Addison continues to learn and improve after fast start

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This article was published 23/11/2022 (1250 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

ST. PAUL, Minn., — Development is not usually a straight upwards line. There can be plenty of detours for a young player trying to find his way in the National Hockey League.

Take Brandon’s Calen Addison for example. The 22-year-old defenceman with the Minnesota Wild came flying out of the gate last month, racking up six points in his first four games. Not too shabby for a rookie, and there was some early chatter about him being a potential sleeper candidate for the Calder Trophy.

It’s been a tough go ever since. Just two helpers followed in the next 14 games, with Addison’s usage and ice time gradually going down. He played a season-low 7:34 last Saturday against Carolina, and his place in the lineup seemed tenuous at best.

In fact, Addison looked to be on the verge of his first-ever healthy scratch Wednesday night when his club hosted the Winnipeg Jets at Xcel Energy Center. An illness to Jonas Brodin forced a last-minute change of plans, and so a press box stint would have to wait at least one more game.

“Those decisions are up to them. Obviously I don’t choose what happens, but I just have to be ready every night no matter what. That’s all I can do really,” Addison told the Free Press following the morning skate. As for facing the team from his home province for the first time, Addison said there will be a few more butterflies when the Wild come to Winnipeg for two games later this year.

“I’ll have lots of family and friends there. This is just another game, I think,” he said.

An important one on a personal level, however, and he certainly made the most of it by scoring his first goal of the season — and third of his young career — early in the second period.

The soft-spoken young man is trying to take it all in stride, blocking out the noise and focusing on what he can control.

“I guess, individually, it’s just getting used to the league and used to the ups and downs,” said Addison. “As a team, and as an individual, I think you just have to try and stay even keel, not get too down. “

Addison was drafted in the second round, 53rd-overall, by Pittsburgh in 2018. He never played a game for the Penguins, as he was shipped to the State of Hockey in a February 2020 deal, along with Alex Galchenyuk and a conditional first-round pick. Going the other way was Jason Zucker.

After finishing up a four-year Western Hockey League stint with the Lethbridge Hurricanes in the spring of 2020, he made his NHL debut a few months later in Minnesota, with no points in three games. Addison spent much of the last two years in the AHL with the Iowa Wild, but did get in 15 games with the big club last year, ultimately scoring his first two goals and adding a pair of assists.

The chance to take on a much bigger role was there for the taking this season, and Addison made the most of it after an impressive training camp. He was even time on the top power play unit with the likes of Kirill Kaprizov.

“It’s crazy. It’s a great opportunity, and I think that may be a strength of my game is on the power play, and making things happen offensively,” said Addison. “I just have to come ready every night and not take those opportunities for granted.

Wild head coach Dean Evason, who was born in Flin Flon, said that’s the right attitude to have. And if or when Addison does take a seat for a game or two, the key will be seeing how he responds.

“It’s a process. It’s his first year, Everyone puts such a negative twist on somebody not playing. There are a lot of reasons people sit out or even get sent down. But if you use it in the right manner and can turn it into a positive scenario, then it can be a positive,” Evason said Wednesday morning.

“When you get back in there, you correct why you sat out. And we communicate with every player. And we look at if they come back hungry and not making the same mistakes that they have and if they’re ready to play the game. We work through it with each player individually when that happens They know where they sit. And, like I said, come back ready to play when the puck’s dropped and they’re in the lineup.”

Addison said it helps to have so many great veterans on Minnesota, including established defencemen such as Matt Dumba, Alex Goligoski and Jared Spurgeon to lean on.

“There’s a lot of guys you can learn from on the ice. And that’s my job, to come in every day and learn,” he said.

Some lessons may be tougher than others, no doubt.

mike.mcintyre@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @mikemcintyrewpg