Jamie Rome has been around hockey long enough to know that it鈥檚 not how you start the season, it鈥檚 how you finish it.
The veteran Victoria Grizzlies forward has taken that to heart this season, lighting it up since the Christmas break. All of a sudden, the Grizzlies, who had one player among the sa国际传媒 Hockey League鈥檚 top 20 scorers at the halfway point, now have three in the top 15 鈥� and surging out of nowhere into the third spot is the veteran Rome.
The Calgary product was named the BCHL player of the week last week for racking up four goals and three assists in three victories. His 64 points are two back of injured teammate Alex Newhook and six off the pace of BCHL leading scorer Jasper Weatherby of the Wenatchee Wild.
鈥淛amie has always played a strong 200-foot game from the start of the season, and now he鈥檚 being rewarded around the net as pucks are finding their way in and his linemates are putting his passes in,鈥� Grizzlies GM and head coach Craig Didmon said Thursday as his team prepared to depart for the Interior, where they鈥檒l start a three-game weekend road trip tonight in Salmon Arm against the Silverbacks.
Rome鈥檚 output is 21 points better than his point total all of the last season, and the Grizzlies still have five games left before playoffs.
But after tasting a long playoff run a season ago, Rome is focused on one thing these days.
鈥淭he points are nice, but the wins are better,鈥� said the 19-year-old, who has an NCAA scholarship to Western Michigan University in his back pocket.
鈥淕etting this team into a good position for the playoffs is my focus right now, and if my points help us win, that鈥檚 great.鈥�
Didmon started the season tinkering with his forward lines, so Rome found himself playing with different linemates most nights. But he has found a home on the Grizzlies鈥� No. 1 unit alongside rookie Newhook and 20-year-old Ethan Nother.
Nother, from London, Ont., has crept up to 15th spot in league scoring with 53 points. And with Cam Thompson filling in for the injured Newhook, Rome hasn鈥檛 missed a beat.
鈥淢y linemates have been great,鈥� Rome said. 鈥淣ewhook and Nother are unbelievable talents and Thompson has been great, too, so it makes my life a lot easier out there.鈥�
What hasn鈥檛 been easy for the Grizzlies this season are three-games-in-three-days road trips. They鈥檙e winless in three such outings this season.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 tough to explain, but I think now as the season is winding down, we need to treat them like home games and bring that same energy,鈥� said Rome, whose teammates will also visit West Kelowna on Saturday and Merritt on Sunday afternoon.
With the playoffs in sight and his team jockeying with Powell River and Nanaimo for first in the Island Division, Didmon hopes his team鈥檚 focus makes the difference this weekend.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a different time of the season right now where players can see what鈥檚 at stake, whereas maybe that focus wasn鈥檛 there in those earlier trips,鈥� Didmon said.
The Grizzlies (29-17-4-3) are one point up on the Kings and Clippers, but Nanaimo has played two more games.
The Silverbacks (23-25-3-1) enter tonight鈥檚 game fifth in the Interior Division, but are 8-2 in their last 10 games.
SLAP SHOTS: The Grizzlies got some good news on the injury front this week as it looks like captain Lucas Clark will see action this weekend after being out two weeks with a knee injury. Defenceman Drayson Pears and goaltender Zack Rose should also return this weekend, according to Didmon.
