Article published October 15, 2009
FIRST GAME AT LUCAS COUNTY ARENA FRIDAY NIGHT
New era, tradition merge: Walleye ready to build on Toledo's storied hockey past
By MARK MONROE
BLADE SPORTS WRITER
The puck drops on a brand new period of pro hockey tomorrow night.
A spectacular new foundation has been erected to resume Toledo's storied tradition with the new Lucas County Arena and the inaugural team also features a promising core.
Toledo Walleye coach Nick Vitucci has roots reaching back to the last days that the city celebrated a title when the Storm won a Riley Cup in the early 1990s. Vitucci, a hall of fame goaltender, later took over the coaching duties for the same team and now leads Toledo's latest ECHL franchise into a new era.
Eleven championship banners were raised at the Sports Arena over its venerable 60 year history - the most of any minor league professional franchise in North America.
Walleye goaltender Jordan Pearce blocks a shot against Cincinnati during a preseason game Saturday at Tam O’Shanter. Pearce and fellow goalie Alec Richards are both recent college graduates.
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Now after a two-year absence, pro hockey returns with the opening of the 7,500 seat, $105 million downtown arena.
"I was so happy I was able to play in the Sports Arena," Vitucci said. "There's a lot of history there. That is not forgotten. But this beautiful new arena will give us a chance to create more lifelong memories. What a great, great facility."It all begins again before a sellout crowd when the Walleye square off against the Florida Everblades. More than 2,400 season tickets have been sold and capacity crowds are expected at Lucas County Arena for the team's three-day opening weekend.
Vitucci said Toledo's 2009-10 club will mirror the qualities of his Storm teams.
The Walleye’s Justin Hodgman battle for a faceoff in a preseason game against Cincinnati at Tam O’Shanter. Hodgman played for Erie Otters in the OHL last year.
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"We'll be a hardworking, tenacious, gritty team with a lot of skill mixed in," he said. "That has been the trademark of all of my teams."
The 20-man roster consists of a mix of young prospects sent down from NHL affiliates in Detroit and Chicago and minor league veterans.
"We have some young guys and there'll be a learning curve," Vitucci said. "But we've sprinkled in some experienced players as well."
Vitucci said the foundation of his team begins, of course, in goal. Jordan Pearce and Alec Richards are two talented young goalies, who are both recent college graduates.
Pearce had a stellar career at Notre Dame where he led the Irish to a Central Collegiate Hockey Association title. Pearce, 22, was a finalist for the CCHA player of the year after posting a 30-6-3 record and 1.68 goals against average.
"I've seen him play many times over the last two years and he's excellent," said Vitucci, who was named the Walleye's director of operations in February, 2008.
Alec Richards, 22, played four seasons at Yale University. Richards has height (6-foot-4) and posted a 19-5-1 record with a 2.06 goals against average last season.
"I didn't know much about him, but he looked great against Cincinnati [a 3-2 preseason win last Friday]," Vitucci said. "I'm real excited about both kids."
Richards was one of four players that Chicago sent to Toledo from its AHL affiliate in Rockford, Ill. Center Adam Hobson and right winger Dan Bertram have AHL experience and rookie Maxime Tanguay looked promising in the preseason.
Tanguay and fellow forward Justin Hodgman are both coming off productive seasons after putting up 66 points apiece.
"Things are really starting to come together," said Hodgman, who had 24 goals and 42 assists. "It's a great group. We have a lot of veterans and leaders. Nick wants us to play as a team and I think we'll do that."
The seasoned players include ECHL veteran Malcolm MacMillan and Dominic Osman, who has played four years of pro hockey. Both are 27-year-old forwards. MacMillan played against Vitucci's Storm teams as a member of the Reading Royals.
"Nick has always put together good teams that I hated playing against," said MacMillan, who had 151 penalty minutes in 64 games last season. "He thrives on having good skilled players that can compete and have good chemistry. I think we can go a long ways with that component. He had some tough decisions because we had some many quality players here [in the preseason]."
Vitucci said he held the biggest preseason camp of his coaching career (2003-07 with the Storm) with as many as 42 players at one time trying out for the team.
"The advantage of that is having plenty of bodies, but you can't get them all together at the same time," said Vitucci, who was named ECHL coach of the year in 2005.
Defenseman Brock Wilson said he attended an AHL training camp in Rockford with some of the Walleye players.
"I think we will have one heck of a team this year," Wilson said. "Nick brought in a lot of talented guys. The guys from Grand Rapids look great also."
Wilson admitted that most of the players had wanted to make it to the higher AHL level, but that playing in a new state-of-the-art arena softened the blow.
"We're fortunate to have this place to play in. You just walk into the rink and it makes you excited," Wilson said.
MacMillan said the team also boasts a great coaching staff. "Nick has been around for a long time and the assistants have been in the trenches too," he said.
Assistant coach Dan Watson, who was a defenseman for Vitucci in the Storm's final season, will handle the defense. Watson was named the ECHL defensive player of the year in 2005.
Vitucci's other assistant, Craig Furstenau, will observe from the upper bowl. He coached at Oakland University for three seasons 2003-05 and his team won a national title.
"He'll be our eye in the sky," Vitucci said. "All three of us will work closely together."
Fifteen of the Walleye's first 21 games will be at home. The Walleye open with five straight home games and play only two on the road in October. The Walleye also have a stretch of eight straight at home in late November and early December.
The Walleye will be a member of the ECHL North Division in the American Conference along with
Kalamazoo, Cincinnati and Wheeling.
"I think we're all in the same boat. I think all the teams are getting a good amount of players from their AHL affiliates," Vitucci said.
"We have a young, brand new team and it will take some time to come together. We're just a little nervous and very excited."
Contact Mark Monroe at:
mmonroe@theblade.com
or 419-724-6354.
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