Corpus Christi Caller Times Caller.com - Valk anticipates more than a nibble with IHL's Aeros

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Sunday, August 29, 1999

Valk anticipates more than a nibble with IHL's Aeros

By Mark Button
Caller-Times

It would be a stretch to Phil Valk got a "taste" of the Houston Aeros' International Hockey League Turner Cup Championship last season.
   He was there for part of it. But for Valk, it was more like a nibble.
   In the professional hockey hierarchy, the IHL is one step away from the big show, the National Hockey League. The chance to play in the NHL is what every player in the Western Professional Hockey League works toward and the "I" is the next best thing.
   Last year, a sniff of the IHL was enough for Valk. After playing 69 games for the IceRays, the Aeros called him up for the final week of the season and the playoff run.
   Valk said he was thrilled for the opportunity.
   He played in two of the final three regular-season games but did not dress in uniform for Houston during the playoffs - he was an extra body in case of injury to another defenseman. He wore dress suits and sat in the press box with a couple of other "extras." He was part of the team, but not on the ice.
   "I got to rush the ice afterwards, and it was great," Valk said. "It's such a class organization, they took such good care of us. But since I wasn't playing, I wouldn't call it the greatest hockey moment of my like or anything."
   This time around, a taste, a nibble - call it what you want - won't be enough for Valk.
   He wants to be an everyday IHL defenseman.
   He thinks he capable and he's going to get a chance to prove it.
   The 6-foot-4, 220-pound defenseman with a heavy right hand has been invited to the Aeros' preseason training camp which begins in Houston on Sept. 12.
   "(Then coach) Dave Tippett and I had a one-on-one meeting after the season," Valk said. "He was very happy with the way things looked in practice and the couple games I got in. I was there if someone got injured, but he told me a lot of it was for this next season. He wanted me to get to know the guys and he thought I'd play here next year."
   Then Tippett scored an assistant coaching gig with the Los Angeles Kings, leaving Valk wondering about his future. Valk thought Dave Barr would get the open Aeros coaching job - Barr was an assistant under Tippett and extensively worked with Valk before, during and after practices - but the job went to Ron Low, the former Edmonton Oilers head coach whom Valk doesn't know. Valk said Low respects the opinion of Barr, still an Aeros assistant and a big fan of Valk's.
   "The kid is committed to moving to the next level," Barr said. "He plays hard. He plays for keeps, and that's why we like him.
   "He has enough talent to play (in the IHL), but his desire puts him over the top. If he can put those two together consistently, he'll make it."
   Valk was a +13 (the total IceRays-opponents goal differential while he was on the ice) for Corpus Christi last year. He assisted on 22 goals, scored three, but helped the team more with his physical presence and fighting ability.
   IceRays coach Taylor Hall said Valk was more than just a fighter and has a great shot at making the Aeros' roster: Hall's not even planning on having Valk back this year.
   "At our level, he's a really good player - brings more than just intimidation," Hall said. "But at that (IHL) level, he'll probably have to start out at that role. The one thing about Phil is that he keeps getting better. You can coach a big guy to get better, but you can't coach a small guy to get bigger."
   ICERAYS SIGN FIVE: Corpus Christi added five more players to its preseason roster Friday. Twenty-four-year-old left winger Alain Savage headlines the group: the 5-foot-7, 190-pound, eight-year veteran scored 48 goals to accompany 47 assists in 59 games for the Idaho Steelheads of the West Coast Hockey League in 1997-98. Savage spilt time between Idaho and the Mobile Mysticks of the East Coast Hockey League last season, scoring a combined 21 goals in 60 games.
   The other new signees include seven-year veteran Dustin McArthur (6-1, 195 pounds), another left wing who recorded 28 goals and 22 assists in 60 games for the Monroe Mocassins in 1997-98; forward Eric Perricone, who spent the last four years in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League scoring a combined 65 goals (91 assists) in 240 games; Miles Van Tassel, a rookie defenseman who played for Michigan Tech from 1997-99; and Brent Currie, who played most recently in the British Columbia Junior Hockey League.
   BARBER SHOP CLOSES: Scott Barber will be a Macon Whoopee this season. Barber, who took over for Frank Caprice as the IceRays No. 1 goalie midseason last year has decided to jet to the Central Hockey League to play for the Macon franchise. Barber wanted to stay in Corpus Christi, but the undisclosed money available in the CHL was too good for the one-time WPHL league-leader in save percentage to turn down. Barber finished the season with a .897 save percentage for 25 games.
   "I'd love to keep him; he's a great back-up goalie," Hall said. "But I think he will have a better chance at a better contract in another league. He didn't make too much last year, and with the people we're signing, there's a good chance he wouldn't make much more here this year."
   IHL IN CENTRAL TEXAS: The Central Texas Stampede will host a two-game IHL exhibition at the Belton County Coliseum on Sept. 24-25.
   Central Texas will host a rematch between the Houston Aeros and Orlando Solar Bears, the two teams who went seven games to decide the IHL Turner Cup Championship - Houston won Game 7, 5-3. The Canadian National team will also play a game in the exhibition weekend.
   The tentative schedule pits the Aeros and the Canadian Nationals on Sept. 24 and the Solar Bears will try their luck against Aeros the following night.
   RIVALRY IN WAITING: Former Waco and current Central Texas coach Todd Lalonde, the WPHL coach of the year, signed two of Austin's top players from last year. Both were waived by the Ice Bats during the last month of the season.
   Chris Johnston (22 goals, 32 assists in 44 games) and Craig Johnson (16 goals, 164 penalty minutes in 43 games), drove up highway to play for Lalonde in Central Texas.This should be a rivalry to watch. Rumor has it that Johnston and Johnson did not leave Austin on good terms. "Let's just say it wasn't a amicable parting," said Steve Cherwonak, WPHL director of scheduling and media services.
   Last year, under Lalonde, Waco won six of eight games against Austin. Central Texas owned Austin as well, posting a 6-1-1 record against the Ice Bats.
   OTHER SIGNINGS: In one of the better steals of the offseason, Monroe signed Darren Dougan away from Central Texas. Dougan's 28 goals and 66 assists gave him a No. 11 ranking in total scoring ... Abilene re-signed Charles Poulin, the league's ninth-leading scorer with 41 goals and 55 assists ... First-year New Mexico coach Tony Martino has filled all 20 Scorpions' roster spots with contracted players. "None of them are making more than $700 a week," Martino said.


Mark Button can be reached at 886-3613 or by e-mail at buttonm@caller.com.

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