Tipped Off
11-17-2005, 10:35 AM
Rave reviews for Tips' 15-year-old forward
By Nick Patterson
Herald Writer
EVERETT - The acclamations sprung from lips effortlessly.
Everett Silvertips coach Kevin Constantine: "I thought he was fantastic. He came in and was maybe our best player five-on-five."
Center Mark Kress: "He was perfect. He can bury, he can get dirty, he can run guys. It's awesome."
Center Peter Mueller: "He was unbelievable. You know he's going to be a talented kid when he grows up. There's a lot of hype around him already, and he proved it right."
All that praise came for a cameo appearance by a player not yet old enough to drive.
Kyle Beach's initial stint with the Silvertips may have been brief, but the 15-year-old forward left an impression that far surpasses his 15 years.
Beach, Everett's first-round pick in the 2005 Bantam Draft, was called into service during Everett's recent road trip because of the Silvertips' injury crisis. He played in four of the five games he's allowed as a 15-year-old.
But Beach proved anything but a stopgap. He registered two goals and an assist in four games, wowing friend and foe alike with one of the most impressive displays put on by a 15-year-old in the Western Hockey League in recent memory.
"It was great," Beach said about the experience from his home in Kelowna, British Columbia. "They gave me tons of opportunities, putting me on the power play late in games. The players and the coaches made it easy for me. They treated me like I'd been there all year. They trusted me out in key situations and treated me like I was one of their own."
Beach, a prototypical power forward at 6-foot-3 and 190 pounds with a heavy dose of feistiness, has been dominating the British Columbia Major Midget League, where he's the reigning player of the month. In 10 games with the Okanagan Rockets, he has 11 goals and eight assists, tying him for first for league scoring.
And making the leap to the WHL didn't seem to faze him one bit. He scored a goal in his WHL debut at Medicine Hat. He set up the tying goal in the dying seconds at Swift Current. Then he scored again at Kootenay.
"The assist helped a win, but the two goals came in losses, which was too bad," Beach said. "It was great to see I could compete at that level, but the credit has to go to my teammates. Both my goals were set up perfect and were just tap-ins."
Nonetheless, Beach gradually earned more and more ice time as his time with the team progressed.
"He showed so much confidence in his first game that we thought, 'Well, let's just keep throwing a little more at him,' " Constantine said. "By the third game we were using him on the power play and really the only thing he didn't do was any penalty killing for us."
Said Beach, "I wasn't expecting to play that much. I was very shocked after the first game. But the coaches sat me down and said, 'We didn't bring you here to have you sit on the bench.'"
Beach's performance compared favorably to another memorable Everett 15-year-old - Zach Hamill. Hamill joined the Tips for the 2004 playoffs and ended up playing in 20 of the 21 games, scoring three goals - including an overtime game winner against Spokane in the first round - and dishing out two assists.
"Zach Hamill came in and was impressive as a 15-year-old," Constantine said. "He was capable of coming in and hanging in there and being one of our 12 best forwards where you could play him on the fourth line. Beach came in and was maybe our best guy five-on-five. He did more in his first four games with us than Zach did as a 15-year-old, and we all know how good Zach is right now.
"If Kyle Beach were 16-years old he'd be in our top 12 forwards right now and would play every game right now."
Beach can play in just one more game with Everett this season until his Midget season ends. Therefore, the Everett fans may not get their first look at Beach until the playoffs - he becomes eligible to join the team full-time once his Midget season ends.
And rejoining the Tips is a prospect he's eagerly anticipating.
"I can't wait," Beach said. "It was so much fun and a nice challenge. You need that now and then. I definitely look forward to being back with them."
By Nick Patterson
Herald Writer
EVERETT - The acclamations sprung from lips effortlessly.
Everett Silvertips coach Kevin Constantine: "I thought he was fantastic. He came in and was maybe our best player five-on-five."
Center Mark Kress: "He was perfect. He can bury, he can get dirty, he can run guys. It's awesome."
Center Peter Mueller: "He was unbelievable. You know he's going to be a talented kid when he grows up. There's a lot of hype around him already, and he proved it right."
All that praise came for a cameo appearance by a player not yet old enough to drive.
Kyle Beach's initial stint with the Silvertips may have been brief, but the 15-year-old forward left an impression that far surpasses his 15 years.
Beach, Everett's first-round pick in the 2005 Bantam Draft, was called into service during Everett's recent road trip because of the Silvertips' injury crisis. He played in four of the five games he's allowed as a 15-year-old.
But Beach proved anything but a stopgap. He registered two goals and an assist in four games, wowing friend and foe alike with one of the most impressive displays put on by a 15-year-old in the Western Hockey League in recent memory.
"It was great," Beach said about the experience from his home in Kelowna, British Columbia. "They gave me tons of opportunities, putting me on the power play late in games. The players and the coaches made it easy for me. They treated me like I'd been there all year. They trusted me out in key situations and treated me like I was one of their own."
Beach, a prototypical power forward at 6-foot-3 and 190 pounds with a heavy dose of feistiness, has been dominating the British Columbia Major Midget League, where he's the reigning player of the month. In 10 games with the Okanagan Rockets, he has 11 goals and eight assists, tying him for first for league scoring.
And making the leap to the WHL didn't seem to faze him one bit. He scored a goal in his WHL debut at Medicine Hat. He set up the tying goal in the dying seconds at Swift Current. Then he scored again at Kootenay.
"The assist helped a win, but the two goals came in losses, which was too bad," Beach said. "It was great to see I could compete at that level, but the credit has to go to my teammates. Both my goals were set up perfect and were just tap-ins."
Nonetheless, Beach gradually earned more and more ice time as his time with the team progressed.
"He showed so much confidence in his first game that we thought, 'Well, let's just keep throwing a little more at him,' " Constantine said. "By the third game we were using him on the power play and really the only thing he didn't do was any penalty killing for us."
Said Beach, "I wasn't expecting to play that much. I was very shocked after the first game. But the coaches sat me down and said, 'We didn't bring you here to have you sit on the bench.'"
Beach's performance compared favorably to another memorable Everett 15-year-old - Zach Hamill. Hamill joined the Tips for the 2004 playoffs and ended up playing in 20 of the 21 games, scoring three goals - including an overtime game winner against Spokane in the first round - and dishing out two assists.
"Zach Hamill came in and was impressive as a 15-year-old," Constantine said. "He was capable of coming in and hanging in there and being one of our 12 best forwards where you could play him on the fourth line. Beach came in and was maybe our best guy five-on-five. He did more in his first four games with us than Zach did as a 15-year-old, and we all know how good Zach is right now.
"If Kyle Beach were 16-years old he'd be in our top 12 forwards right now and would play every game right now."
Beach can play in just one more game with Everett this season until his Midget season ends. Therefore, the Everett fans may not get their first look at Beach until the playoffs - he becomes eligible to join the team full-time once his Midget season ends.
And rejoining the Tips is a prospect he's eagerly anticipating.
"I can't wait," Beach said. "It was so much fun and a nice challenge. You need that now and then. I definitely look forward to being back with them."