lifted a Calder Cup with Liljegren last spring, when the then-first-year pro was impressing as the youngest defenceman in the AHL. Dermott has since made a successful and smooth transition to the bigs and sees no reason why the man Mike Babcock calls ‘Lily Pad’ can’t eventually make the same leap.
“Open-minded is the best way to say it. Eager to learn,” Dermott says. “His skating is so good. He could keep up with the guys, and especially as a young guy, that’s tough, moving up against the faster forwards. So his skating from the big ice surface has translated well here. That idea was spoiled when Liljegren, who began the season beside Calle Rosen on the Marlies’ top pairing and working both special teams, suffered a high ankle sprain just in time to ruin his participation in the world junior championships.
“It was my age group too, so I knew pretty much everyone on the team. I grew up playing on national teams with those guys, and this would’ve been the last year playing with them,” Liljegren laments. “It’s a tough thing, but there’s nothing you can do about it. You just gotta accept it. “It was a lot too soon for him,” says Keefe, who believes the off-ice work Liljegren invested should have long-term dividends. “We think he’s in a really good place, and we’ve really liked his game since he’s been back.”Keefe wants to see Liljegren sharpen into a power-play threat, both shooting and distributing. His puck-carrying and breakouts can improve. Eleven points through 31 games is more than respectable, but there’s more to untap.
lukefoxjukebox CircleKOntario Guess Leafsnet hockey insider got demoted to covering the minor league.
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