Here’s what Terry Murray had to say about the decision to keep both 19-year-old Oscar Moller and 20-year-old Wayne Simmonds on the NHL roster…
“What we’re doing, coming out of camp, is keeping the players who did the best for us. We want players who can contribute and showed us they understand what we’re trying to do and can execute the proper way. We made a decision, going back to the summer, that we were going to have some young players here and have a solid foundation and grow together. We’re very surprised and very happy with how these young players performed in training camp.”
Murray talks about Simmonds’ development…
“(Simmonds) progressed enough that he earned a spot on the team. He’s been doing a good job and handling himself well, with composure and professionalism on and off the ice. One area you worry about is, are these young players physically mature enough to handle the load in the NHL? We evaluate them on talent and ability, and these guys are top performers in the junior ranks, but the physical play in the NHL is much more demanding. We’re aware of that, but it certainly looked like Simmonds is ready to handle it.”
On the roles that Moller and Simmonds will play on the team…
“Whenever you have young players, it’s important that they play and that they not get lost in lines that aren’t taking on responsibilities. We’re looking at Simmonds on the right side with Handzus. He’s a veteran who can read off these young players. At the same time, Simmonds will complete Handzus’ game because of his awareness. He showed his ability to read the play and handle the puck.
“We’ll have Moller with Stoll right now. I really enjoyed watching (Moller) last night. After sitting out one game, he came back and showed a lot of creativity and imagination. The bottom line is, he earned the right to stay here. The luxury is, you have 10 games after season begins to take another look at that situation.”
On whether Moller is on a 10-game tryout, before a decision is made to return him to juniors or not…
“I wouldn’t sit down and talk to him that way, but it’s out there and everyone knows it. We just want him to relax and play the way he’s been playing. He’s been growing with this and doing a good job.”
