Rugged defenceman returns to Spits lineup.
Spitfires blue-liner missed five games for cross-check to face
Patrick Sanvido’s absence from the Windsor Spitfires’ lineup has been a bigger loss than you might expect for a rookie stay-at-home defence- man.
With his five-game suspension having been served, the 16- year- old Sanvido returns to the Windsor lineup tonight when the Spitfires face the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds, who will have new head coach Sheldon Keefe behind the bench for the first time. Game time at the WFCU Centre is 7:05 p.m.
“I was talking with the coaches about what a hole it left with him out,” Spitfires head coach Bob Boughner said of the suspension.
Sanvido was handed a match penalty Nov. 21 in a 3-0 loss on the road to the Plymouth Whalers after cross-checking Tom Wilson in the face.
“Sitting out for five games was no fun at all,” Sanvido said.
On the play, Sanvido had been trapped on a long shift while killing a penalty with Windsor pinned in its own zone.
After finally clearing the puck from along the boards in the corner, Sanvido was hit by the 18-year-old Wilson, who is six-foot-four and 210 pounds.
Visibly feeling the effects of the hit, the six-foot-six, 220-pound Sanvido slowly skated to the bench when Wilson turned and said something to him.
“I was hurt and just trying to get off the ice,” Sanvido said. “(Wilson) turned and said a few things that made me angry and I just snapped.”
Feeling no ill effects from the incident, Wilson was immediately out on the ensuing power play and faced no penalty for his actions from the game officials or the league.
As for Sanvido, he was handed an automatic three-game suspension and after a league review of the video it was finalized at five games.
“I talked to him,” Boughner said. “In some respects, I was pleased he stood up for himself against one of the tougher guys in the league, but you can never use your stick.”
Windsor has gone 1-2-0-2 in Sanvido’s absence and he’s anxious to get back on the ice in a meaningful situation.
“He’s going to be a good player and we need him back,” Boughner said. “He gives us more continuity.”
Boughner’s words brought a smile to Sanvido’s face.
“That’s a huge compliment for me,” Sanvido said. “I’m a little nervous and excited to get back in the lineup.”
The club’s second-round pick in April from the Guelph minor midgets, many expected Sanvido to start the season playing junior B to help improve his skating, but he earned a roster spot in training camp.
“When I got here, that was the feeling, that I was going to play junior B,” Sanvido said. “I just decided I was going to come in and every time I was out there I was going to give 100 per cent and try to make the team.
“Obviously, the players at this level are a lot quicker and I’m not the quickest, so I try to be in the right position so that no one blows past me.”
His stats are modest with one assist in 24 games and a minus six, but he’s been called for just three minor penalties in his 16 minutes.
“The thing is, he’s reliable,” Boughner said. “
We’ve been up and down defensively and had some obvious deficiencies, but he adds a physical element and he’s a reliable guy that plays good defence.”
As Sanvido’s comfort level and confidence has grown, so has the amount of ice time he receives and his responsibilities, which now include penalty killing on a nightly basis.
“I would be better off in junior B if I was only getting two or three minutes, but I’m getting 10-to-12 minutes some nights and a lot of 16-year-old guys in this league don’t get that,” Sanvido said.
“Plus, if you’re playing well, the coaches will reward you with time and that will only help.”