Published: Friday, February 3, 2012
Silvertips' little giant has good instincts and good hands
Kohl Bauml is proving you don't have to be big to be effective around the net
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Jennifer Buchanan / The Herald
Everett's Kohl Bauml (15) tries to get the puck back from Seattle's Braeden Laroque (5) in the second period of the teams' gamme Jan. 21.
If the hockey landscape were a forest, then the area in front of the goal would be the domain of the redwoods. That's were the biggest bodies fight the biggest battles as the two sides simultaneously attempt to create and limit the amount of chaos immediately in front of the goaltender.
So what is a bonsai-sized player like Kohl Bauml doing making hay amongst the redwoods?
Bauml may not be the biggest of hockey players, but the 17-year-old rookie is proving one doesn't need to be a giant in order to be effective in front of the net.
"I haven't seen that very much, even watching NHL games, a guy that small being in front of the net and being successful," said Bauml's linemate Ryan Harrison. "It's a bit surprising, but he's done a great job."
Bauml is the smallest player on Everett's roster. Indeed, at 5-foot-7 and 160 pounds, Bauml is usually the smallest player on the ice for either team.
But despite his diminutive size, the Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, native has turned the area in front of the net into his own personal patio. Bauml has 20 points (nine goals, 11 assists) in his past 20 games, and many of those recent points were procured from point blank as he planted himself right in the middle of the tall trees.
So how is the pint-sized Bauml able to make a living in front of the net?
"Maybe he just gets underneath everybody, I'm not sure what it is," Everett coach Mark Ferner speculated with a laugh. "But he has a nose for the puck, he seems to know where it's going. He's got some good instincts and some good hands. He's a good little player for us."
It took some time for Bauml to develop his effectiveness in front of net. During his first 30 games Bauml managed just seven points, a far cry from his current point-a-game pace.
"Coming into the year, being a small guy I wasn't winning a lot of battles," Bauml explained. "I was getting pushed off pucks quite a bit, and I knew that was probably going to happen at the start of the year. But we worked out a ton at the start of the year, so I can definitely tell my strength's been getting up there. I'm starting to win the little battles in front of the net now, and that's basically where I've been getting all my goals lately."
Bauml has some experience being in front of the net to lean upon. When Bauml was a 15-year-old playing for the Saskatoon Contacts of the Saskatchewan Midget AAA Hockey League, he was asked to play a similar role.
"When I was in my first year of midget I was stuck in front of the net on the power play on my line," Bauml said. "The other two guys would get to control the puck and I'd just stand there. I think I scored 10 of my 17 goals from right in front of the net. It just kind of became a habit."
But Bauml has two other characteristics that are equally important: intelligence and determination. Bauml possesses the smarts to understand what he needs to do to compete with the bigger opponents in front, and he has the corresponding work ethic required to execute the necessary maneuvers.
"Some teams will tell their defensemen to make sure they're pushing guys out, and sometimes they just let you stand there," Bauml said. "You just have to work around them. When you feel them on your back and they start to give a good shove, you have to try and spin off them. Just little agility things you can try and work on in practice."
Sometimes, being small and elusive can even be a benefit.
"In front of the net you kind of squeak into little areas," Bauml said. "People are looking around and looking over you head and no one's seeing you, then all of a sudden you're at the back post and you've got the puck on your stick with a wide-open net. It's not always the greatest thing to be a smaller player, but there's definitely some advantages."
And Bauml has shown he's a player who knows how to exploit those advantages.
Slap shots
Everett was idle during the week, and in the process the Tips fell back into 10th place in the Western Conference. Victoria and Prince George split a doubleheader, meaning Prince George moved one point ahead of Everett and the Tips fell to five points behind Seattle for the conference's eighth and final playoff position. ... Tonight's game at Portland is being televised regionally by ROOT Sports. Coverage begins at 7 p.m. It is the first of three Silvertips games that will be televised by ROOT this season.
Check out Nick Patterson's Silvertips blog at http://www.heraldnet.com/silvertipsblog, and follow him on Twitter at NickHPatterson.
So what is a bonsai-sized player like Kohl Bauml doing making hay amongst the redwoods?
Bauml may not be the biggest of hockey players, but the 17-year-old rookie is proving one doesn't need to be a giant in order to be effective in front of the net.
"I haven't seen that very much, even watching NHL games, a guy that small being in front of the net and being successful," said Bauml's linemate Ryan Harrison. "It's a bit surprising, but he's done a great job."
Bauml is the smallest player on Everett's roster. Indeed, at 5-foot-7 and 160 pounds, Bauml is usually the smallest player on the ice for either team.
But despite his diminutive size, the Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, native has turned the area in front of the net into his own personal patio. Bauml has 20 points (nine goals, 11 assists) in his past 20 games, and many of those recent points were procured from point blank as he planted himself right in the middle of the tall trees.
So how is the pint-sized Bauml able to make a living in front of the net?
"Maybe he just gets underneath everybody, I'm not sure what it is," Everett coach Mark Ferner speculated with a laugh. "But he has a nose for the puck, he seems to know where it's going. He's got some good instincts and some good hands. He's a good little player for us."
It took some time for Bauml to develop his effectiveness in front of net. During his first 30 games Bauml managed just seven points, a far cry from his current point-a-game pace.
"Coming into the year, being a small guy I wasn't winning a lot of battles," Bauml explained. "I was getting pushed off pucks quite a bit, and I knew that was probably going to happen at the start of the year. But we worked out a ton at the start of the year, so I can definitely tell my strength's been getting up there. I'm starting to win the little battles in front of the net now, and that's basically where I've been getting all my goals lately."
Bauml has some experience being in front of the net to lean upon. When Bauml was a 15-year-old playing for the Saskatoon Contacts of the Saskatchewan Midget AAA Hockey League, he was asked to play a similar role.
"When I was in my first year of midget I was stuck in front of the net on the power play on my line," Bauml said. "The other two guys would get to control the puck and I'd just stand there. I think I scored 10 of my 17 goals from right in front of the net. It just kind of became a habit."
But Bauml has two other characteristics that are equally important: intelligence and determination. Bauml possesses the smarts to understand what he needs to do to compete with the bigger opponents in front, and he has the corresponding work ethic required to execute the necessary maneuvers.
"Some teams will tell their defensemen to make sure they're pushing guys out, and sometimes they just let you stand there," Bauml said. "You just have to work around them. When you feel them on your back and they start to give a good shove, you have to try and spin off them. Just little agility things you can try and work on in practice."
Sometimes, being small and elusive can even be a benefit.
"In front of the net you kind of squeak into little areas," Bauml said. "People are looking around and looking over you head and no one's seeing you, then all of a sudden you're at the back post and you've got the puck on your stick with a wide-open net. It's not always the greatest thing to be a smaller player, but there's definitely some advantages."
And Bauml has shown he's a player who knows how to exploit those advantages.
Slap shots
Everett was idle during the week, and in the process the Tips fell back into 10th place in the Western Conference. Victoria and Prince George split a doubleheader, meaning Prince George moved one point ahead of Everett and the Tips fell to five points behind Seattle for the conference's eighth and final playoff position. ... Tonight's game at Portland is being televised regionally by ROOT Sports. Coverage begins at 7 p.m. It is the first of three Silvertips games that will be televised by ROOT this season.
Check out Nick Patterson's Silvertips blog at http://www.heraldnet.com/silvertipsblog, and follow him on Twitter at NickHPatterson.
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