I'm glad I was present this morning at Sabres training camp. I was present to witness an interesting moment that was shared between Lindy Ruff and Thomas Vanek.
Vanek's Group B had departed the ice, at the mid-way portion of their ninety minute session, for the customary flood. Rather than leave the ice with his teammates to go catch a drink of water and to re-tape the twig in the room, Ruff and Vanek were fully engaged in a face to face conversation at centre ice.
Curious, I thought, as the zamboni driver allowed the coach and player to share their thoughts as the machine re-surfaced the ice to to begin the second half of the session.
Got me to wondering what exactly Ruff and Vanek were discussing. I'll never know. I'm not privee to these things. I have my theories.
Family was the first thing that hopped to the top of my mind.
Ruff is a devoted family man, and he balances his professional life with his home life. He's a great role model for his players. Vanek, Pominville and Miller have recently gotten married. Ruff can offer life advice to his boys because he has lived through the same experiences that they are encountering in their lives. Ruff has been a calming influence on many of the young bucks that have played for him in Buffalo for over a decade. When life becomes difficult for the younsters, they can always turn to Ruff for his wisdom and guidance.
Maybe that was what I was watching on Sunday morning. Give and take.
Vanek, the uber-talented sniper from U Minnesota, has matured in his tenure in Buffalo. Some still view him as the youngster from Austria whose blessed with all of the skill and grace as a world famous Lipizzaner Stallion. It took a while to find his comfort level.
Vanek is a changed man. He's now married, and has three children, including infant twins, at home. He's grown up before our very eyes. He's an intelligent, humble man who is never satisfied with his performance on the ice. he's a prefectionist, and he wants to lead his team to victory every night. He scoffs at the notion that his current team looks great on paper. Vanek will tell you that the game is not played on paper. Its played on ice. Vanek's maturity and awareness are always front and centre when you speak with his. He does his best to put his team's success in the proper perspective. He's not one to break his own arm patting his own back.
Vanek's family was recently jolted by the the terrible news of the death of Josef Vasicek in the Lokomotiv Yaroslavl airline crash. Vasicek was the brother of Vanek's sister-in-law.
I recently read the below statement on thomasvanek26.com
The Vanek-family mourns the loss of Josef Vasicek, the brother of Thomas’ sister in law.
The news of the tragic crash in Russia reached Thomas during a training session in Minnesota. He immediately contacted his family and is deeply affected by the tragedy.
Our thoughts and prayers are with all the families and friends of the crash victims. In the name of the Vanek-family we want to thank you for your condolences and ask you for your understanding that there will be no direct statement from the family as of right now.
I feel badly for the loss that Vanek and his family are living with. There can be no way to prepare for the loss of a loved one in such a tragic fashion.
Adversity is a subject that Vanek knows a thing or two about. He's been there, done that, bought the t-shirt. Vanek's hockey life in Buffalo hasn't always been gum drops and lollipops. He's had to endure his fair share of adversity and consternation. He's been benched for ineffective play on more than one occassion. You'll recall Vanek's stay in chateau bow wow during the 2006 Eastern Conference Finals versus Carolina. At that time, Ruff cited Vanek's conditioning for his inability to skate like his hair was on foire for a full 45 second shift. Ruff was not impressed with Vanek's output, so he parked him. Vanek was none too pleased to be skating with the Sabres "black aces" in the ECFs that season, however, he did not bitch and carp about his benching. He heard his coach loud and clear and went back to work. He rode the bike, he power skated, he went home to Minnesota for the Summer with a fire in his belly. He committed himself to getting himself into better physical condition. He wanted to prove to his head coach and teammates that he was capable of change, and that he was not a one-trick pony. To his credit, Vanek has evolved his game. His play away from the puck is impressive. He wins more wall battles than he loses. He back checks with regularity. His stick is active and is always in a passing lane. He denies opponents time and space by using his feet to tighten gaps.
Vanek's offensive production got him drafted. He's an all around player now, who can be counted to perform 5 on 5, on the PP, and while playing on the man-down unit.
In 05/06, his rookie season, Vanek impressed with his 25 goals and 23 assists in 81 games, however, he was -11. Ruff was not happy with Vanek's play away from the puck and let him know about it.
In 06/07, Vanek blew us all away with his 43 goals and 41 assists. He finished the regular season with a sizzling +47. In 16 Playoff games, he scored 6 goals and added 4 assists. His team would lose to Ottawa in the ECF.
On July 1, 2007, the Sabres were dealt a killer blow when captains Chris Drury and Danny Briere, were signed to lucrative contracts in Manhattan and Philadelphia, respectively. Vanek would have to produce offense and defense and he'd have to do it while playing against other team's top six forwards, not against the third and fourth lines.
In 07/08, Vanek would 36 goals and 28 assists. He was a -5. His team missed the Playoffs.
In 08/09, he scored 40 goals and added 24 assists. he was -1. Again, the sabres missed the Playoffs.
In 09/10, he would scored 28 goals and add 25 helpers. He was +9. He was Buffalo's best player in the Boston Playoff series, that is until Johnny Boychuk wiped him out and injured his knee. Vanek's season was over after 3 Playoff games. The Sabres would go on to lose to Bosoton in round one.
In 10/11, Vanek scored 32 goals and added 41 assists. He was a +2. He would score 5 goals in the seven game loss to Philly. Vanek's role on the Sabres changed last season due to necessity. Long term injuries to Pominville, Connolly, Roy, and Stafford had depleted Buffalo's offense for large chunks of time. Vanek stayed healthy and was able to contribute to the Sabres offense while adding more defensive and special teams responsibilities to his repetoire.
I've always been fascinated by Vanek and his upward ascent. His skill level puts him in the NHL's elite echelon. His eye-hand coordination is uncanny. He scans the entire 200 by 85 with relative ease. He sees plays before they develop. His shot his strong and stout. He takes a beating from the Prongers, Charas, and Phaneufs of the world for his selfless pursuit of loose pucks in the blue ice. Vanek gets hacked, slashed, gashed, smashed, and trampled under foot while camping out in the enmey end. You never hear him bitch about it. He wears the bruises and scrapes like badges of honour. He once told me that the welts and contusions only hurt when his team loses. The guy is an inspirational leader. His teammates love his valor and unselfish play. He plays the game the right way now. he's changed his approach and his team is better for it.
Lindy could take the path of least resistance and sew the "C" on the sweater of Robyn Regehr for the foreseeable future. That kind of move is understandable. Regehr looks and plays like he just walked off the set of "Braveheart". Big, nasty, and accountable.
Personally, I like promoting an orgaizational guy to wear the "C", as oppoosed to slamming it on a free agent acquisition. Gaustad is a perfect candidate to wear the "C", however, he's not a 18-20 minute per game guy. Besides, he's in the last year of his deal. Jason Pominville is a character guy, however, can he lead a team?
How did the Craig Rivet Experiment work out for the Sabres?
In life, physical and mental pain builds character.
The captaincy is not a personality or popularity contest. Look around the NHL and you'll notice that the player that is most valuable to his team is the captain. The "C" symbolizes he who has made the most amount of sacrifice and endured the adversity, and is always front and centre for his team.
For that reason, I feel strongly that Vanek is ready to wear a "C" on his sweater.
The Sabres play their first exhibition game of the preseason when they host Paul Maurice's Carolina Hurricanes at First Niagara Center on Monday night. Lindy Ruff was asked in the scrum on Friday whether or not he will be naming his next captain in the very near future. Ruff tap danced around the subject. Ruff says that he and the coaches continue to discuss the subject. Will Ruff be naming his captain on Monday, or will he instead choose to give out three "A's" for the game?
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