Sabres Development Camp: Swede joins his fellow prospects at Niagara University
Enroth takes steps forward with Sabres
Rookie goalie makes good first impression
LEWISTON — In musical terms, Jhonas Enroth is used to the waltz. Hockey in Europe features wide, swooping motions on an oversized surface. It allows goaltenders time to read plays and sway along artistically.
Enroth mastered those steps, so the goaltender is swinging over to North America. In musical terms, think hip-hop. The hockey is fast-paced, with a barrage of shots that require rapid movement and improvisational skills. For Enroth, it’s a whole new genre.
“It doesn’t matter what kind of music,” Buffalo Sabres goalie coach Jim Corsi said. “If you know how to dance, you’re OK.”
The Sabres believe one day they could be dancing with a star.
Corsi and the Sabres got their initial firsthand look at Enroth on Wednesday, as the Swede celebrated his 20th birthday on the opening day of the Sabres’ summer development camp. Enroth was advertised as a quick-moving, technically perfect goalie, and he delivered.
There were times when he skipped a beat, of course. The decrease in rink size threw off a few of Enroth’s reads, but Corsi has no doubt the second-round pick from 2006 will adjust quickly. Enroth’s transition from junior hockey to the Swedish Elite League went fine, and this should, too.
“He’s mentally strong,” Corsi said in Niagara University’s Dwyer Arena. “He’s already played a couple years with adults, so he’s ahead of the curve in that regard, as far as the mental makeup. Because of his technical skills, these are adjustments. It’s not like reworking a skill set. That would take more time. . . . He’ll have a quicker time of it.”
Enroth feels he’s ready, which is why he signed a three-year, $1.9 million deal with the Sabres last month. There was nothing else to learn in Europe, where he led the Swedish league with a 2.13 goals-against average.
“It felt like I played well in two good seasons at home,” Enroth said. “I feel like I had to make the next step.”
Enroth, a confident netminder, saw his stock rise at the world junior championships in January when he backstopped Sweden to a silver medal. It led him to say that he could be with the Sabres next season. After a conversation with Corsi, he’s tempered his expectations.
“Of course I want to play in the NHL, but it’s going to take time, maybe two years, three years in the minors,” Enroth said. “But I will be patient and wait for my time and try to get it.”
The only disparaging things scouts say about Enroth is he may not have the size to be an elite NHL goalie. He’s 5-foot-10, 174 pounds in an era of crease patrollers who are routinely 6-2. But it takes more than just bulk to block a puck. It takes movement to get in front of it.
“I know if I was 6-foot or something like that I would have probably gone in the first round,” Enroth said. “[A big guy] can use his body and just go down and block the shots. I have to react and think a little bit more, try to get a step before the shooter.”
Enroth is able to think like a shooter because, until recently, he was one. He played on two teams in his early teen years, suiting up as a goalie on one and skating for the other. It wasn’t until about five years ago that he settled on being a goalie.
It’s early, but it looks like he made the right step.
“I believe in myself,” Enroth said.
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The Sabres extended one-year qualifying offers to their restricted free agents before the deadline passed Wednesday. That means the Sabres will be entitled to compensation should anyone try to sign Steve Bernier, Paul Gaustad, Clarke Mac- Arthur or Daniel Paille when free agency opens July 1. The quartet has until July 15 to accept or decline the offers. They can renegotiate for longer or better terms.
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Sabres prospects Andrew Orpik and Nathan Gerbe made it on time for the camp, which runs through Tuesday. They went to Washington with their Boston College teammates Tuesday to celebrate their NCAA Frozen Four title. They spent time with wounded soldiers at Walter Reed Army Medical Center and met President Bush at the White House.
“It was pretty exciting,” said Orpik, the East Amherst resident who was a seventh-round pick in 2004. “You hear so much about him in the media, but getting to meet him in person was pretty special.”
