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It has gotten increasingly harder over the past few years for players to graduate from the amateur leagues and immediately slip right into a NHL sweater. Even the highly touted prospects are spending time developing in the American Hockey League these days. Top rated young guns like Jason Spezza (OTT), Dustin Brown (LOS), Jiri Hudler (DET) and Maxime Ouellet (WSH) have toiled in the premier minor league and are back there again this season.

It is no longer a situation where a newly drafted youngster can just simply walk into a prestigious roster spot with whichever big league squad drafted them. The fact that Joe Thornton, Vincent Lecavalier and Ales Hemsky all struggled in the NHL at young ages further emphasizes the point that the need for development in the minors is an increasing reality for more and more top players.

As many of the Edmonton Road Runners can attest to, even taking that first step up to professional hockey from college or junior can be quite difficult.

“Everything’s a step quicker so you have to think one step ahead to get the puck where as in college you had a little more time and more space to make a play,” pointed out Joe Cullen. “Here everybody is a much better player so you have to react much quicker.”

Cullen played his amateur career at Colorado College and is now in his sophomore year with the AHL affiliate of the Edmonton Oilers. The jump to the AHL or even the ECHL seems to be hardest on U.S. college players mainly due to two things, the road time and the game schedule.

“The travel, the pace of the game, the schedule it’s all very different from college,” said former Wisconsin star Brad Winchester.

There are twice as many games in the AHL as there are in college hockey and the distance between some cities is huge. For instance, the road trip that Edmonton is currently on saw them crisscross the entire continent almost three times beginning from their Alberta home to Newfoundland, then to San Jose California and finally back to Ontario.

On the ice, the game is obviously tougher as the opposing players are bigger, faster and older than the competition was the previous year.

Rookie ECHL player Kenny Smith, the former captain at Harvard, knew the physical demands would be incredibly tough on him this year and trained with that in mind all summer.

“Obviously the game is a lot faster so I’m going to have to make decisions a lot quicker and really move the puck hard and on the tape. In college you can get away with a few bad passes, but here they are going to capitalize on that every time,” Smith explained. “I’m a big guy and I’m going to have to keep working on my pivots and stuff and with the guys out there flying I’m really going to have to be at my best.”

Mike Bishai played in Kalamazoo as a Bronco while attending Western Michigan and he’d be the first to say that the minor leagues have helped his game a lot. After college Bishai played in the AHL, then spent most of the following year in the ECHL while the Oilers and Canadiens shared the Hamilton Bulldogs, but less than a year later the center spent a month in the NHL.

“I’ve seen it from year to year where a guy might not even be able to play on the AHL team in November and by March he’s one of the best players. Six months later he could be playing in the NHL, that’s how development happens,” Road Runners GM Scott Howson said about the quality of the minor leagues. “Mike Bishai couldn’t play on our team in Hamilton, he was a spare on our Calder Cup final team, and midway through the next year he’s playing in (the NHL).”

“In the pro game everyone is always in position and doing their job but in college everyone is running around a bit more,” Bishai said. “You have to be smarter here which was a big transition and definitely my defensive game has come a long way since the first day I showed up in Hamilton. If you make too many mistakes then you’re not going to be on the ice; that’s what pro hockey is all about.”

There are also Edmonton sophomores who turned pro after playing junior instead of college, but the transition still takes time. Jeff Woywitka struggled to find his game in the AHL last year after four extremely successful campaigns with the Red Deer Rebels of the WHL.

“The biggest adjustment I think is in elevating your game to the next level knowing that every game is going to be a battle,” said the Alberta born defenseman. “It’s not like junior because now everybody is your size or bigger so you have to be strong and ready to go every game. You have to get quicker and stronger because the game changes so much.”

Doug Lynch was Edmonton’s most successful AHL rookie last year. He had a strong enough season to earn an All-Star appearance and he was also named to the AHL’s All-Rookie team. After his four year run through the WHL, the expectations were there for Lynch as well as for Woywitka but for some reason, the red headed rearguard seemed to be able to adapt easier than any of the other rookies. Still, there were things to get used to.

“In junior we played about the same amount of games and the travel was relevant but it’s just that every night you have to bring your ‘A’ game; you can’t take a shift off or a night off, all the old clichés are true,” said the well-spoken Lynch. “In junior, there isn’t much movement except for trades but here there are guys being called up or sent down, so you have to perform every night. With all the movement you are always playing with different players, so you really have to be able to adapt your game to someone else’s and make sure you all mesh together.”

With bigger and faster competition, not to mention more experienced, the margin for error is much smaller than any amateur player would be used to.

“It is much less,” Lynch agreed. “One mistake can cost you a hockey game and if that happens eight times during the year it’s 16 points you’re out so you have to make smart plays. It’s about experience out there so you have keep playing games and getting confidence because it’s the most important thing.”

“Obviously everything happens a step faster, even the goalies are bigger and faster,” added Nate DiCasmirro. “All around you have to get used to the game and step up your play. In college you can maybe lose your guy once in a while and nothing happens. Here you make a mistake and nine times out of ten it ends up in the back of your net. If you make mistakes you’re not going to find yourself playing much so you have to be able to do your job and do it well.”

For Sean McAslan, a member of one of the Calgary Hitmen’s most dynamic lines ever, pro hockey has meant a change in his role. Partnered with Brad Moran and Pavel Brendl in Calgary, McAslan was playing on the top line but with the Road Runners he has adapted to life as a checker. The adjustment took time and there was one critical issue that the winger from Okotoks Alberta had to overcome.

“Consistency, that was my biggest problem at the start,” McAslan sighed. “I was able to go out there on certain nights and do my thing but the biggest thing in this league is that you have to come out and do it every night and if you don’t then you’re going to be sitting in the pressbox.”

And even that is a big difference once you turn pro.

“In junior, the team doesn’t carry a lot of extra guys so whether you have a bad game or not, you’re going to be playing a lot but here, if you’re not playing well, someone else is going to take your spot right away.”

Brock Radunske fought the consistency tag all through his college career at Michigan State but now he’s a pro rookie and believes getting used to the AHL won’t be as hard for him as for maybe some other collegians. As a member of the Michigan State Spartans, the power forward experienced more travel than he would have with some of the east coast schools.

“There’ll be an adjustment but we flew last year and balancing school full time is no easy job either. Turning pro you just have to worry about practicing every day,” reasoned Radunske.

Aside from Radunske, the Road Runners also have Kyle Brodziak, Simon Ferguson, Jason Platt and Jeff Drouin-Deslauriers as rookies. Brent Henley has played professionally for a couple years but not at the AHL level so he finds himself as an in-between guy that some of the ECHL bound rookies came to for advice.

“I have some experience so I think I know things that others guys don’t. I’m still not in a position yet where I’ve been a full time AHL player though so I’m still learning from guys like Rocky (Thompson) and (Dan Smith),” said Henley. “There are a lot of little things that I was taught in my first year of pro that I’d like to pass on that might make the difference between playing junior and pro.”

Henley took an interest in fellow blueliners like Kenny Smith and Jason Platt during training camp.

“Going into their first years as pros they still have a lot of good years ahead of them and I think just from watching them that they could be good AHL players,” remarked Henley. “They had a lot of questions for me about housing and how things work down in the ECHL with travel so I tried to inform them the best that I can. I told them not to even think about going down, think about what it’s going to be like staying here and if you go down, think about it then. Prepare yourself to play in the AHL, that’s what I’m doing and that’s the only way you can stay. If you prepare yourself for ‘the Coast’, you’re going to the Coast.”

The Henley Giant isn’t the only player willing to give the new guys some advice.

“I would tell them to be ready to play every night because the biggest thing is consistency,” said hard-hitting McAslan. “You want to go out and play your game, you can’t be something you’re not so you have to play to your strengths and do what got you there. If you’re a checker, you don’t want to try and dangle guys to impress the coach.”

“Some guys come out of junior or college where they were big scorers and they might be thrown into a different roll in the pro game,” said former St. Cloud forward DiCasmirro. “You have to accept the role that you get and play to the best of your ability, stay positive.”

“Make sure you’re good off the ice and take care of your body,” offered up Lynch. “Most guys out of junior have had all their meals cooked for them by their billets or their parents so that’s a big step. Personally I don’t like cooking at all, it’s a struggle for me, but I have to eat well.”

Others feel that patience is the key for the younger players and it’s a message they were told themselves at the time.

“I’d say the same things I heard a lot last year myself; try not to get down on yourself,” said Cullen. “When I wasn’t playing a lot at the beginning of last year I began questioning if I was ready for this league so you just have to keep coming out and playing a good game. They want you here for a reason so don’t change, play the way you’re supposed to play and try your hardest.”

“Be patient and work hard,” Winchester advised. “This is an organization where there is a lot of good depth in the minor leagues and it’s a different game from college. Continue to try and work on your game and be patient.”

“Attitude is everything. It’s a long season and a lot of guys coming out of college who haven’t played that many games and even for the junior guys who are used to playing 16 and 17-year-olds, it’s a lot different when you start battling 28 and 29-year-olds that have spent ten years playing pro and it’s a wearing season,” said injured center J.J. Hunter. “You’re going to go through slumps and good times but you have to keep an even keel or else you’ll be on an emotional roller coaster. The second thing is just hard work. There’s nothing that will replace being willing to go out and work on your game and if you continue to try and elevate your game then that’s all that you can ask of yourself.”

“I think they have to be smart with the puck, play their position and be really sound defensively. When I first came in that was a huge thing for me,” Bishai revealed. “For the first month or so you really try to keep it simple until your confidence grows and you’re playing at your peak. Just work as hard as you can every day and get better every day.”

For their part, the rookies have performed pretty well thus far in the early season in their limited roles. None is a regular in the line up thanks to the presence of NHL players like Jarret Stoll and Raffi Torres on the roster but when they get a chance, guys like Kyle Brodziak are doing their best. They understand that the opportunities will be few and far between so they need to capitalize when they do get the nod.

“I know that early it’s definitely going to be tough,” said Brodziak at the start of the year. “But every day I’m going to come prepared to work to try and get into that lineup.”

As injuries to Henley, Hunter and now Brad Winchester begin creeping into the roster, the rookies will have to be ready to contribute on a broader scale. Being part of the top team in the league though is a great learning tool in of itself. The organization is a firm believer than winning is a major asset to development of young players and to this point that would mean that the young players are coming along just fine.

Stats on Stats

Hockey’s Future put the question to a handful of players to determine their opinion on stats and how important a player’s personal success is to them in the big picture.

HF: Are you a player who sets statistical goals for yourself at the beginning of each new season?

Joe Cullen: Not really, I figure if I just play my best that the numbers will come so that’s how I tend to look at it. One of the main things I like to do is penalty killing and defensive stuff so I try not to get scored on, not to be a minus player. That’s the biggest goal for me; if I do that then I’ll get more ice time and the offensive numbers will come.

Jeff Woywitka: Obviously you want to contribute offensively and stay sound defensively and that’s my game; to join the attack and also be responsible defensively. Points are going to come if you play well, but it’s all about the team. If you get a few more points than you did last year, I had 28 so if I could get 40 this year I would be happy. Some guys can have 50 points but they’re a -8 and that shows that they might be strictly offensive players, so you want to be known that you can do the job defensively too.

Mike Bishai: I think everybody sets goals for themselves, I have them in the back of mind but I try not to worry about that too much. Some guys might start squeezing the stick and the puck doesn’t bounce their way. For myself I just have a standard goal so I just go play my game and that stuff will come. In college I don’t think I was ever a plus player and you come to pro hockey and you have to start worrying about those things.

Brad Winchester: Yes and No. I think it’s good to set goals for yourself; I have a thought in my head of what I would like to accomplish this year. On the other hand you have to break it down into the smaller things too in terms of trying to improve and the little things that will improve my game overall. You can read too much into statistics by just looking at goals and assists.

Doug Lynch: No. I know what kind of player I am and what I bring to the table. For me it’s all about the win. Contributing to the team in order to win is what I’m going to do. Blocking shots is something there’s no statistic for but I’ll shut up and do that job or whatever it takes. This year I want to provide some leadership for the young guys coming up and keep honing my own game. You always have to keep learning, especially from the older guys because they each bring something different and you have to take that from them and learn. The best night would be that you had a good night and your team won. If you have a good night but the team loses, you’re left with an empty feeling. You’ve got to win man, that’s what it comes down to.

Nate DiCasmirro: I think everybody does at the beginning of the year; you want to see yourself get as many as you can but you don’t want to jinx yourself. If your team has success then you’re more than likely going to have personal success. Team comes first.

Sean McAslan: Nothing set in stone. 20 goals is a mark I think that I can get because I got 12 goals last year and I didn’t play all the games so I can score some more. If I’m playing my game then the points are going to come. 20 goals is a pretty big goal of mine and I think I can get to that point and also getting over 100 penalty minutes seems to be kind of benchmark for my style of game too.

Rob Globke (FLA) with San Antonio: Nope. I set goals for every game; I want to have a certain amount of shots or hits per game and whatever happens after that happens. I think if you concentrate on little things the other stuff will follow.

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