November 1, 2011
Good first impression
Crunch, Deschamps looking for even better things in 2011-12
by Elliot Olshansky/Correspondent
Nicolas Deschamps (photo: Syracuse Crunch)
By the standard of wins and losses, the 2010-11 season was very forgettable for the Syracuse Crunch. The team went 35-38-7 and finished sixth in the AHL’s East Division, some 15 points behind fifth-place Binghamton, and never really factored in the hunt for a playoff spot down the stretch.
In terms of development, on the other hand, the Crunch did their job quite well, giving good support to a parent club in Anaheim that finished fourth in the Western Conference, sending up promising prospects like Kyle Palmieri (Smithtown, N.Y.) and Nick Bonino over the course of the season, and even getting goalkeeper Ray Emery prepared for his return to the NHL.
It may not have been exactly the debut season first-year Mark Holick wanted after stepping up from the WHL’s Kootenay Ice, but it was a solid beginning.
“I think we learned a lot about each other last year,” Holick said. “We won 35 hockey games with what was a pretty young lineup -- and not only young, but inexperienced. It’s a different animal. These are men. These are professional athletes, and kids coming out of junior or lacking American experience have got to learn that. It does take some time; we had a lot of players on our team who were playing pro for the first time, and it’s an adjustment on the ice as well as off the ice.”
Now, in Holick’s second season behind the bench at the ONCenter, he’ll be looking to guide the Crunch to greater success in the East Division and continue to develop solid prospects for the Ducks.
Central to both those pursuits is someone else who transitioned from major junior to the AHL last year: Nicolas Deschamps.
In his rookie pro season after three years in the QMJHL with the Chicoutimi Sagueneens and Moncton Wildcats, the Ducks’ second-round pick (35th overall) from the 2008 NHL Entry Draft made a strong showing for the Crunch, finishing second on the team with 31 assists and third in both goals (15) and total points (46).
More importantly, however, according to his coach, Deschamps was able to develop himself into a more complete player, and take steps toward rounding out his overall game.
“He was an offensive guy in junior hockey,” Holick said, “and the pro game is a little more complete. You’ve got to make sure you’re playing in all three zones, more of a 200-foot game. I thought that as the year progressed, he made strides, especially in the second half, in his all-around game. The second half of the season, he was really committed to blocking shots, good stick position, communication, and taking care of his lanes and his coverages, and I thought he got better as the year went on.”
Part of the challenge, of course, was adjusting to the physical difference between playing with boys in the junior ranks and against grown men in the pros
“People are more mature,” Deschamps said. “They’re stronger, faster. I think it went pretty well at the start of the season. That’s what I don’t want to do this year; I want to keep improving on my year, and last year, I didn’t. I started off really well, and then things went down a little bit.”
Now in his second pro campaign, having gone through the growing pains of the transition from junior, Deschamps is going to look to deliver a more consistent performance over the course of the season, in the hopes of impressing the Ducks’ brass and getting a call-up to California.
“I know what to expect,” Deschamps said of his looming second AHL season. “I’m going to play hard and try to earn a spot back in Anaheim this year.”
To do that, according to his coach, he’ll need to pick up where he left off last year and continue to develop his overall game.
“I think that like all players, he’s got to have a complete game,” Holick said. “In a situation like his, he’s an offensively gifted individual, (and) if he’s going to play in the NHL, he’s going to be in a top-six forward role. The challenge for some of those players is to improve their all-around game so they’re not just limited to that top-six role, get into that top nine, where they can play at both ends of the rink, defend real well. It gives you some options going into an NHL training camp to make an impression.”
Obviously, Deschamps would rather not have to wait until next fall to try to make an impression on the Ducks, although he certainly doesn’t mind Syracuse as a place to live and play while he develops (“The city’s really nice, and it’s got good crowds, so it’s fun even when we’re losing,” Deschamps said. “And the university’s here, so we go to the basketball and football games.”) One way or another, though, Deschamps has his sights set on Disneyland, and his current coach knows he has the mindset to make it there.
“I love his attitude,” Holick said. “He comes to the rink, and he’s always in a good mood. He works real hard, competes real hard. He’s a true professional.”
For a man with his sights set on the best hockey league on the planet, there are few higher compliments.
Elliot Olshansky can be reached at feedback@nyhockeyjournal.com.
