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Ghost · 07-17-2017, 04:46 AM

1966 WORDS, READY FOR GRADING

First up today is former S34 first overall pick and the first line centre of the Vancouver Whalers, Robert Phelps (<a href='index.php?showuser=2572' rel='nofollow' alt='profile link' class='user-tagged mgroup-66'>DrunkenTeddy</a>). Another home grown talent who grew up living and playing in the city of rain and ridiculously expensive minor league hockey. Phelps is a playmaker who really takes pride in and excels at the defensive aspect of playing centre ice. Phelps isn't an elite scorer but he puts up a very respectable amount of points and he brings a much more well rounded game to Vancouver and is much more valuable to a championship team then a pure goal scorer. He is a strong leader and likes to stick up for his team mates, as he's dropped the gloves 3 time already this season. Phelps' is a character guy and has proven to put the team and his teammates first on many occasions, the most recent being at the start of S35 when Phelps asked to give up his "A" and to let one of the younger players who may not have had the chance to lead a team the chance to step up into that role.

Vancouver Whalers general manager was contacted and had this to say about Phelps: "Rob Wind and I heard rumours of a young superstar in the making a couple seasons before he was eligible for the draft, seeing as he was a Vancouver native, it was really easy for our scouts to view him early and often. They all told us the same thing, Robert Phelps is a player you can build a team around, a guy who will put personal stats aside for the betterment of the team. With this knowledge we knew he would be going first overall in the S34 draft. We also knew that we didn't even have a first round pick that year as I had traded it away to move up and acquire goaltender Bartholomew Cechove the previous season. We knew moves had to be made to try and reacquire a first rounder and hope that the hockey gods would smile upon us come draft time. We eventually traded one of our star defenders to the Montreal Militia and reacquired our own S34 first round pick. This ended up being the pick that won the lottery and won us the honour of drafting a guy like Robert Phelps."

The Vancouver Whalers heavily rely on Robert Phelps as a leader for the squad on and off the ice. He will be a very important piece going into the playoffs this season and will play a minor role again in Vancouver next season if he doesn't play in Hamilton with the Steelhawks, which he is more than ready to do if he is so inclined.

The Whalers second line centre is a play maker who much like Phelps excels on both ends of the ice, Brandon Gauthier. Gauthier is an excellent second line centre and could be a first liner on many SMJHL teams. While similar in playing style to Phelps, Gauthier's work ethic has been called out by his general managers, coaches, and even his fellow team mates at times. It is a very poorly hidden secret that Gauthier misses practices regularly and it really makes you wonder what this player could have been if his heart matched his talent. Gauthier finished third in team scoring this past season in Vancouver and lead all forwards with 17 blocked shots. 14 goals and 26 assists along with an impressive +19 rating proves that this SMJHL veteran can still play with the best of them in this league even if he doesn't make it to every practise. Gauthier will be too old to continue playing in the juniors after this season and it really is a shame that nothing other than his work ethic will keep him from being a SHL superstar.

We spoke with an anonymous team mate of Gauthier and below is what they had to say. " I like Gauthier, I really do, but it's really sad to see everyone else on the team work their asses off day in and day out to try and better themselves and the team while he skips practices or doesn't listen to any advice the coaches give him. He still contributes during the game and he's an amazing player but he's leaving so much on the table, it's really disappointing. Some nights he will just go rogue and not follow the game plan at all and that makes it difficult for his line mates. If we win the Four Star Cup this season there will be no question that he was an integral part of the championship team...but if we don't, then everyone will be asking if he could have done more. That's not a situation I would want to be in and it sucks forcing your team mates to deal with that as well."

The Whalers are lucky to have a guy as skilled as Brandon Gauthier on the team but having him is also somewhat of a curse. The young guys see him getting ice time and putting up points while skipping practice, what kind of message does that send to those guys? Gauthier will be ending his junior career this season, will his efforts be enough to bring Vancouver a championship?

The Whalers third line centre is a play making face off specialist who was nabbed in the second round of the deep S35 draft. Joakim Lindqvist (<a href='index.php?showuser=2637' rel='nofollow' alt='profile link' class='user-tagged mgroup-3'>flatman25</a>) is a skilled rookie who's 55% face off percentage was second only to sophomore stud Robert Phelps. Rookies are known to struggle offensively their first season in the SMJHL but Lindqvist did alright for spending the majority of his season on the third line, finishing the season with 4 goals and 11 assists. Joakim isn't overly physical for a third line centre but with Brandon Gauthier aging out after this season Lindqvist looks to be a lock for the second line where his offence should continue to grow and his face off prowess will be highly valuable. Lindqvist is from Taivalkoski Finland but speaks English as well as a North American, giving him an edge on some of his countrymen. We contracted one of Lindqvist's former coaches from Finland about his motivation to learn a second language and as a hockey player.

"I had the pleasure of coaching Joakim for a few seasons just last year and he was a great young kid. He has a fire burning inside him and that fire drives him to be the best he can so he can win. He was still in school when I coached him and he would always stay late after practise and work on whatever he felt he was lacking in that particular week. After staying late on the ice, he would meet with an English tutor every second day so that he would be fluent in the language before he even stepped foot in North America. This just shows the work ethic this kid has. He really goes the extra mile to set himself up for success and I really think that he will overcome any obstacles that the SMJHL throws at him or even the SHL in the future. Vancouver drafted a special one this past offseason and I'm excited to see what he brings to that team once Vancouvers by week is over and they hop into playoff action.

Lindqvist has a fairly limited role on the third line heading into these playoffs but he can really make an impact if he keeps doing the little things well. His face offs are top notch and it really takes a load off the coach if he can trust him in key defensive and offensive situations, and with Lindqvist on the dot you know more often then not your team will end up with the puck back on their sticks.

The Vancouver Whalers fourth line centre also hails from Finland and weighing in at only 130lbs is surprisingly tough on the puck for her size. We are talking about Lizzy Jukka (<a href='index.php?showuser=2613' rel='nofollow' alt='profile link' class='user-tagged mgroup-3'>Lizzy4</a>) of course. Another rookie on the very deep Vancouver squad, whose offence may have been watered down a bit from lack of offensive minutes, Jukka still managed to contribute on the score sheet 7 times while only playing an average of 10 minutes per game. Jukka is very well respected among her peers and it takes a special person to be one of the few females to play in this league. Jukka is a strong two way player and her vision is absolutely amazing, this vision helps her make phenomenal passes that leave defenders wondering how she threaded that needle without anyone else even noticing that there was a passing lane there. Her SMJHL coach had high praise for the small but feisty attacker.

"Lizzy Jukka was a very pleasant surprise to us when she arrived here in Vancouver after the draft. She was a late round pick but since day one has proven her worth and shown every body that she should have gone much much earlier. She has done everything we have asked of her and she has succeeded on and off the ice. With Gauthier moving on next season she will definitely be rewarded with some more playing time once we hit the ice again. Her two way play is great and with the additional ice time next season I would not be surprised in the slightest to see her have a break out season and emerged as a star in this league. Which ever SHL team drafts Lizzy Jukka will be in for a treat."

Another depth player with a lot of heart and character. Lizzy Jukka just needs to keep bringing what she has brought to the table all season and her playoffs will be considered a success. An extra point or two here or there will be the icing on the cake to a great rookie season to the young centre.

Matthew Rossi ll is the son of former SHL legend Matthew Rossi. His legendary pedigree had him going in the third round to the Vancouver Whalers. Another victim of the depth in Vancouver, Rossi didn't get to play much this season but is a great depth forward heading into S36. Rossi managed to score 2 goals and added an assist in only 8 minutes played per game on average. Rossi has all the makings of a superstar and just needs a little extra time to put everything together and things will start to click for him. Winning a Four Star Cup would be great for Rossi's confidence as he heads into his sophomore season next year. Rossi himself was unavailable for comment on this article but we did manage to speak with one of his team mates.

"Rossi would probably describe this season as a failure personally, but we keep telling him, it's your rookie season in a new league, of course you won't be skating around people like you did last year. You can't get too down on yourself your first year and you really shouldn't let it get to you. Keep your nose to the grindstone and the points will come just be patient. I played with Rossi years ago and I know that he has all the skills to be dominate in this league if he doesn't let the mental side of the game get in the way."

Rossi may not have had the impact he or management wanted this season but there is always next season to turn things around and there will definitely be more playing time available come S36, this will be an interesting story to follow in the upcoming season.

This concludes the centres portion of the "Meet the Whalers" series. Up next will be the wingers!

Camo · 07-17-2017, 07:12 AM

Phelps for president

flatman25 · 07-17-2017, 12:21 PM

prettyburn · 07-17-2017, 12:31 PM

goilers · 07-17-2017, 12:35 PM

I love my whales Whalers

***DrunkenTeddy*** · 07-17-2017, 12:38 PM

Hey dats me.

Thanks for the praise Kai Cheers

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RaiN · 07-18-2017, 12:36 PM

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