Friday, November 21, 2008

Matthias Article in the Democrat & Chronicle

If you've been following Rochester, or reading about Matthias here, or wherever, you probably know that he hasn't exactly been lighting it up with his 4 points and -17 rating. So, if you're interested, Kevin Oklobzija has an excellent article about Shawn on the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle website.

Here's the start of the article, and the rest is linked:
The Call to Duty and Halo showdowns between Shawn Matthias and Keaton Ellerby are quickly building from a casual, pass-the-day activity to true gamer rivalry.

"We have some good matches," Matthias said, "but I'm getting the best of him."

He wouldn't stoke the I'm-best fire, though. Trash talk is not Matthias' game.

Unless, of course, he's talking about himself. Then he'll beat himself up.

The Rochester Americans' first-year centerman has found the transition to pro hockey to be very difficult. He has gone from star in the Ontario Hockey League and overtime hero for Canada at the 2008 World Junior Championship to overshadowed, overwhelmed American Hockey League rookie.

And he knows it. No one needs to yell at him or criticize him. He's doing that all himself.

Through 17 games, he has scored just three goals, assisted on one and his plus/minus rating is a team-worst minus-17. . . READ MORE

With his slow start, people have already considered Matthias a bust, but it's way too early to think something like that. He has worked hard in juniors to get this far, and he will have to do it again, that's all.

There was a quote that Matthias didn't play as hard as he should have when he was dismissed from Panthers' camp, and it's earned him the label of being a 'primadonna'. I disagree wholeheartedly with that assessment, though. Rochester still is, but had been struggling badly at the time, and everyone knows that when things are bad, they only seem to get worse. So when that quote came along, people didn't see Matthias as an inexperienced kid who had a lot to learn. Instead, he was perhaps unfairly thrown under the bus as just another one of many negatives in this bleak Rochester season.


For now, though, waiting seems the only option as Matthias has a long way to go to become the NHLer he will someday be. However, the situation in Rochester is going to force him to grow up fast.

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