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Brad
01-13-2005, 02:25 PM
Source: http://echl.com/cgi-bin/mpublic.cgi?action=show_news&cat=1&id=3648

By Todd Dewey
Las Vegas Review-Journal

LAS VEGAS - If not for the NHL lockout, Dustin Johner would probably be playing in the American Hockey League.

Instead, Johner is playing for the Wranglers, with whom he's thriving in his first full professional season.

The 21-year-old center from Alberta, Canada, has scored 10 points in his last six games and leads Las Vegas (16-13-4) with 28 points (15 goals, 13 assists) heading into Thursday's game against San Diego at the Orleans Arena.

"He's gotten accustomed to playing against men, and he's turning the corner here for us and he's been one of our most valuable players and a guy we're relying on," coach Glen Gulutzan said. "He's fast and he's a great skater, that's his best asset. He also brings some pep and some jump every night.

"He just has a swagger about him. He's got a great attitude toward the game, he always has a smile on his face, and those are the kind of guys you want in the locker room."

Johner, who scored 271 points in 285 games with the Seattle Thunderbirds of the Western Hockey League the last four years, was signed by South Carolina of the ECHL at the end of last season and scored six points in four games.

The Calgary Flames signed him out of their free-agent camp last summer and he was assigned to Las Vegas after being one of the last cuts at Lowell, Calgary's AHL affiliate.

"It's a tough year. (Lowell's) got a lot of guys who played in the NHL last year," Johner said. "But I'm getting a chance in my first year as a pro to play 20 to 25 minutes a night, and it can only help me get better."

Johner, who started skating when he was 3 and started playing hockey when he was 5, has long dreamed of playing in the NHL.

Gulutzan said that dream can become a reality.

"I think he could go all the way to the NHL. It just depends on how he progresses," Gulutzan said. "There's nothing really holding him back. If he wants to put in the time and commitment, I think the sky's the limit for him."

The 5-10 and 180-pound Johner said consistency is the biggest key to reaching the NHL.

"It's a real fine line to get to the next step, to the American League, and it's an even finer line to get to the NHL," he said. "It's not the amount of talent or scoring ability, because a lot of guys are close with that. It's just doing it every single night."

Binny
01-14-2005, 04:46 PM
yay great to hear about dustin.
havne't heard much about him in a while.
Glad he's doing alright :o

_/ 17 \_
01-15-2005, 07:52 PM
Thanks for the update on DJ, great to hear!