Justin Schultz has seen his ice time reduced somewhat from the beginning of the season as the Edmonton Oilers try to ease him into the grind of the intensive, shortened season. (CODIE McLACHLAN/QMI Agency)
EDMONTON - Justin Schultz may not have hit the wall, but he knows it’s there.
Between the American Hockey League and NHL, the Edmonton Oilers defenceman has already played 25 more games this season than he did all of last year with the University of Wisconsin Badgers.
And he still has 20 regular season games left to go.
“I don’t know if I’ll know when I hit the wall,” said Schultz. “There are definitely some games where you’re a little more tired and you have to be smarter out there. But I don’t know if I’ve hit a wall yet. It goes back to being smart and taking advantage of the days off and being able to recover physically.”
Schultz, 22, has cooled off offensively after a quick start this season.
His numbers are still solid with five goals and 15 points in 28 games this year. However, he has just three assists in his last nine games and has yet to score a goal in March.
