February 17, 2011
Hard body, hard work
Rochester native Philip Lane is hoping work ethic can lead him to NHL
by Gene Morris/Correspondent
Philip Lane (photo: Doug Ball)
Six-foot-3 Brampton Batallion forward Philip Lane is an imposing physical figure. The 195-pound, 18-year old winger likes to use his size to his advantage on the ice.
“I’m more of a big-bodied power forward,” said the Rochester, N.Y., native. “I’m not a finesse guy. I’m a grinder who likes to throw his body around.”
The physical style doesn’t come without its detriments, as Lane suffered a concussion in mid-January that forced him to sit out for a few games. It certainly won’t stop him on his way towards achieving his goal of playing in the NHL.
“My number one priority is to make it to the NHL one day, and to just continue working towards that dream,” he said.
Lane, selected in the second round of the NHL Entry Draft by the Phoenix Coyotes, says he looks up to and embodies the type of work ethic put in by fellow Rochester natives Brian and Stephen Gionta. Both Gionta brothers -- despite being listed at just 5- foot-7 -- have made it to the NHL through lots of hard work. It’s a strategy that Lane fully subscribes to.
After Lane’s first season in the OHL, when he was named the Battalion’s rookie of the year, he worked hard in the offseason at getting better in his own end and trying to become a plus player after he finished minus-10 in 2009-10.
“Coming in as a rookie, you don’t have the confidence you do your second year, and that’s something you have to work on,” he said. “I tried hard to be a plus player, working on defensive zone play, working on getting the puck out of my end and just doing the little things.”
The little things have seemingly paid off for him. In late January, he was a plus-10 and had contributed nine goals and 11 assists to go along with 61 penalty minutes in 34 games.
The next step is trying to help his team advance to the OHL playoffs once again, and then a summer filled with NHL possibilities.
Lane, who was out in Los Angeles at the time of last year’s draft, said, “There were so many emotions running through my body at the time when I heard my name called, words can’t even describe it. It was such an exciting time in my life.”
Like most upstate hockey players, the dedication of his parents went a long way towards helping Lane and his brother, Matt -- who was drafted by the Battalion in the 2010 OHL priority selection draft -- succeed. The Lane brothers frequently attended Rochester Institute of Technology games with their parents and found a love for the game.
“Eventually, they put me and my brother on the ice together,” Philip said. “I was six and he was four, and ever since then we’ve been playing hockey.”
Although their parents weren’t hockey players themselves, they put in the time and effort to make sure their boys would have every chance of success. “They were always there for me, bringing us to hockey camps, driving back and forth to practice three times a week, spending weekends in Canada or wherever the tournament would happen to be,” he said. “Definitely the typical, hard-working hockey parents.”
After realizing in midget hockey that he had the chance to continue playing and working towards the NHL, Lane had a discussion with his coaches, “who gave me the advice to say that if I wanted to pursue hockey as my career, playing juniors is the next step to further my career.”
A successful season at Brampton elevated him into the second round of the NHL draft, and Lane spend time before this NHL season in Phoenix trying to find out how things worked in the pros.
“I was out there over the summer, a development type of thing,” he said. “It was more of how they run their program and the systems and to just kind of dip your foot in the water and see what Phoenix is all about.”
The 100-degree weather wasn’t the only thing the New York boy noticed was different.
“The NHL is a business,” he said. “Things are run pretty different than the OHL. It’s people’s jobs and it’s a lot more competitive. Everybody is good up there, and you’ve got to go there and compete hard or you won’t get a job.”
With the progression Lane has shown through the last few years, competing shouldn’t be a problem.
Gene Morris can be reached at feedback@nyhockeyjournal.com.
