Redwic
01-18-2007, 02:38 PM
Crowley two-time victim of WHL trade deadline
Cory Wolfe, The StarPhoenix
Published: Thursday, January 18, 2007
Dane Crowley plans to stay undercover next Jan. 10.
"Jan. 10 is kind of a bad day for me," the 19-year-old defenceman said Wednesday from his new home in Washington state. "I'm just going to sleep all day next year."
Crowley has been traded on the same day in back-to-back years. A year ago, the Saskatoon Blades dealt him to the Swift Current Broncos just ahead of the Western Hockey League trade deadline. Then, exactly one year to the day, Crowley found himself on the move again as Swift Current sent him to the Everett Silvertips.
"(Being traded) rocked me pretty hard both times, so it's not my favourite day."
Crowley was disheartened to be leaving a Saskatoon team that loaded up for a run last January. The Blades sent Crowley and tough guy Brandon Tidball to Swift Current for defencemen Derek Price and Michael Hengen.
This year's trade has been a little easier to digest as the Silvertips (34-7-0-1) own the WHL's best record. Everett surrendered top-end defence prospect Eric Doyle, 17, to acquire Crowley and forward Jordan Mistelbacher, 16.
"I was upset to leave all of the guys and the great coaches in Swift Current, but they said they did it with me in mind," said Crowley. "It's a chance to win a Memorial Cup."
Everett deploys a smothering defensive system. In two starts, Crowley has a goal and a plus-3 rating. He's been paired with Taylor Ellington, who played in Wednesday's Top Prospects Game in Quebec City.
"Everybody talks about (head coach Kevin) Constantine's systems and how structured they are and how hard his team works. It's very true," said Crowley, whose younger brother, Troy, is a rookie forward with the Blades. "I travelled for 10 hours to get here and then they had me back at school pretty much, learning systems for an hour or two."
Crowley finds himself a world away from the Prairies and his hometown of Winnipeg which has been blanketed by winter. His billets live in Marysville, Wash., a 10-minute drive from Everett.
"It's a really nice town," said Crowley. "There's mountains on one side and ocean on the other, so I can't complain."
- - -
Another former Blade is also getting used to new surroundings.
Defenceman Nic Knudsen, 19, has yet to see game action with the Lethbridge Hurricanes, though. He continues to recover from a serious facial injury suffered Dec. 5 while he was still a member of the Tri-City Americans.
Knudsen, a native of Aldergrove, B.C., took a puck to the face during a game in Vancouver.
"I had my whole family there watching," Knudsen told the Lethbridge Herald's Trevor Kenney. "I just went out to block a shot and slid head first and the puck hit me right square in the face. It happened so fast, I didn't really know (how bad it was) until I got up and went into the room."
The shot shattered eight bones in his cheek and two in his nose. Surgeons inserted a plate to stabilize the area and Knudsen will have that souvenir for life.
"It was plastic surgery so it's healing up really nicely," Knudsen said. "For things to be completely normal will probably take a year-and-a-half but until then I'll wear a bubble (cage) for safety reasons."
Cory Wolfe, The StarPhoenix
Published: Thursday, January 18, 2007
Dane Crowley plans to stay undercover next Jan. 10.
"Jan. 10 is kind of a bad day for me," the 19-year-old defenceman said Wednesday from his new home in Washington state. "I'm just going to sleep all day next year."
Crowley has been traded on the same day in back-to-back years. A year ago, the Saskatoon Blades dealt him to the Swift Current Broncos just ahead of the Western Hockey League trade deadline. Then, exactly one year to the day, Crowley found himself on the move again as Swift Current sent him to the Everett Silvertips.
"(Being traded) rocked me pretty hard both times, so it's not my favourite day."
Crowley was disheartened to be leaving a Saskatoon team that loaded up for a run last January. The Blades sent Crowley and tough guy Brandon Tidball to Swift Current for defencemen Derek Price and Michael Hengen.
This year's trade has been a little easier to digest as the Silvertips (34-7-0-1) own the WHL's best record. Everett surrendered top-end defence prospect Eric Doyle, 17, to acquire Crowley and forward Jordan Mistelbacher, 16.
"I was upset to leave all of the guys and the great coaches in Swift Current, but they said they did it with me in mind," said Crowley. "It's a chance to win a Memorial Cup."
Everett deploys a smothering defensive system. In two starts, Crowley has a goal and a plus-3 rating. He's been paired with Taylor Ellington, who played in Wednesday's Top Prospects Game in Quebec City.
"Everybody talks about (head coach Kevin) Constantine's systems and how structured they are and how hard his team works. It's very true," said Crowley, whose younger brother, Troy, is a rookie forward with the Blades. "I travelled for 10 hours to get here and then they had me back at school pretty much, learning systems for an hour or two."
Crowley finds himself a world away from the Prairies and his hometown of Winnipeg which has been blanketed by winter. His billets live in Marysville, Wash., a 10-minute drive from Everett.
"It's a really nice town," said Crowley. "There's mountains on one side and ocean on the other, so I can't complain."
- - -
Another former Blade is also getting used to new surroundings.
Defenceman Nic Knudsen, 19, has yet to see game action with the Lethbridge Hurricanes, though. He continues to recover from a serious facial injury suffered Dec. 5 while he was still a member of the Tri-City Americans.
Knudsen, a native of Aldergrove, B.C., took a puck to the face during a game in Vancouver.
"I had my whole family there watching," Knudsen told the Lethbridge Herald's Trevor Kenney. "I just went out to block a shot and slid head first and the puck hit me right square in the face. It happened so fast, I didn't really know (how bad it was) until I got up and went into the room."
The shot shattered eight bones in his cheek and two in his nose. Surgeons inserted a plate to stabilize the area and Knudsen will have that souvenir for life.
"It was plastic surgery so it's healing up really nicely," Knudsen said. "For things to be completely normal will probably take a year-and-a-half but until then I'll wear a bubble (cage) for safety reasons."