18 year old Zack Phillips is looking at training camp as his first steps on his way to the NHL, and so far its looking really good. Within the first five days of camp, and the late summer prospects tournament, he has impressed head coach Mike Yeo so much that he will be playing in the exhibition game against the St Louis Blues. The wild say they're vowed to avoid hurrying young prospects into their roster. He played in a Quebec Major Junior Hockey League last year. Yeo observed that Phillips is still adjusting to the pace of the workouts. Phillips was the 28th overall pick in the 2011 draft. Last season he compiled up 95 points with 38 goals in 67 games. That's amazing! When he was 13, he left his home in Fredericton, New Brunswick, to play prep hockey and hopefully lead him to the NHL. I couldn't imagine having that much pressure at such a young age. I just think it's phenomenal if your that young and get to play at such a high level and get payed to do it.
I'm not all that excited when it comes to the sport of hockey, but this kid sounds extremely good. And the funny thing is, he's only 18 years of age. And the fact that he had 95 points in only 67 games is unreal. The Wild didn't do all that great last year but they picked up some new players. One of those players is Dany Heatley, at one point an all star. The other is Phillips who i think could turn out to be an amazing player. He plays the center position and the wild arent too strong in that area.
http://www.twincities.com/sports/ci_18944735
I agree with you on not being super excited about hockey, however i've seen Zack play and he is as good and his numbers are. I also think its really cool that the Wild are giving such a young player a chance to prove himself in the NHL. I'm interested to see what happens with him.
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