The Province from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada • 124

lo) A124 I SPORTS II I THE PROVINCE SATURDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2005 NEWS FROM BEHIND THE LINES IN VANCOUVER mm sconnssi no picnic: Delorme admits it's hard to separate job from being a fan at world juniors STORIES BY BEN KUZMA wy i. i xnr if H) 7 fij --v savvy that has scouts salivating. After dominating under-18 world championship play last spring, the University of Minnesota rookie standout had 22 points in his first 18 games. And much like Russian phenom Alexander Ovechkin in the 2005 tourney, the 6-foot, 190-pound Kessel will be in Canadian crosshairs when they clash on New Year's Eve at the Pacific Coliseum. "Yeah, but you've got to catch the guy first," said Delorme.

"I've seen him play three times and when he's playing, his game is definitely No. 1 overall. "He has the speed we're looking for in today's game and he could have played in the old more obstruction game with the skill he has." Johnson is a 6-foot-4, 200-pound defenceman with the U.S. under-18 program, Mueller a 6-foot-2, 203-pound forward with Everett of the WHL and Mitera a 6-foot-3, 210-pound blueliner with the University of Michigan. Toews is a University of North Dakota centre and the 6-foot-2, 185-pound Winnipeg native has 1 1 points in 18 games.

Other touted first-round picks playing in the world juniors include forwards Michael Frolik of the Czech Republic and Nicklas Backstrom of Sweden. Still, Delorme stressed the world junior stage is not a make-or-break audition for potential draft choices or those looking to sign their first pro deals. Derick Brassard of Drummondville QMJHL didn't crack the Canadian roster but the left-winger remains high on Delorme's radar. "I thought he had a very good final selection camp and is a first-round pick," he said. "To me, he was capable of making that team.

Now, it's how he plays the rest of the year and in the playoffs." SPORTS REPORTER You'd think in what amounts to a showcase of drafted 18- and 19-year-olds, NHL scouts wouldn't be a frazzled fraternity at the 10-team world junior hockey championship tournament. Think again. "We'll still be looking at draft-eligible players, but we do look at other teams' prospects," said Vancouver Canucks chief amateur scout Ron Delorme. "We rate them mid-term and at the end of the year for possible trades or if they're not going to be signed." NHL teams have a two-year window to sign junior picks and four years to ink college drafts. Many, like Ryan Kesler of the Canucks, opt to leave college early to sign.

Others play four years to have the option of becoming unrestricted free agents especially if they don't expect to be signed by their NHL teams. That's just one pulse Delorme has to monitorin the 11-day world junior event. The other is draft prospects for 2006. "I'll be looking at every team and, of course, the U.S. because they have four prospects Phil Kessel, Erik Johnson, Peter Mueller, MarkMitera and it's the team most scouts will chase," he said.

"And Canada has a good one in Jonathan Toews." So much for bellying up for a beer and becoming more fan than forecaster during the festive season. "It's tough to do your job when Canada is playing because you want to put on your Canadian hat," Delorme admitted with a chuckle. "You become a fan." And it's hard not to be a fan of Kessel. The projected first-overall pick has the combination of speed, skill and Ron Delorme, Canucks head of scouting, will be a busy fellow during the world juniors. province file photo Same goes for Julien Ellis who led the Quebec junior league last season with a 2.41 goals-against average and .921 saves percentage.

Although the Canucks sixth-round draft pick of 2004 excelled in the summer camp, the goaltender allowed three goals on the first eight shots he faced and eight on 28 shots overall in a final camp intrasquad to play himself off the team. "He has to go back to Shawinigan, QMJI IL and regain his confidence but not making the team doesn't have anything to do with whether we sign him or not," said Delorme. "We evaluate him over the entire two years after we drafted him." benkuzmahotmail.com MORE WORLD JUNIOR, Pages A116-117 Injured Cloutier makes case for more goalie protection uui umiiiii hmj.iii i i in mi ii i. Dan Cloutier hasn't set a timetable for his return from season-ending knee surgery Dec. 15, but he'd like the NHL to set a timetable to protect his peers from crease-crashers.

When general managers recently met, they applauded everything that's right with today's new game but didn't address a giant wrong. It was crease-crashing Rob Niedcrmayer who ended Clouticr's season Nov. 20 in Anaheim. The Vancouver Canucks starting goaltender suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee and now faces four months of rehab and durability questions. So, where's league support for goalies being treated like pinatas? "I'm a little surprised," Cloutier said Friday following his first day of rehab.

"Most people will look at that one play, but I did get hit four or five times that game. At one point there were 28 goalies injured and that's almost 50 per cent. If there were 50 per cent of first-line players injured, I'm sure they'd look at it. But scoring is up and attendance is up, and they're definitely happy with what's going on." What's going on now is debate as to when GM Dave Nonis will acquire a goaltender and the future of Cloutier, who has another year left on his contract at $2.5 million US. Cloutier is quick to deny he's injury prone.

I Ie also missed five games when he suffered a concussion Oct. 29 after being run over by teammate Nolan Baumgartncr in Denver. "You look at the way they happened," said Cloutier who's off post-operation medication and crutches. "There's not much I could have done and it doesn't matter who would have been in net." DAN CLOUTIER.