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Everett Silvertips fan favorite Pfeifer returns for the weekend

Published 12:30 am Saturday, November 5, 2016

By Jesse Geleynse Herald Writer

The Everett Silvertips had a pair of special guests at practice Friday as the U.S. Division leaders prepared for tonight’s game with the Portland Winterhawks.

Helping with on-ice instruction was Ron Sutter, a player development coach for the Calgary Flames. Later in the afternoon former Silvertip defenseman Tristen Pfeifer arrived at Xfinity Arena.

As a player development coach Sutter spends much of his time on the road working with players in the Flames’ system and monitoring their progress. He’s in town this week keeping tabs on 2016 Calgary draftee Eetu Tuulola, a Finnish forward in his first year with the Silvertips.

“It’s a way for me to be closer to the kids,” said Sutter, a veteran of 19 NHL seasons. “There is a two- or three-year window after the kids are drafted or sign as free agents when they’re in junior where they need work, they need attention whether it’s on-ice or off-ice, and my job is doing everything I can to help prepare them for the next level.”

Not every player selected in the NHL draft earns a professional contract, something Sutter emphasized. His presence is a reminder of that fact for Tuulola, as well as Victoria’s Matthew Phillips and Kelowna’s Dillon Dube, two other Flames picks in June’s draft who play in the WHL’s Western Conference.

“The mentality of a player today is that there is no given – it’s got to be earned,” Sutter said. “If you can instill that in these guys when they’re drafted and then remind them of that on a regular basis and say, ‘You know what? We can guide you and mentor you and show you. But at the end of the day you’ve got to put the time in.’”

If the Sutter name rings familiar for Tips fans, it should. Ron is the father of 17-year-old Riley Sutter, who happens to be leading Everett with seven goals this season. The younger Sutter isn’t even eligible for the NHL draft until 2018, so for now Ron’s visits to Everett are merely a fringe benefit of his job as Calgary’s player development coach.

The elder Sutter spent extra time on the ice following practice with the players who stuck around for extra work. He was a welcome presence for Tips head coach Kevin Constantine, who once coached against Sutter in the NHL.

“We’re trying to help these guys get to the NHL and he did that,” Constantine said. “You hope that in many cases he’s repeating what you’ve said because that reinforces that you’re saying the right things, but also that he just adds something you haven’t said. I think both those things happened the last two days, and I’m sure it’s fun for the guys to hear from somebody else from the business.”

Toward the conclusion of practice Pfeifer snuck into the tunnel leading to the Everett bench. Tips forward Patrick Bajkov offered a gloved hand as a wave, but Pfeifer stayed put, not wanting to “distract the boys.”

Later Pfeifer greeted his former teammates and coaches as they made their way to the locker room.

“Hockey here is a lot of fun,” he said. “I miss the crowds, I miss playing. But more than anything I miss the time with the guys and I miss the camaraderie with the guys. It’s just a different stage of life. I wouldn’t say it was better or worse. It’s just different. There is a lot more free time. I can travel, I can do a lot more things. Definitely positives and negatives for both, but it’s definitely a pretty cool time in someone’s life when they can play junior hockey.”

Pfeifer would have been an overage candidate for this year’s team since he had a year of junior eligibility remaining. However, he chose to retire this past offseason due to the multiple concussions he sustained during his two seasons with the Tips.

“It was definitely (a decision) that took me all summer to make,” he said. “It was a very hard decision. But it turned out pretty good, and I’m really happy where I’m at right now.”

A two-time Silvertips Scholastic Athlete of the Year and a finalist for the 2016 WHL Scholastic Athlete of the Year, Pfeifer is now a junior at Grand Canyon University in Phoenix.

It’s the first time he’s lived on campus because he completed his first two years of coursework online while playing for the Tips.

“I wouldn’t say one is harder than the other, but it’s just different,” he said. “Here I had hockey all day and school at night. Now I just have school and work.”

Pfeifer still talks with his teammates daily, so he’s very aware of Everett’s early season success. The goal, he said, is to continue maintaining his pristine grade-point average and move on to pursue his MBA at “the best school I can.” He’s also taken up road biking and signed up for his first half-Ironman.

Suffice to say Pfeifer continues to have a bright future despite the absence of hockey.

For the latest Silvertips news follow Jesse Geleynse on Twitter.

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