Ah, Ryan Bourque, one of my favorite prospects the organization possesses. The 20-year-old out of Boxford, Massachusetts is finally getting the recognition he deserves and will be closely watched by management and coaches this September in training camp. Like I keep saying, he is a miniature Ryan Callahan, and obviously you can never get enough of those.
Bourque recently spoke with Emily Kaplan of NHL.com, when he talked about camp, his dad, the Rangers and much more...
"Obviously, that's my ultimate goal. I want to play in the NHL -- that's every kid's dream," Bourque told NHL.com. "But realistically, looking at it, I'm a young kid, and I'm going to try to train to the best of my ability this summer and try to get as strong as I possibly can."
The Rangers, meanwhile, have nothing but good things to say about Bourque. The 20-year-old is listed at just 5-foot-9, and many have raised questions about whether a player of his size can compete in the NHL.
"He's going to be the size he is, that's not going to change," New York's Director of Player Personnel Gordie Clark told NHL.com. "But as an organization, we've become more patient with the guys to realize they all mature at different times. Right now for Ryan, everything's starting to come together, and you see what type of player he can be. You do feel that his hockey sense, his work ethic and the fact that he'll do everything possible on the ice, it will outweigh his size."
...Clark said it's tough to compare Ryan to his father since the younger Bourque is a forward.
"But at the same time they have one big thing in common," Clark said. "The major thing that Ray taught Ryan is that you can't control how many goals you're going to score, or some things like that. But the one thing you can control in a certain game is how hard you work on every shift. And the work ethic that Ryan has is exactly like his father. He knows how to handle himself as a pro."
Another characteristic he picked up? Leadership skills. Ray was the longest-serving captain in Bruins history.
Now that he is considered a veteran among the rest of the Rangers' prospects, Ryan said he's tried to establish himself as a leader through camp.
"In these past three years, I've gotten stronger, I've gotten smarter, I've gotten more mature as a hockey player," Bourque said. "You come in as a first-year guy and you just try to soak everything in. You see this beautiful atmosphere and this beautiful building that they have to offer with all the amenities that you need as a player. It's almost surreal. Then, coming in your second year and your third year, you get to see new faces and you almost act like a leader and you try to help those new faces ease into the organization."
Also keep in mind that Bourque is very close friends with center Derek Stepan as they played together on the U.S. Junior team multiple times in the past. That relationship, in addition to the one he has with his father, could certainly help Ryan get to the National Hockey League quicker than expected being that he has so many mentors to guide him.
Bourque is an energy guy, someone who can play in all situations. He's small, but he will throw around the body, he'll block a shot, and he'll definitely go to the net. Not many people are expecting him to make the team out of camp this year, but I personally believe that Ryan could be a dark horse.
He's a John Tortorella player, there's no question about that, and he is the type of player the Blueshirts are trying to breed more of. He "gets it" as the experts would say, and he absolutely has the heart and mindset to play at the NHL level soon. I'm hoping that's this year.
I did an interview with Ryan back in September that you can read here.
I can't wait to see this kid play. Hoepfully he becomes the Rangers Martin S. Louis!
Posted by: JohnP | Thursday, July 07, 2011 at 01:04 PM
That would be something!
Posted by: Nick Montemagno | Thursday, July 07, 2011 at 01:42 PM