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Oilers MacIntyre waits for the call
By
ROBERT TYCHKOWSKI, QMI Agency
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Oilers bodyguard Steve MacIntyre played just his fourth game in the last 22, and couldn’t find a dance partner in the Leafs lineups, but he is still considered an essential ingredient on a young team that’s high on skill and short on muscle.
Tom Renney considers the six-foot-five, 250-pounder both a luxury and a necessity.
“Both,” said the head coach, who plays MacIntyre when he sees a potential threat on the other side. “Steve provides a couple of things. He’s a great teammate, guys feel a sense of security with him in the lineup and he’s physical. We need that, we can’t get pushed out of games as a young team.”
It turned out to be a quiet night when Toronto tough guy Colton Orr made it clear he wanted absolutely nothing to do with MacIntyre.
“The main thing is to go out there and play the game,” said MacIntyre. “You can’t be looking for big hits or anything like that, you just have to go out there and set the tone. Be solid in your own end. If the hits come, take the body and give a little extra.
“Whenever they need me I go out there and do the best I can. That’s all I can do.”
It’s not easy sitting more than you play, but all he can do is work hard and do what he does when he gets in there.
“There’s definitely a lull between games, you don’t know if you’re playing our you’re sitting,” he said. “But it’s not rocket science, you just have to be a professional and do the best you can. Just go out there and do what you can. Keep on working on the skills that got you where you are and get better at other things.”
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robert.tychkowski@sunmedia.ca
