NEWS PHOTO JAMES TUBB
Medicine Hat Tigers defenceman Riley Steen celebrates a third period fight in a 5-1 win at Co-op Place over the Wenatchee Wild on Dec. 6.
jtubb@medicinehatnews.com@ReporterTubb
When it comes to fight-mode, Riley Steen enters a flow state.
The Medicine Hat Tigers defenceman has shown he’s not afraid of the gritty parts of hockey, dropping the gloves four times in his rookie season in the WHL. Two of his combatants stood 6-foot-5 or taller and weighed more than 200 pounds, a bit of a disadvantage for the 6-foot-2, 188-pound blue liner from Ladysmith, B.C.
He says it’s been wild ride but one he’s learned his way through.
“It’s learning different techniques, getting inside, don’t put yourself in a vulnerable position,” Steen said. “Coach (Josh) Maser and even Rhett Parsons, when he was here early in the season, taught me some great tips.”
The 17-year-old first dropped the gloves in preseason and was able to keep the mits on for a few months before a fight in November and two in December, giving him four of the Tigers’ 18 majors. While fans watch on as combatants circle, grapple and throw hands, hanging on every swing, Steen says there isn’t a lot of thinking going on inside the metaphorical ring on the ice.
He just tries to ride the flow.
“It’s a lot of thinking, ‘what position am I in right now,’ if I’m in a bad spot, I need to either get inside of him or start swinging so he can’t swing, and then block his swing,” Steen said. “But you’re just kind of on flow mode, like you don’t really think. If you get hit, you don’t really feel it until after. But it’s a lot of adrenaline for sure.”
It’s a change from early expectations on the young blue liner, drafted from the Okanagan Hockey Academy where he was a power play quarterback with the Ruck twins and Spokane Chiefs forward Mathis Preston.
He’s starting to tally points in the WHL, with a pair of goals and five points in 27 games. Coming into this season, Steen knew he’d have to embrace physicality more.
“I’m a bigger body out there so I’m gonna have to use my body to kill plays, transition the puck and then step up for my teammates and even myself,” Steen said. “I’m not afraid, not afraid to go against anyone.”
Steen says he’s trying to round out his game, from adding physicality and developing skill, to taking care of the defensive end while looking to create scoring chances on the rush. Playing simple, mean and consistent is how he looks to maintain his spot among the eight-man D-core.
“We still have a lot of defencemen here, but we’re all very good defensemen and I’m just taking every opportunity, coming in every day and working my hardest,” Steen said. “Then every game when I get in, playing every shift like it’s my last and going hard, just taking every opportunity.”
It’s been part of a season of those opportunities for Steen, making the most of injuries on a stacked Tigers’ blue line with Josh Van Mulligen missing more than a month and Niilopekka Muhonen out since the end of October. Associate coach Joe Frazer has been impressed by how Steen has ran with his chances.
“He’s playing physical, he’s playing hard, he plays hard defensively, skates well, his gaps are good and he has a great stick,” Frazer said. “He’s adding that meanness to him, that element where he can be a really hard D-man to play against.
“He’s dropped the gloves four times and all three guys have been pretty big boys. It takes a lot of courage to do that and we love how he’s progressing.”
The impressions have gone beyond the coaching staff, with captain Bryce Pickford proud of how the younger blue liner has stepped up into his own role. He sees a lot of himself in Steen and how he’s playing in his first year.
“My first couple years, I had a lot of tilts, so I do see a little bit of me in him and it’s cool to watch him grow up, kind of makes me feel a little bit older now,” Pickford said.
“He’s stepped up and played a big role this year and it’s awesome to see. I love younger players doing that and the smile on his face I see when he’s coming to the rink, it’s pretty cool. Him stepping up and fighting the guys he’s fought for the team, definitely goes a long ways … it takes a lot of courage and it definitely brings our group even closer.”
The Tigers would welcome the path of Steen turning himself into a defenceman like Pickford. Will the younger defender ever be on a pace for nearly 50 goals like his captain? The respective blue liners have different answers.
“I definitely would have to add some offensive touch to my game, for sure, but I feel like that’s just something I need to work on and that comes with maturity through the years,” Steen said.
“Hopefully that’s his second half this year,” Pickford said.
