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Zach Hamill went low to slow down the Senators’ Chris Neil in the first period of the Bruins’ 2-1 victory at Ottawa last night. (Fred Chartrand/Associated Press) |
Bruins notebook
He isn’t pumping ’em in
No big gains for bulkier Wheeler
OTTAWA - By his own admission, Blake Wheeler ran out of gas last season, and probably deserved to be out of uniform when the Bruins concluded the second round of the playoffs against Carolina. So this summer, determined to prove to himself, his teammates, and his bosses that he’d learned from his misfortune, Wheeler gained 15 pounds and arrived in training camp ready for a second-year breakout.
Things haven’t gone as planned.
In five exhibition games, Wheeler has zero goals and two assists on five shots. Wheeler, who played mostly left wing last season, switched to the right at the start of camp, with the Bruins curious to see whether he could replace Phil Kessel on the No. 1 line. Then Wheeler moved back to the left, where the Bruins thought he might feel more comfortable.
So far, Wheeler’s touch and timing haven’t come back to him.
“Above average, but certainly not where he or we would like it to be,’’ coach Claude Julien said of Wheeler’s game. “But that’s why you have preseason, why you have exhibition games, why you have training camp.
“My main concern with him is that as long as he’s ready to go by the time we start the season, I’ll have no issues. We’re working with him to help him out. He’s working hard to find his game.
“I’m not going to say he’s confident, but sometimes guys come into training camp and they want to do so much. He knows this is his second year and he had a tough finish. He wants to have a real strong season from start to finish this year. He might be putting a little bit too much pressure on himself. It’s up to us to gauge that, help him get through it, and make sure he understands the concept of what needs to happen through the course of a whole season.’’
It’s been the opposite of Wheeler’s first preseason. The Bruins expected him to start 2008-09 in Providence, where he could adjust to the pro game and put himself in line for a midseason promotion. But a carefree, nothing-to-lose Wheeler was so good - he skated well, showed an offensive touch, was responsible defensively - he pushed Peter Schaefer aside and grabbed the veteran’s spot on the left wing. Wheeler appeared in 81 games last season and scored 21 goals and had 24 assists.
One explanation for Wheeler’s preseason struggles may be the absence of David Krejci on the No. 2 line. Michael Ryder, the right wing on the line, hasn’t found his top-shelf game either. Krejci has practiced with the team - he centered Wheeler and Ryder yesterday - but has not played in the preseason.
Hamill gets shot
With Krejci’s availability for the season opener termed 50-50 by Julien, the Bruins gave Zach Hamill a shot on the No. 2 line between Wheeler and Ryder against the Canadiens Thursday. The threesome didn’t produce any points, but the 21-year-old Hamill didn’t look out of place.In last night’s 2-1 win over Ottawa at Scotiabank Place, Hamill centered Shawn Thornton and Byron Bitz.
“He sees the ice and made a lot of nice plays [Thursday],’’ Ryder said. “When he’s skating, he’s the same as Krech. He opens up the ice a lot for his wingers. Good playmaker, can pass the puck well, and he can skate.’’
The second-year pro isn’t ready to be a full-time NHLer. Hamill currently weighs 175 pounds, and more muscle would help him become stronger on the puck and better suited to survive the rigors of the danger areas.
But if Krejci isn’t available for the first few games, Hamill would be a suitable fill-in as a skilled center. Vladimir Sobotka should break camp with the big club, but his game is better suited for an energy role.
“I saw a lot of potential,’’ Julien said of Hamill’s performance.
Sturm sidelined
While his teammates traveled to Montreal and Ottawa, Marco Sturm (groin) remained home to work out under the watch of strength and conditioning coach John Whitesides. Julien said Sturm didn’t join the team on the trip because there was no possibility of his availability in either game. Sturm, however, should be ready for Thursday’s season opener.“I’d be extremely surprised if he wasn’t ready to start the season,’’ Julien said. “It’s really that minimal.’’
The Bruins had hoped to see how Sturm performed on the right side next to Milan Lucic and Marc Savard.
Begin sits again
Steve Begin, also battling a groin injury, practiced yesterday morning but didn’t play. Begin said he might be able to play tonight against Columbus. Barring a setback, Begin will be ready for Thursday’s game . . . Zdeno Chara was paired last night with Derek Morris for the first time. They could form the top defensive pairing when the season starts . . . Morris, a former Coyote, expressed disappointment in Wayne Gretzky’s uncomfortable exit from the Phoenix bench. “Each year, he progressed better and better as a coach,’’ Morris said. “I know that sounds funny because he was the best player in the game. But each year, he was getting better and better as a coach.’’ In his first fight of the preseason, Lucic made a mess of Chris Neil’s face. Neil had slammed Savard into the boards earlier. On the following faceoff, Lucic and Neil dropped the gloves . . . Tim Thomas made his second straight start, stopping 35 shots. Tuukka Rask will start tonight . . . Ryder, who first popped on a visor last season after Antoine Vermette bashed him in the face with a high stick, is all but certain he’ll keep the shield this year. That notion was reinforced Thursday during a puck battle with Hal Gill. Somehow, the puck skimmed off Ryder’s stick and landed squarely on the visor. “Probably right in the nose,’’ said Ryder of what would have happened had he been visor-free . . . Hamill left the morning skate early because of pain in his left leg. On Thursday, Hamill was struck on the inside of his left ankle by a Drew Fata slap shot . . . NESN will carry tonight’s preseason finale.Fluto Shinzawa can be reached at fshinzawa@globe.com. 
© Copyright 2009 Globe Newspaper Company.
