Friday, January 30, 1998
January's News from the Rinks II
USA Boys Come East This Weekend
The U.S. Under-18 makes their only trip to the east this weekend as they take on the EJHL All Stars. The two teams will face-off Saturday night at 8:00 pm at Northeastern's Matthews Arena, and they'll meet the following night at 7:05 at Walter Brown Arena.
The team coming east will be a mix of players from the red and blue teams, with all the players with New England connections making the trip. To view the roster for the two game series -- click here.
Giving Up a 4-for-4 -- and Hockey, too
Two weeks ago, Western Michigan University coach Bill Wilkinson received a short letter from Greg Mitchell, the 6-5/210 lb. former right wing from the Boston Bulldogs. In the letter, Mitchell, who'd earlier accepted a full-ride hockey scholarship from Wilkinson, announced he was officially giving up the scholarship -- and the game of hockey. The letter was postmarked San Antonio, Texas, where days earlier Mitchell had enrolled at St. Mary's University, his father's alma mater.
"It's all a little strange," says Wilkinson, who in 25 years of coaching hockey at the Division I level has never seen a player give so much up.
For our purposes, the story begins in December when Mitchell, the nephew of Pittsburgh Penguins GM Craig Patrick, left the Boston Bulldogs after a game in which Mike Addesa, the junior team's head coach/GM, had left him out on the ice for four consecutive shifts. Mitchell felt that he'd been publicly humiliated.
Wilkinson, when he spoke to Mitchell a week later, simply said, "Let's get you somewhere where you'd like to play."
Mitchell told the coach he wanted to play in the USHL, for the Lincoln Stars. He'd heard good things about the Stars from Brendon Hodge and Tim Peters, a pair of former Bulldogs teammates, and he wanted to join them.
Addesa, however, refused to give Mitchell his release -- at least to Lincoln. But in early January Addesa gave Mitchell his release to go play Tier II for the Caledon (Ont.) Canadians. After two games with Caledon, in both of which he'd played well, Mitchell packed up, quit hockey, and headed for Texas.
The Western Michigan coaches tried to talk Mitchell out of quitting, suggesting he simply enroll at Western and reconsider his decision. Mitchell declined the offer. He'd made up his mind, he said, and the decision was final.
Today, speculation abounds. Mitchell told friends that Addesa's coaching methods had taken all the joy out of hockey for him, and that he no longer loved the game. Others say that he was never passionate about the game in the first place. Quitting now, they added, was a convenient way for Mitchell to avoid facing the prospect of going off to Western Michigan, performing below others' expectations -- and becoming the first member of the Patrick line, perhaps hockey's most illustrious family, to fail at the game their name is virtually synonymous with.
Now we'll probably never know exactly what Greg Mitchell might have become. But for a big guy he could skate well enough to make his mark. He was -- and still is -- suited to the modern pro game.
Former Hotchkiss D Headed to Princeton
Former Hotchkiss defenseman David Bennett has made a verbal commitment to play for Princeton. Bennett, 6-2/190, and a left shot, is the son of Harvey Bennett, who played for BC before going on to a five-year NHL career in the early 70's. Over the past two winters, Bennett has played for the Cornwall Colts, picking up a little quickness.
The 1999 Junior National Team: The Early Line
Looking back on the National Junior Team's recent fifth-place finish at the World Junior Championships in Finland, head coach Jeff Jackson acknowledges that the U.S. team had some struggles in some areas. The power play was one. While the loss to injury of key players such as Ben Clymer and Bobby Allen certainly hurt, Jackson said he'd take responsiblity for the team's difficulty in man-up situations. As for overall performance, Jackson said, "They lost a key game -- the opener against the Czech Republic -- but played well versus Canada and Sweden. Overall, I'd say they did as well as they could have."
Now, with 11 months remaining until the start of the 1999 WJC, to be held in Winnipeg, it's time to take a look at who's likely to be there. First off, ten skaters from this year's squad will be eligible again next year. Six are forwards: Kevin Colley ('79), Brian Gionta ('79), Scott Gomez ('79), Ty Jones ('79), Dustin Kuk ('79), and David Legwand ('80). Four are defensemen: Jay Leach ('79), Paul Mara ('79), Chris St. Croix ('79), and Nikos Tselios ('79). Most will be back. However, it's highly unlikely that all will be. Keeping that in mind, look for about 14 new players on next year's squad. For an idea as to who might be challenging for those spots at next summer's U.S. National Junior Camp at Lake Placid --- tentatively set for August August 8-15 -- click here.
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