Doug Spooner took part in his first practice in Ontario this morning at Citizens Business Bank Arena. The 6-foot-3, 203-pound forward is less than a month removed from his fifth season playing for the University of Waterloo, to which then-head coach Karl Taylor recruited him in 2004.
Now the 25-year-old rookie has five games to prove to his worth to the Reign. Under the ECHL’s amateur tryout agreement (which was just instituted this season), Spooner gets 10 days or five games from the date he signed before Taylor must decide whether to cut him or sign him to a standard player contract. Since Spooner signed prior to last Friday’s game, and the Reign play seven games during the next 10 days, his trial period figures to be up after his fifth game.
That’s not as much pressure as it would seem.
“Coming out of college at the end of the year and jumping onto a team that’s in first place and doing really well, with a lot of good hockey players, I don’t think there’s any pressure at all,” Spooner said. “It’s a good opportunity for me. If I don’t stick, I get five games in the league and it’s a heads up to what’s coming. There’s really no downside to it.”
Spooner provided a nice point of introduction to his new teammates by scoring a goal off a Tim Kraus rebound in his first game Thursday in Victoria. He didn’t score in either of the final two games against the Salmon Kings, both losses, but got plenty of playing time in both.
“He’s a big strong guy, he’s smart, a mature guy,” Taylor said of Spooner. “He knows what I want. He knows what my expectations are, so it’s an easy transition for him. If we’re bringing guys in at the end of the year, it’s easier if you know a guy and what to expect of him. That’s why he’s here.”
If Spooner doesn’t stick, he’ll simply return to Waterloo to finish up his spring classes, then try to hook on with an NHL tryout camp next fall. There’s room for Skinner in Ontario now because Mike Howe, Todd Jackson, Chris Curran and Ryan Bowness are all injured. Curran and Bowness didn’t take part in practice Tuesday, but Howe and Jackson did.
