Post by Score on Nov 9, 2007 1:07:22 GMT -4
Willing to work
Rookie forward Jeremiah Coon-Come is showing plenty of potential with the Rocket
CHARLES REID
The Guardian
P.E.I. Rocket rookie forward Jeremiah Coon-Come has a simple blueprint for sticking at the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League level.
“Work my ass off,” said Coon-Come after a recent Rocket practice.
He will test the method again tonight when the Rocket (7-12-1) host Val-d’Or (10-9-1-2) at 7 p.m. at the Civic Centre.
P.E.I. is 4-4 at the CCC while Val-d’Or is 3-7-0-1 away from Centre Air Creebec. It’s the second contest of the Foreurs three-game-in-three-night swing through the Eastern Division.
So far Coon-Come’s formula has worked. As a seventh round Rocket draft pick, the 16-year-old right winger impressed in training camp and was the last cut.
But it was a heads or tails situation, said Coon-Come, a Cree from Mistissini in northern Quebec.
“(The Rocket) gave me a choice so I decided to play one more year of midget AAA.”
So enter Amos, his Quebec midget AAA squad where he played just 10 games, racking up 18 points (eight goals, 10 assists), before the Rocket called him up during a road trip in Quebec last month.
Most rookies find the QMJHL much faster than midget, but the physicality is also as important. There are many more guys of large stature who aren’t afraid to throw their weight around.
For Rocket head coach Guy Chouinard, a 16-year veteran of the QMJHL, it’s a familiar refrain Coon-Come must learn.
“He’s got good potential. good hands, good hockey sense,” said Chouinard. “He has to get a little stronger. Obviously when you go one-on-one against someone that’s maybe 20 pounds, 30 pounds heavier, he’s got to use his smarts more.”
Coon-Come has seen regular playing time, often on the third or fourth line.
But Chouinard said Coon-Come may not be in the lineup as much because other picks like first-rounder Brandon MacLean also need development time.
For Chouinard, it’s a juggling act — experienced players in one hand and players needing experience in the other and trying not to drop either.
“We have to careful with our kids and it’s the same thing as MacLean as a 16-year-old. It’s one thing to carry young guys, but if you don’t play them I don’t think they develop right,” he said. “I’m not going to have a 16-year-old sit in the stands for eight, nine, 10 games and look at everybody else.”
Right now, Amos is 10th overall in Quebec midget AAA with an 8-8 record and 16 points. The Rocket is 7-12-1, loser of five straight games and 17th overall in the QMJHL.
But that doesn’t leave Coon-Come wondering if he made the wrong choice to return.
“It’s good. I’m OK with it. It was a bit too easy in AAA.”
Rookie forward Jeremiah Coon-Come is showing plenty of potential with the Rocket
CHARLES REID
The Guardian
P.E.I. Rocket rookie forward Jeremiah Coon-Come has a simple blueprint for sticking at the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League level.
“Work my ass off,” said Coon-Come after a recent Rocket practice.
He will test the method again tonight when the Rocket (7-12-1) host Val-d’Or (10-9-1-2) at 7 p.m. at the Civic Centre.
P.E.I. is 4-4 at the CCC while Val-d’Or is 3-7-0-1 away from Centre Air Creebec. It’s the second contest of the Foreurs three-game-in-three-night swing through the Eastern Division.
So far Coon-Come’s formula has worked. As a seventh round Rocket draft pick, the 16-year-old right winger impressed in training camp and was the last cut.
But it was a heads or tails situation, said Coon-Come, a Cree from Mistissini in northern Quebec.
“(The Rocket) gave me a choice so I decided to play one more year of midget AAA.”
So enter Amos, his Quebec midget AAA squad where he played just 10 games, racking up 18 points (eight goals, 10 assists), before the Rocket called him up during a road trip in Quebec last month.
Most rookies find the QMJHL much faster than midget, but the physicality is also as important. There are many more guys of large stature who aren’t afraid to throw their weight around.
For Rocket head coach Guy Chouinard, a 16-year veteran of the QMJHL, it’s a familiar refrain Coon-Come must learn.
“He’s got good potential. good hands, good hockey sense,” said Chouinard. “He has to get a little stronger. Obviously when you go one-on-one against someone that’s maybe 20 pounds, 30 pounds heavier, he’s got to use his smarts more.”
Coon-Come has seen regular playing time, often on the third or fourth line.
But Chouinard said Coon-Come may not be in the lineup as much because other picks like first-rounder Brandon MacLean also need development time.
For Chouinard, it’s a juggling act — experienced players in one hand and players needing experience in the other and trying not to drop either.
“We have to careful with our kids and it’s the same thing as MacLean as a 16-year-old. It’s one thing to carry young guys, but if you don’t play them I don’t think they develop right,” he said. “I’m not going to have a 16-year-old sit in the stands for eight, nine, 10 games and look at everybody else.”
Right now, Amos is 10th overall in Quebec midget AAA with an 8-8 record and 16 points. The Rocket is 7-12-1, loser of five straight games and 17th overall in the QMJHL.
But that doesn’t leave Coon-Come wondering if he made the wrong choice to return.
“It’s good. I’m OK with it. It was a bit too easy in AAA.”
