These days, Nolan Baumgartner is seeing more of the ice and less of the glass.
For Baumgartner and the Manitoba Moose, that's a good thing.
"It's just moving the puck quicker," said Baumgartner, who signed a two-year deal with the parent Vancouver Canucks during the off-season. "Sometimes if things aren't going right, you try to do too much. You hang onto the puck too long and you get hit.
"It's a long year if you're getting hit all the time."
The 33-year-old alternate captain admits he's taken extra steps to ensure he wins the battle against Father Time.
"I'm doing extra skating at practice and watching what I eat," said Baumgartner. "I've dropped a couple pounds over the past few years and that helps a lot, just to be a little bit quicker out there. Maybe that's a reason I'm not getting hit as often. I'm a step faster."
The Moose open a three-game Texas road trip tonight against the Houston Aeros.
While the early stages of the American Hockey League season has been filled with injuries and transactions, Baumgartner has been a steadying force -- logging between 22 and 30-plus minutes a game as he takes a regular shift and contributes to both the power play and penalty killing units.
Baumgartner has combined with first-year Moose blue-liner Mike Funk to form an effective shutdown unit that is also being counted on to chip in offensively.
Wearing down
"Baumer has been good, he logs a lot of minutes and with the injuries we've had, he's probably logged too much ice -- I don't want him wearing down as the season wears on," said Moose head coach Scott Arniel. "He was probably ticked off coming out of training camp, he was looking for a few more exhibition games and a little more opportunity. I'm sure he was frustrated when he got sent down as quickly as he did. He wanted to show he's still a good defenceman and deserved a recall if a defenceman happens to get injured.
"He's a veteran guy on the back end that is there to help our young defence and is a good voice in our dressing room."
Baumgartner is quick to say he'd like to chip in a bit more offensively, as he's been held to one goal (an overtime winner against the Hamilton Bulldogs) and six points in 16 games this season.
"You know that with some guys out, you're probably going to get more ice time," said Baumgartner. "That comes with being a veteran. The coach depends on the older guys and we're here to lead the team, especially when we have call-ups or injuries. That's not written in our contract, but it's part of our job description."
HOOF PRINTS: With a roster ravaged by injuries and call-ups, the Moose brought in a pair of forwards yesterday, signing Darryl Bootland and Darryl Smith to 25-game pro tryout offers. Bootland, 28, spent 14 games with the Moose last season and recorded five goals and nine points but was occasionally a healthy scratch as the team was carrying too many veterans. Bootland was granted his release and signed with Salzburg EC in Austria. He started this season with the Kalamazoo Wings of the ECHL and had eight points and 29 penalty minutes in seven games. Smith, 22, registered 36 goals and 70 points for the Laredo Bucks of the Central Hockey League last season and had four goals and nine points in six games with the Bucks this season.
ken.wiebe@sunmedia.ca
