Trotz: Ryan Ellis a ‘special’ player

by Rob Benneian

The biggest challenge in adjusting to the NHL for Ryan Ellis has been how easy he made junior hockey look.

Ellis, 22, was drafted eleventh overall by the Nashville Predators in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft after helping lead the Windsor Spitfires to the first of two consecutive Memorial Cup Championships. He concluded his junior career in 2011 by being named the Canadian Hockey League player of the year.

He made his pro hockey debut that spring, suiting up for seven playoff games with the Milwaukee Admirals, the Predators’ American Hockey League affiliate.

Ellis split time in 2011-12 between Milwaukee and Nashville because Predators head coach Barry Trotz wanted to break him of his junior hockey mindset.

“The really good junior players, like he was, they end up playing 35, 40 minutes a night. What happens is they don’t have any pace to their game,” Trotz said. “They’re doing everything with their hands. They’re sitting in the rocking chair just managing the game at the junior level.”

The speed and intelligence of the opposition Ellis faces at the NHL level means he can no longer slow the game down and dissect it as he would if he were facing 16-year-olds. However, Trotz said Ellis is among a special breed of player whose superb intellect allow them to take chances.

“He’s got great instincts and he seems to have that ability, those special players, they drift one way or the other but they’re still able to make the right decisions most times,” Trotz said. “We’re just letting him play and he’s been a real good player for us.”

Ellis said he worked on his skating over the summer to be able to more quickly retrieve pucks and join the rush offensively. As he gains more experience in the league, Ellis said he would have a better idea of when he can gamble.

“Trying to anticipate plays more than letting them happen,” Ellis said. “It’s a transition but so far it’s been pretty good.”

Part of letting Ellis play has been giving a role in which he is comfortable. He has been a fixture on the Nashville power play this season, which is a familiar sight for Windsor Spitfires fans. Ellis racked up 313 points in his OHL career, many of which came while manning the point on the Spitfires power play.

Trotz also took steps to make the 5-9 Ellis more comfortable by pairing him with 6-7 Hal Gill.

“(Gill) is a really good talker in terms of the defending part with a young guy,” Trotz said. “Hal’s got a Stanley Cup ring, he’s played in a lot of different situations. I thought it would be a real good mentor program from a defensive side.”

Despite less than a full season’s worth of NHL games to his credit, Ellis has made a big impression on his coach.

“When the game’s on the line, he wants the puck on his stick. If Pavel Datsyuk is coming on or (Jaromir) Jagr or some of the big names in the game coming down on him, he actually enjoys that,” Trotz said. “He’s not afraid of that. Some players are a little nervous of that and he’s not.”

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