THE SILENT KILLER
First-year Canes forward Foegele emerging as goal-scorer at precisely the right time
RALEIGH, N.C. — Warren Foegele has walked the line between villain and a hero in these playoffs, wearing a black hat in Washington for rudely shoving winger T.J. Oshie into the boards, which busted Oshie’s clavicle, but around that dastardly deed, Foegele has been a break-out scorer for Carolina.
After 10 goals in the regularseason, after going 2 1/2 months without one, he’s got five goals in nine games. He’s this spring’s Fernando Pisani.
Surely the Hurricanes remember him from the 2006 playoffs
“That guy was a thorn, for sure,” laughed Carolina coach Rod Brind’Amour.
Indeed, he was. Not just to the Hurricanes. The unsung Edmonton Oilers winger had a monumental 14 playoff goals in 2006, more than anybody else. Carolina’s captain Brind’Amour was next with 12. Pisani had 18 goals in the regular season, and quieted the Carolina crowd in Game 5 of the finals with a stunning short-handed, OT goal to KO the Canes and postpone the home crowd’s Cup-winning celebration until Game 7. In that game Pisani almost tied it 2-2 late in the third period before Justin Williams slid one into the empty net for Carolina’s only Cup victory.
“I don’t know how to describe it, but this is a special time of year and players do emerge,” said Brind’Amour. “We’ve really needed that (with all their injuries) and I love this kid.”
“We were fortunate to have spots open at training camp and he took one. He earned the right to be part of the group …wasn’t like he had a contract and we had to play him. Now he’s earning his ice-time. As a coach, you love to see that.” Foegele’s enjoying the ride. “Yes it’s been a journey, but the most fun is winning games,” said Foegele.
It hasn’t been a straight road to success. He had three goals in his first four league games, but then nothing for 28 games from Oct. 9 to Dec. 16. He got it going again late, scoring in his last two regularseason games including the first goal against New Jersey Devils when Carolina clinched a playoff spot. He got the Hurricanes back in Game 2 against the Islanders with a goal on Islanders’ Robin Lehner 17 seconds into the third period, after two headman plays from Lucas Wallmark and Saku Maenalanen.
“You look for these moments and you want to contribute,” said Foegele.
“One of the older guys told me I hadn’t been shooting enough, so no reason not to.”
Only Michael Stone, Jaden Schwartz, Tomas Hertl and Logan Couture (all with six) have more goals. Foegele hasn’t shot a lot (15), but his 33 percent efficiency is the playoff’s best.
With Micheal Ferland (upper-body), Andrei Svechnikov (concussion) and Jordan Martinook (groin) out, the left-winger Foegele has been a revelation in only 15 minutes ice-time, starting on the fourth line and now on the third.
“Works his tail off and he’s kind of built for the playoffs,” said Williams, the Canes’ captain.
Foegele was basically a third-line winger, who started on the fourth to kick-off Carolina’s run.
“Yeah, I do think the playoffs fit my style. There really isn’t much room out there, you have to work for every inch,” said Foegele, who started the season well, then hit a wall, no big deal for a cagey, greybeard like Williams but a worry for the rookie, for sure.
“An eighty-two game season in this league is a long time if you’ve never done it …the first year there’s ups and downs for everybody but at the end of the year, everybody’s stats go back to zero,” said Williams.
True, but Foegele let it bug him.
“The November/December time was the hardest part. I was worried about getting sent down to (farm) Charlotte and I got away from what I did well,”. That’s playing hard. “Big, strong kid who goes to where you’ve got to score, those dirty areas. I like him a lot,” said a long-time Easternbased pro scout.
Foegele, who grew up a childhood buddy of Connor McDavid, didn’t make it to the NHL the same way.
“Everybody has their own path and it doesn’t matter where you start because it’s not a sprint, it’s a marathon,” said Foegele, who attended prep school St. Andrews College in Aurora, Ont., from 2011-2014 rather than start his major junior odyssey.
“I was only five-foot-seven and about 140 pounds, a lot smaller than everybody else in my (OHL) draft year,” said Foegele, now 6-foot-2 and 198 pounds,
St. Andrews was a travelling team, much like famous Shattuck St. Mary’s outside of Minneapolis, so we’re not talking club hockey in highschool.
“We’d play lots of schools in the States like Shattuck, Salisbury (Connecticutt), Thayer (Massachusetts). Everybody’s development path is different and it’s basically a way for kids to go and then play in the USHL, then go the NCAA route,” said Foegele, who went to U of New Hampshire where he got lost in the shuffle with too many freshmen and not enough icetime so left early in his sophomore year to play in Kingston in the OHL. He later got traded to Kris Knoblauch’s Erie team after McDavid had left and was playoff MVP as they won the league title, but lost in the Memorial Cup final to Windsor.
Foegele has known McDavid for about half his 23 years.
“I think it was Grade 8, on the same rep team coached by Connor’s dad. We had (current NHLers) Travis Dermott, Sam Bennett, myself, McDavid. Pretty good team. Yeah, we didn’t lose many. Connor’s dad would put weights on Connor’s skates. No weights for me. I don’t think I was smart enough then,” laughed Foegele, who also trained later with McDavid at Gary Roberts’ summer school in Toronto.
Foegele has only made one false step in his first playoff ride — the hit on Oshie which the Caps’ player said was “a little unnecessary.” He didn’t get a suspension but he knows he did wrong.
“I wish that play hadn’t happened there,” said Foegele.