Antoine Vermette enjoying life with Phoenix Coyotes after multiple changes -NHL Update
Antoine Vermette never thought that he would go from the cold winters and mild summers of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada and Columbus, Ohio, United States, to the hot and dry summers of Phoenix, Arizona.
Now, having played for less than a year with Phoenix Coyotes following a midseason trade from Columbus Blue Jackets, centre player, Antoine Vermette is finding home in the desert to be the usual which he left back in the Northern regions.
"It is a little strange," Vermette told NHL.com. "That is not something that I did in Ottawa or Columbus. You adjust yourself to the situation. Certainly, the weather is something you wouldn't think of when you're growing up [in Quebec] playing street hockey
with your buddies."
Vermette, a 29-year-old from St. Agapit, Quebec, Canada, was picked up as the 55th overall selection during round-two of the 2000 National Hockey League (NHL) Entry Draft by the Ottawa Senators. He joined Columbus Blue Jackets after playing for
nearly five seasons with his original draft team and almost four before joining the Coyotes club.
Making a change from a struggling team to now fighting to make it into the Stanley Cup Finals, Antoine Vermette’s luck seems to be at its peak at the moment.
"[General manager] Don [Maloney] did a lot of homework on him (Vermette), not just watch a lot of video of him playing, but a lot of homework on his personality," Phoenix coach, Dave Tippett, said. "We always talk about we need players that are going to
fit well into our group.”
Vermette’s presence has certainly made the Phoenix team better. Being well versed with how the Stanley Cup is fought for, the forward was on the 2007 Ottawa Senators team that nearly won the most coveted prize in the hockey world.
He is definitely on route to help them do it this time and with 10 points (5 goals, 5 assists) in 15 playoff games up until now, Antoine Vermette is the x-factor in the offensive end for Phoenix.
Phoenix Coyotes can expect to see much more of Vermette as the centre player is on a contract that has him on the club till July of 2015.
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