Canucks: How Kiefer Sherwood's 'pit-bull mentality' drives prudent ...

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Kiefer Sherwood is a Derek Dorsett 2.0 clone. The former winger did everything to drag the Canucks into the fight and contribute

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Published Dec 17, 2024  •  Last updated 22 minutes ago  •  4 minute read

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Barry Trotz is a smart hockey man.

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His track record as a head coach speaks for itself in guiding AHL and NHL champions. And now as general manager in Nashville, his tough task is to get the Predators past the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time in the last seven seasons and fill vacant seats.

That required a leap of faith and a big dent in the salary cap structure by signing free agents Steven Stamkos, 34, Jonathan Marchessault, 33, and Brady Skjei, 30, in the off-season.

Committing US$20.5 million to the trio in annual average value, on a club that was dead last overall after 31 games and had won just one of its previous 10 games, has only returned 17 goals.

The venture also meant passing on those who presented a vital sandpaper with scrappy and underrated skill presence that most clubs value.

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Kiefer Sherwood was one of those guys.

The feisty undrafted winger drove the play, drove the Vancouver Canucks crazy in a first-round series last spring, and remained on their radar. A modest two-year, $3-million free-agent deal brought opportunity to be more than an irritant, to show he could shoot as hard as he hits as a welcomed addition to the room.

“He’s an aggressive guy that you need on the ice who gives us juice,” said head coach Rick Tocchet.

Sherwood is also a Derek Dorsett 2.0 clone. The former Canucks winger did everything to drag his club into the fight and contribute before a neck injury and surgeries forced retirement.

He had seven goals in his first 20 games of 2017-18, which sounds a lot like Sherwood. He had six in that span to start this season.

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“Dorsett had to scrap and claw for everything he got out of the game,” recalled Sherwood. “I always respected him from afar, and as I got my pro career going, I try to model my game after that feistiness and pit-bull mentality.

“I try to find the triggers and what makes people a little self-conscious. Get them off their games and get them talking about me and less about our other guys and free them up. And on the PK, I try to use my speed and stick to disrupt and I use is as an energy shift for us.”

That has resonated with Dorsett, who has seen some of himself in the versatile Sherwood.

“Kiefer has done a tremendous job of finding that niche role,” Dorsett said. “He has figured out what it takes to stick and be an effective player. You can make a good living being physical and finishing checks. He has a long runway ahead of him.

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“He had a great year in Nashville last year (10 goals, 27 points) and caught my eye. Every team needs a guy like that. And he’ll keep evolving with confidence. One thing I did is not get pigeonholed into being that fourth-liner who fought all the time.

“I found a role on the penalty kill and being reliable late in games. You get a little bit of your offence back like I had in junior.”

Sherwood’s first NHL career hat trick Monday overshadowed his current reign as leader of the NHL hit parade with 184. It ensured the 29-year-old Columbus, Ohio, native passed a previous high of 10 goals last season.

Sherwood’s 11 goals have him on pace for 30, but gratefulness, not boastfulness, is always at the forefront of his summations.

Fans chanted his name at Rogers Arena on Monday. He is being recognized on the street and has become culture-carrier in the room and on the ice. Who wouldn’t want a guy like that?

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“I’m just grateful for the opportunity that the staff and management have given me,” he said. “I just try to put my work boots on every night, and when you do that, good things happen. We owe it to our fans to be better on home ice.”

As for that fan adulation in the rink and in public, Sherwood is taking it in stride.

“I don’t know, we’re just humble guys and I’m just thankful for the support and try to take it in,” he added. “Having that (name chanting) happen in the whole arena is something you dream about as a kid and moments that you work for and manifest and visualize.”

This is Sherwood’s fourth NHL stop and he never stops working at his game. He was an AHL hotshot who quickly learned that it seldom translates to the biggest stage. His 36 goals with the Colorado Eagles in 2020-21 have faded into memory.

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“It’s adapt or die, a quote I kind of came to live by,” stressed Sherwood. “I needed to find a way to not just stick, but make an impact.”

Maybe Thatcher Demko put it best about how your enemy can become a friend. After all, Sherwood is a crease-crowding pest when at his best.

“He’s a good dude — we loving having him around,” said the Canucks starting goaltender. “Positive attitude every day. Chatting guys in the morning and bringing everybody’s energy up. He wears his heart on his sleeve and plays hard for us.

“He was definitely really annoying to play against. It’s always nice when you meet a guy on the other side of it and can cross him off your do-not-have-a-friendship-with list.”

bkuzma@postmedia.com

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