EVERETT – Three senior members of the Everett Silvertips are taking a break from preseason training to follow their childhood dreams.
Riley Armstrong, Mitch Love and Michael Wall take their first steps toward the National Hockey League this week, departing for NHL rookie camps.
“It’s a lifelong dream,” Love said. “It’s something that as a little kid, when you’re playing hockey in your basement or outside, you have an NHL jersey on. So to finally get a chance to go and do something like this is something I’ve always worked for. I don’t want to go there and disappoint, so I’m going to go there and leave it all out there.”
Armstrong, a 20-year-old forward, Love, a 20-year-old defenseman and Wall, a 19-year-old goalie, were invited by NHL teams to attend a week’s worth of tryouts. Their chances of making an NHL team are probably slim at best, however.
Armstrong departed for San Jose, Calif., on Tuesday to join the Sharks. Love left for Montreal on Wednesday for the Florida Panthers’ camp. Wall leaves today for Calgary to meet up with the Flames.
“I feel a little nervous,” said Armstrong, who has recovered from the bruised knee he received in Sunday’s exhibition game against Vancouver and should be at full speed in San Jose.
“I’m not sure what to expect. It’s obviously a bigger step than a Western Hockey League camp. There’s going to be some bigger guys out there, some older guys, so I’ve just got to go there, work hard and see what happens. I don’t plan on staying or making the team, but if it happens, it happens. If I come back here, it’s a great place to play back in Everett, so I don’t mind it.”
NHL rookie camps end Sept. 15, the date the collective bargaining agreement expires between the NHL players and teams. It’s also when a potential lockout would begin. Therefore, all three will miss the Silvertips’ home exhibition game Saturday, but should be back in time for the following weekend’s final two exhibition games.
Unless, of course, any of the three does enough to convince their NHL teams to sign them to a professional contract.
“I think it’s absolutely fantastic,” Everett coach Kevin Constantine said about Armstrong, Love and Wall being invited to NHL rookie camps.
“We dread the thought of those guys actually getting signed and moved into an American Hockey League type of team where they couldn’t come back and play for us. But that’s what we’re trying to do, is help those guys get professional careers going. The fact that those guys earned their right, through their play last year, to be in a training camp we think is fantastic for them and our organization.”
For Wall, this is his second chance to impress the Calgary coaches. Wall spent three days training with the Flames in early August and was sufficiently impressive to warrant a call back.
“They already knew some of the guys from before and I just kind of went there to fill a spot because they needed an extra guy,” Wall said. “It was really fun. I spent time with their goalie coach, worked on a few things and little details that will help, so it was real good.”
And all three are going for more than just the experience.
“Obviously any time you go to a tryout you’re going to make the team,” Love said. “I don’t think the NHL knows what it’s going to do (about a potential lockout), but I’m going there and I’m going to do the things that got me the invite. I’m going to try to do everything to the best of my ability, leave everything on the table and hopefully impress the general manager Mike Keenan and the head coach Jacques Martin and see if I can stick. But I’m going there to make the hockey club, just like any other player would be.”
Slap shots: Barry Horman returned to ice Wednesday for the first time since the first day of training camp. The 20-year-old right wing, fighting for one of the Silvertips three overager slots, suffered a finger injury during the first scrimmage of training camp. … Vancouver center Gilbert Brule, the perpetrator of the slash to Armstrong’s knee that knocked Armstrong out of Sunday’s exhibition game, received a one-game suspension Wednesday. Brule will miss Vancouver’s exhibition game Sept. 17 vs. Kelowna.
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