| 7seven | 10-12-2011 07:05 AM |
Great to hear that Hodgson is starting to fit right in with the team Quote:
When Max Lapierre and Alex Burrows were amusing themselves like they were in South Park not Philadelphia Tuesday with locker-room brainstorming about creative techniques to jersey someone, they went to Cody Hodgson to see what the rookie thought.
When that same rookie had shown up for work less than two weeks ago, his jersey number was mysteriously changed from No. 39 to No. 9. It was something Hodgson had inquired about two years ago - getting a real NHL number. He never mentioned it again. The quiet alteration was unexpected and appreciated.
When Kevin Bieksa was choosing someone to rib publicly with his twitter account, he gently picked on Hodgson and his wardrobe last week, tweeting:
"Want to make him into a young T-Linden eventually!"
All of it illustrates the small and many buttons the Canucks are pushing to help Hodgson out, making him feel like he belongs here, in the NHL.
"There are so many little things that guys have done to make me feel a part of this, even if I was just coming up for a few games, like I did last year," Hodgson said.
"They're especially always trying to give it to me about my style. But I don't mind my style. I'm comfortable. But they didn't like the running shoes all the time."
Manny Malhotra did his best to help out. He played personal shopper, taking Hodgson to a mall just outside Columbus to start this road trip. Hodgson wore the new, sharp clothes he got with Malhotra to a team dinner that night. He was still smiling about it all Tuesday in Philadelphia. Boy, was he smiling.
"It took a lot of work and a lot of people's opinions but we finally got him out of his Grade 9 wardrobe," Bieksa quipped. "We got him into some professional hockey clothes. He's looking good now. He looks confident, you can tell. He's been the centre of attention for the past few days.
"We were tired of hearing guys tease him about his wardrobe. So, we finally did something about it."
It's good there is fun off the ice because there is pressure on Hodgson on it. It's both natural and understandable. Henrik Sedin can relate. That's why, after Monday's 3-2 win in Columbus, Henrik said the goal Hodgson scored was a "huge boost." If he hadn't of put one in early here, the captain worried a lack of production wouldn't have taken long to eat away at Hodgson's psyche.
"He might not put up the numbers a second-line centre needs right now, we don't know yet, but when I watch him I see someone who is really steady," Henrik said. "He just doesn't make mistakes. He does everything right on the ice. It's great to see that rewarded."
Interesting, the goal Hodgson scored was a set play that Bieksa impressively designed with some help from Dan Hamhuis. Hodgson won the faceoff, then kicked the puck to Hamhuis who was racing down the wall. As Hodgson circled back toward the net, Hamhuis hit him with a slap pass, which he redirected into the net.
"I called the play. Dan and I had gone over some plays before the game," Bieksa said. "We were talking about if we were going to be with Cody out there on faceoffs, especially on his backhand side, we're going to start making some offensive plays.
"The twins have their plays they do every time. We know what to do when we're out with them. With Cody, he's new and we're trying to get familiar with him. So, I called that play and it worked out perfectly, didn't it?"
It sure did.
"Actually, I think [Dan and I] should get a little extra salary, maybe from the coach's pay," Bieksa said.
A loose Hodgson said later: "It worked exactly how [Bieksa] drew it up. He showed me the X's and O's. It was a smart play. But Hamhuis was setting me up all night, I had to finally put one in for him."
The goal was nice, but more encouraging for the Canucks is that in each of the first two games, Hodgson has been better in the third period, a very good sign for a young player.
He has also been the best player on his line overall, outskating and carrying both Mikael Samuelsson and Marco Sturm.
It's been enough to leave people wondering if Hodgson could stick when Ryan Kesler comes back.
"When we started skating before camp, everyone could see a difference in [Hodgson] this year," Bieksa said. "I remember his first training camp. He was really strong on the puck. For whatever reasons, last year, he was not.
"This year, he is back, strong on the puck again and in the draws. It seems like he's gained a half-step in speed, too. More than anything, he's playing with confidence."
It's why the Canucks have cracked the door open on that idea that Hodgson could stay with the team even with Kesler in the lineup.
It still seems like a long-shot. It would set off a significant chain of events. It could mean one veteran forward, let's just say Sturm, gets benched and another, let's just say Andrew Ebbett, is put on waivers.
That's a lot to happen. But Hodgson does represent an intriguing option to play alongside Kesler.
Read more: Hodgson starting to look sharp for Canucks
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