Most NHL players have to do their time in the minors before the big league comes calling, and Isaac Howard is one of them. He came to the Edmonton Oilers training camp this year after spending last season working on the parts of his game that needed more time in Bakersfield.
“I think from a year’s time ago, I feel like a completely different player out there,” Howard said. “Just with my mindset on details. And I think a year is a lot of time, and I definitely feel a lot different.”
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Howard has had a good camp too. Mike Babcock said he didn’t love his game on Saturday night, though he also pointed out that it was just a preseason game. There are still practices and preseason games left before Edmonton has to make its roster decisions.
Howard spent last season in Bakersfield and used the year to mature his game. He had already shown his shot and speed, so much of his development involved the details required of an NHL forward
“[He’s] definitely a more mature player. He’s a great kid,” said Hyamn. “He wants to be an NHL player, a full-time NHL player. Doesn’t just want it. He thrives for it. He’s working as hard as anybody can work out there. I think he’s really attentive to the details and what he has to do.
“I think everybody knows that he has an unbelievable shot,” continued Hyman. “Nobody worries if he can score or make plays. You can do all those things; it’s just going and being physical and getting in on the puck first and doing all the little things.”
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Howard has been focused on those areas throughout camp and has remarked on how he has made things simpler for himself.
“I just feel a lot better rounded, [more] mature out there,” said Howard.. “[Some] confident with the puck, wanting the puck more, making the plays I know I can make, and I think also just harping on little details and making my game simpler in a way as well is just forechecking hard, creating loose pucks, using my speed, and it just makes the game easier.
“I worked a lot this summer on sprinting, conditioning, being able to hold a sprint longer, and I think it’s helped me so far in camp,” said Howard. “I feel lighter. I’m even a little bit heavier, but I feel lighter on my skates.”
It’s those kinds of changes that Hyman was talking about, such as getting to pucks, staying involved on the forecheck and handling the pace of an NHL game.
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“Of course, it’s a big opportunity, and I want to be an NHL player, and it’s laid out in front of me to go work hard, harp on small details, and show up every day and just be hungry,” said Howard.
Babcock’s assessment on Saturday is part of the process Howard is going through during camp. And it seems both parties had a reasonable understanding of what went wrong and how they were going to fix it. It is obviously not the reason Howard would get sent down, if he gets sent down at all.
“It’s been fun playing with him,” said Hyman. “If he can establish himself as the player that we all think he can be and that he wants to be, then he’s going to be a huge part of this team.”
Howard had a good understanding of the areas he needed to improve on from last season. His camp has shown some of that progress, and the rest of the preseason gives him time to earn the full-time NHL job he came to Edmonton looking for.
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