Tipped Off
09-26-2008, 10:46 AM
from Heraldnet.com
Silvertips have found a real gem
EVERETT -- Daniel Bartek is a member of perhaps the rarest species in the WHL.
Twin brothers, 100-point scorers, even left-handed goaltenders with a few screws loose -- all of them are more common in the Western Hockey League than the overage European player.
But while his species may be rare, the Everett Silvertips believe they've unearthed a diamond in Bartek, a 20-year-old left winger from the Czech Republic.
"He's a huge addition to our team," Everett coach John Becanic said about Bartek, a third-year WHL veteran acquired from Brandon during the preseason. "He's a great kid. Strong, big bodied, competes hard. He's been an unbelievable pleasure to coach so far and have around our guys."
And he's not the type of player often found in league circles. Just how rare is the European overager? Well, Bartek is the only one currently on a WHL roster. Last season, there were just two overage Europeans: left wing Ondrej Fiala, who began the season in Everett before being traded to Saskatoon, Vancouver center Mario Bliznak. The season before that, Tri-City defenseman Roman Teslyuk was the league's lone overage European.
There's good reason for the scarcity. Teams are allotted three roster spots for overage players and two spots for Europeans. A player like Bartek takes up both an overage and a European slot. Teams generally count on their overagers and Europeans being impact players, so a two-spotter like Bartek cuts the number of possible impact players from those two pools from five to four.
But it's not just the teams that are responsible for the scarcity of European overagers. The players bear responsibility, too. The main reason Europeans come to play in the WHL is the desire to increase their chances at playing in the NHL. If a player isn't in the professional system when he's 20, the perception is that his chances of eventually making the NHL are diminished. Therefore, many 20-year-old Europeans who could return to the WHL instead choose to join the professional ranks in their home countries.
Put it all together and players like Bartek become as difficult to locate as the elusive Vancouver Island marmot.
"Really?" Bartek replied when informed he was the league's lone European overager, his English impeccable. "This is the first time I've heard about it, I didn't even know I was the only one."
Bartek himself was a doubt to return. He spent the summer training with HC Znojemsti Orli of the Czech Extraliga, the highest level of professional hockey in his home country. He performed well enough that Znojemsti offered him a contract.
But Bartek decided to turn it down in favor of one more season in the WHL.
"There are many people who have asked me (why I decided to return)," Bartek explained. "I don't know, it's just everything that goes with hockey here. People just love it and I just decided this way. I think it's going to be good for my future, too."
A future that includes taking a shot at the NHL?
"The NHL is always out there," Bartek replied. "There's a lot of scouts at every game. A lot of 20-year-old free agents are called for tryouts or sign a deal, so there's always a chance. That's part of my decision why I came back."
Bartek should get every opportunity to impress those scouts this season.
During his two seasons in Brandon, Bartek served mainly as a defensive forward, tallying 22 points in 63 games in 2006-07 and 36 points in 54 games last season.
However, with the Tips he'll get his opportunity to shine offensively. He's slated for one of Everett's top two lines -- so far he's filled Kyle Beach's slot alongside Paul Van de Velde and Kellan Tochkin while Beach is in camp with the NHL's Chicago Blackhawks, and he'll remain on a top line after Beach returns -- as well as plenty of power-play time.
"Five-on-five we hope we'll have him playing with some really talented players, giving him an opportunity that maybe he didn't get in Brandon," Becanic said. "It was no fault of (Brandon coach) Kelly McCrimmon's, they just had talented forwards and Barts kind of got bumped back. But here he'll play in our top three or four forwards."
That's just what Bartek wants to hear.
"I think it's good for me," Bartek said. "It's a new way to do things. I was more of a defensive player in Brandon, but I think I'm capable of doing more offensively, and I'm really happy I get the chance to do it here."
It's the type of chance that doesn't open up very often in the WHL. But both Bartek and the Tips are glad they made that chance possible.
Silvertips have found a real gem
EVERETT -- Daniel Bartek is a member of perhaps the rarest species in the WHL.
Twin brothers, 100-point scorers, even left-handed goaltenders with a few screws loose -- all of them are more common in the Western Hockey League than the overage European player.
But while his species may be rare, the Everett Silvertips believe they've unearthed a diamond in Bartek, a 20-year-old left winger from the Czech Republic.
"He's a huge addition to our team," Everett coach John Becanic said about Bartek, a third-year WHL veteran acquired from Brandon during the preseason. "He's a great kid. Strong, big bodied, competes hard. He's been an unbelievable pleasure to coach so far and have around our guys."
And he's not the type of player often found in league circles. Just how rare is the European overager? Well, Bartek is the only one currently on a WHL roster. Last season, there were just two overage Europeans: left wing Ondrej Fiala, who began the season in Everett before being traded to Saskatoon, Vancouver center Mario Bliznak. The season before that, Tri-City defenseman Roman Teslyuk was the league's lone overage European.
There's good reason for the scarcity. Teams are allotted three roster spots for overage players and two spots for Europeans. A player like Bartek takes up both an overage and a European slot. Teams generally count on their overagers and Europeans being impact players, so a two-spotter like Bartek cuts the number of possible impact players from those two pools from five to four.
But it's not just the teams that are responsible for the scarcity of European overagers. The players bear responsibility, too. The main reason Europeans come to play in the WHL is the desire to increase their chances at playing in the NHL. If a player isn't in the professional system when he's 20, the perception is that his chances of eventually making the NHL are diminished. Therefore, many 20-year-old Europeans who could return to the WHL instead choose to join the professional ranks in their home countries.
Put it all together and players like Bartek become as difficult to locate as the elusive Vancouver Island marmot.
"Really?" Bartek replied when informed he was the league's lone European overager, his English impeccable. "This is the first time I've heard about it, I didn't even know I was the only one."
Bartek himself was a doubt to return. He spent the summer training with HC Znojemsti Orli of the Czech Extraliga, the highest level of professional hockey in his home country. He performed well enough that Znojemsti offered him a contract.
But Bartek decided to turn it down in favor of one more season in the WHL.
"There are many people who have asked me (why I decided to return)," Bartek explained. "I don't know, it's just everything that goes with hockey here. People just love it and I just decided this way. I think it's going to be good for my future, too."
A future that includes taking a shot at the NHL?
"The NHL is always out there," Bartek replied. "There's a lot of scouts at every game. A lot of 20-year-old free agents are called for tryouts or sign a deal, so there's always a chance. That's part of my decision why I came back."
Bartek should get every opportunity to impress those scouts this season.
During his two seasons in Brandon, Bartek served mainly as a defensive forward, tallying 22 points in 63 games in 2006-07 and 36 points in 54 games last season.
However, with the Tips he'll get his opportunity to shine offensively. He's slated for one of Everett's top two lines -- so far he's filled Kyle Beach's slot alongside Paul Van de Velde and Kellan Tochkin while Beach is in camp with the NHL's Chicago Blackhawks, and he'll remain on a top line after Beach returns -- as well as plenty of power-play time.
"Five-on-five we hope we'll have him playing with some really talented players, giving him an opportunity that maybe he didn't get in Brandon," Becanic said. "It was no fault of (Brandon coach) Kelly McCrimmon's, they just had talented forwards and Barts kind of got bumped back. But here he'll play in our top three or four forwards."
That's just what Bartek wants to hear.
"I think it's good for me," Bartek said. "It's a new way to do things. I was more of a defensive player in Brandon, but I think I'm capable of doing more offensively, and I'm really happy I get the chance to do it here."
It's the type of chance that doesn't open up very often in the WHL. But both Bartek and the Tips are glad they made that chance possible.