Former NHL standouts offer advice to Phantoms

By Brian Dzenis

bdzenis@vindy.com

YOUNGSTOWN

The Youngstown Phantoms had two high- profile visitors during their last homestand.

Hockey Hall of Famer Bryan Trottier, who won the Stanley Cup six times, and Pittsburgh Penguins assistant general manager Bill Guerin gave the local hockey players a pep talk and imparted some advice on making it to the next level.

“A lot of guys here have been around NHL players before,” Phantoms coach John Wroblewski said. “We have some guys whose dads played in the show, so it’s not a starry-eyed thing and I think with the Internet, it takes away some of the specialty of meeting somebody of that caliber.

“I can tell you that being in the presence of those guys, it definitely does something for you,” the first-year Phantoms coach said. “If it doesn’t charge you up, then there’s something missing.”

Trottier won the Cup four times with the New York Islanders in the early 1980s and twice with the Penguins in the early 1990s. He was teammates with Troy Loney, one of the Phantoms’ co-owners.

Trottier and Wroblewski know each other from their time in the Buffalo Sabres organization. Trottier was an assistant coach with the NHL team while Wroblewski had the same job with the Sabres’ AHL affiliate, the Rochester Americans.

The two were among several coaches who were fired last April as part of an organizational change. Trottier is currently out of work.

Guerin has a story most of the Phantoms’ players can relate to. The Massachusetts native came into the NHL from the college hockey ranks and is one of the highest-scoring American players in the game. He won a Stanley Cup in 1995 with the New Jersey Devils in 1995 and was a key trade deadline acquisition in the Penguins’ 2009 cup-winning run.

After his retirement after the 2009-10 season, he was hired by the Penguins as a player development coach before his promotion to assistant general manager.

As for what they said to the Phantoms, both stressed that playing junior hockey should be the most enjoyable time of their careers.

“Just enjoy the ride, when you get to the next level — college or pro — it’s more of a job,” Phantoms captain Matt Alvaro said. “It’s a rare opportunity to play junior hockey and to just enjoy the ride, but don’t waste any days.”

On their most recent road trip, the Phantoms split two games Wisconsin. They lost 5-4 in overtime to the Green Bay Gamblers, one of the USHL’s hottest teams on Jan. 8. The next day, the Phantoms rallied to defeat the Madison Capitols, 5-3. The Phantoms return home Friday and Saturday for two games against the Dubuque Fighting Saints.

“It’s a unique time for these guys now and we have to keep embracing it.” Wroblewski said. “We have to make sure these guys are getting better every day.”