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caps05
08-03-2006, 05:12 PM
http://www.calgaryflames.com/cgi-bin/news/comments.cgi?type=newsroom&file_num=0000000902 (http://)

From calgaryflames.com.

Warrior Fan
08-16-2006, 11:31 AM
6-foot, 200-pound center Dustin Boyd headed from a 22-game playoff run with Moose Jaw in the WHL to preparation for the Flames' developmental camp in late July.
Short summer no
concern for Boyd
By Shawn P. Roarke | NHL.com Senior Writer
Aug. 16, 2006



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Calgary Flames prospect Dustin Boyd is actually enjoying the shortest summer of his hockey-playing life, but you won't catch the 20-year-old complaining about a lack of free time.

As a member of the Moose Jaw Warriors, Boyd advanced to the Western Hockey League's Western Conference Finals, losing a four-game series to the Vancouver Giants that finished on May 9.

"I think it was the first time Moose Jaw has been beyond the second round and the town was really behind us," Boyd said.

The 6-foot, 200-pound center was a big part of the Warriors' success, scoring 90 points in 64 regular-season games. He added 18 more points in Moose Jaw's 22-game playoff run.

But the down side of that run deep into the playoffs, if there was one, is that it left Boyd with less time to prepare for the Calgary Flames' developmental camp in late July.

With his intention to turn pro, both that mid-summer camp and this fall's training camp are pivotal to Boyd's future. Yet, Boyd says the short summer has not been an issue.

"I think it was a pretty easy transition," Boyd said. "You take a week off, and then you get back into it because you want to get back into shape and be ready."

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And, Boyd has been nothing if not adaptable during his four-year junior career with the Warriors.

He arrived with Moose Jaw as a high-scoring 16-year-old, but was quickly thrust into a more defensive role by Moose Jaw's coaching staff. He played that role for two years, including his draft year in 2004, before being granted more offensive freedom.

Despite the dampening effect his checking-line duties had on his offensive production, Boyd says he accepted the assignment eagerly because he figured the experience could only help him down the road.

"Coming into Moose Jaw, they taught me the defensive side of the game," Boyd admits. "It really molded me and made defensive responsibility a part of a game.

"It was a lot harder my draft year because you want to get a lot of points and you want to impress all the scouts because you want to go high in the draft. Looking back on it now, I had a good year and I learned a lot more. I had to say to myself, 'This is the way it's going to be this year and I have to make the best out of it.' I scored a few points and that felt good, too."

Boyd scored 38 points that year, and, a few weeks later, was taken in the third round, 98th overall by the Flames. At the time, Boyd was seen as a typical Calgary player: a two-way performer with good work habits and a modicum of offensive upside.

Boyd, however, quickly showed his offensive upside wasn't all that limited. In his third year, Boyd scored 61 points in 66 games. Last season, not only did he have 90 regular-season points, but he also added six more points for Team Canada as it won the World Junior Championships.


Last season, Dustin Boyd had 90 regular-season points, and added six points for Team Canada en route to winning the World Junior Championships.
"Those next two years I was giving a more offensive role -- first line, first power-play unit," said Boyd. "I definitely stepped right back to where I was before. You always want to keep up with your scoring touch and you never want to lose it."

Now, Boyd wants to show Calgary's new coach, Jim Playfair, that he is ready to bring his scoring ways, as well as a typical two-way Calgary game, to the NHL level.

"I'm a high-energy guy, can skate really fast," Boyd said when asked for a scouting report of his own game. "I'm a great playmaker, like to score goals and play both ends of the ice and shut down the other team."

Sounds like a skill set made to order for Calgary's system. Now, he knows all he needs to do is show each of those aspects of his game at the right time.

"I'm trying to make Calgary and see what happens in training camp," Boyd states. "This year, for me, I think I have to come here in the best shape possible and give myself the best opportunity to play in Calgary and see where that goes. If not, then to play in the (American Hockey League). I have to put my best game forward."

To do that, Boyd left the developmental camp with plans to return to his native Winnipeg for more sessions with his personal trainer. He also partakes in some on-ice sessions with a number of current NHLers, like Anaheim's Dustin Penner and Colorado's Tyler Arnason.

Both Penner and Arnason are only a few years older than Boyd. He feels he is now ready to start measuring his progress against those established NHL players.

"Those guys are great players, and you want to go out there and be competitive with them," Boyd said. "Looking at those guys, and the year they had, that's where you want to be in the next year or two years."

As a result, Boyd has gladly sacrificed a few weeks of summer sun and fun to make his desire to be a professional have the best possible chance of unfolding the way he foresees.