada and the U.S. But like the Pittsburgh Penguins, who used quick passes to transition from defence to offence, North America might be able to avoid that by using their young legs to skate their way out of trouble.
“I think the first thing is you just look at how skilled they are and how quick they are and how quick they can get up the ice,” said Connor McDavid.
“Definitely the strength of our team is our defence,” said Nathan MacKinnon. “It’s definitely not to be overlooked.”
Like Ekblad said, don’t forget about Doughty. The 2010 Olympics turned out to be his coming- out party. And with so many potential Doughtys on this roster, head coach Todd McLellan believes the same could be true in this tournament.
“They’ll get their fair share of accolades as the tournament goes on,” he said.