Zach Whitecloud made his NHL debut tonight in a 4-3 loss to the Edmonton Oilers, posting a +3 in 16:42.
It was an understandably tentative beginning for the 21-year-old, as it looked like veteran Milan Lucic schooled him on his very first shift:
On Zach Whitecloud's first NHL shift, it looks like Milan Lucic gave him a "Welcome to the NHL" moment, knocking his stick out of his hands behind the net #VegasBorn pic.twitter.com/rAP2LIorZO
— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) April 6, 2018
After the youngster's initial mistake, you probably want him to eat the puck or move it more quickly.
His processing improved throughout the game. By the end of the night, he was making quick and patient plays like this one -- Jujhar Khaira bearing down, Whitecloud backhanded this soft pass to Erik Haula.
In all, I think Whitecloud read the game well. He was in good position defensively and his head was constantly on a swivel. I was struck by how vocal he appeared to be in his first NHL game, as he was constantly pointing out coverage assignments for his teammates.
This was a strong offensive read, anticipating Matt Benning's breakout:
Here's a quality defensive read, as he sorts out the coverage and steps up on Khaira charging down the slot. Whitecloud's stick sends a good chance into the stands:
This wasn't the only time where Whitecloud had to compensate for his partner's misfire:
Other thoughts about the defender's debut: I don't think I saw him beneath the top of the circles on a pinch once. He was cautious in his first game, which I understand. Appeared to be strong enough for the league; he saw a ton of the brawny Lucic. Needs to work a lot on his skating.
This being Edmonton too, Whitecloud was introduced to Connor McDavid:
Granted, this was just Whitecloud's first NHL game, so let's not read too much into it. But I think we saw both the raw tools which excited Vegas management and some things for him to work on over the summer.
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I caught up with Whitecloud a couple weeks ago to learn how he was adapting to NHL life:
HockeyBuzz: What have you learned so far, being with the NHL club?
Zach Whitecloud: Just conducting yourself the right way. How they conduct themselves off the ice here at the rink. Know what their schedule is like. Obviously, it's a lot different than college. You gotta adapt, you gotta adjust.
HB: Who in particular has been a good example for you to learn from?
ZW: Brad Hunt has helped me. He's from Bemidji too. He's been showing me a few things here and there. Keeping an eye out for me.
But it's really easy to go to any of these guys to ask questions. They're all super-nice guys. It was good coming here to this locker room. It's been very welcoming.
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