MEDICINE HAT, Alta. — Scott Glennie has never been afraid of the physical aspect of the game.
But two months ago, his penchant for delivering, and taking, hits nearly ended his season. While back-checking in the second period of a game in Calgary in late January, Glennie collided with the post. The pain in his left elbow was noticeable, but not to the point where Glennie would take himself out of the game.
“It hurt a lot but when I looked at it, it wasn’t really that swollen or nothing,” he said. “I went to the doctor and found out that it was broken. It was a freak accident.”
Glennie stayed in the game, a thrilling 7-6 overtime win over the regular season champion Hitmen. The Brandon Wheat Kings forward was surprised at the result of the x-rays after having finished the game in Calgary.
“I guess you have to tough one out,” as he later put it.
The toughest part, he said, was coming to the realization his season might be over. Glennie, one of two potential first-round National Hockey League draft picks this summer along with linemate Brayden Schenn, is one of the talented blue-chip prospects the Wheat Kings built their team around.
Brandon was named the host team for the 2010 Memorial Cup, which is partly determined based on projected team talent. Since their team is still relatively young, with Schenn and Glennie who will both be expected to dominate next season, one of the team’s main goals this season was to build playoff-winning experience.
Fans in attendance at the Medicine Hat Arena on Sunday could be forgiven for not knowing Glennie had only recently returned from injury. Glennie, who stepped back in the lineup in the final weekend of the regular season, was back to his old ways, taking a hit at the offensive blue line to spring Schenn and Matt Calvert for a two-on-one play resulting in a goal by Schenn.
“He always does that and I think those guys know if you’re going to be top-end offensive guys there’s a price to pay and each of them will pay that price,” Wheat Kings head coach and general manager Kelly McCrimmon said.
“He’s a tough guy on our team and we need him if we want to move forward in the playoffs,” Schenn added. “He plays a key role for us and we love having him (on the team).”
Schenn’s goal from Glennie’s feed late in the first period sparked the comeback for the Wheat Kings. With his team trailing 5-2 at the time, Schenn’s late period tally was the first of five straight Brandon goals as the Wheat Kings took the game by an 8-6 final.
The Wheat Kings, who finished third in the Eastern Conference standings, head home for their first game on home ice since Game 2 of their first round series with Kootenay. Brandon began the series in Medicine Hat due to scheduling conflicts at the rink with the Royal Manitoba Winter Fair.
Although they lost the advantage of starting the first two games in their rink, Brandon regained home ice advantage by winning both games in Medicine Hat. The Wheat Kings now have a huge advantage, as they host the next three games of the series and four of a possible five, should the series require seven games.
With everything working in their favour, however, the Wheat Kings won’t be taking the Tigers lightly.
“We’re not expecting them to fall back or lay off,” Schenn said. “They’re going to come hard. They’re a hard working team.”
“It’s a good start to the series for us and it wasn’t easy. This is a hard building to play in,” McCrimmon added.
Returning from an injury is never easy, Calvert said, particularly when returning in the final weekend of the season. Calvert missed nearly a month of action midway through the season with a back injury and commends Glennie for his near seamless transition once returning from injury.
“You can practice all you want but you’re not going to get the timing back until a few games down the road but he got it back real fast,” Calvert said. “You might not have the hands at first but he’s worked real hard to get them back and he’s really contributing to our team.”
Glennie, Schenn and Calvert hardly missed a beat once their line was reassembled. The trio has been split up various times this season, for a few games early in the season after a sluggish start and again after injuries and Schenn’s departure for the Canadian world junior selection camp.
The trio, however, is a mainstay in the Brandon lineup in the playoffs after developing such chemistry last season, all as rookies.
“There’s no reason to split them up,” McCrimmon said. “I’ve always said that each of those players is better because of the other two and they really have had chemistry from day one and that’s what works best for our team is when those three play together.”
Glennie says his injured elbow is completely healed, otherwise he wouldn’t have returned to the lineup. If his play since returning from the injury, such as the set-up on Schenn’s goal in Medicine Hat, is any indication, Glennie remains unfazed by the physicality of the sport.
