Adams’ new family
Jaleel Adams has rebooted his hockey career with the Niagara Falls Canucks.
The 19-year-old Beamsville resident began last season with the St. Catharines Falcons, but was let go at the trade deadline and ended up with the junior C Grimsby Peach Kings.
Adams signed with the Canucks as a free agent in the summer and is off to a strong start with his new club.
“It’s been pretty good,” said Adams, who is fourth on the Canucks in scoring with 33 points in 29 games. “Everyone is nice in the room and the coaching staff has been good to me. It’s a good family environment.
“It’s pretty easy playing here. They let you play your game.”
Canucks coach Frank Pietrangelo has been happy with Adams’ play.
“He’s brought a little bit of everything to us,” Pietrangelo said. “He’s a great skater, he’s not scared. He’s on the puck and having great year point wise. As guys get older, they get more comfortable in the league.
“He is scoring and getting points and has been on our special teams and played in our top six all year. He’s been good. He’s brought a different element that we needed.”
Adams skated with the Canucks as a 16-year-old but ended up in major midget where he had a solid season and was drafted by the Niagara IceDogs second round (25th overall) of the 2017 OHL U-18 Priority Draft.
He played the next two seasons with the Falcons but ended up in junior C to finish off last season.
“Honestly, it was just like another learning experience,” Adams said. “In junior C we went to the Schmalz Cup finals. It’s one of the hardest championships to win in hockey.”
Adams used the demotion as a learning experience.
“I never thought it was over. It’s all about growing and continuing to grow every day and become a better player.
“I learned to stay positive because I dropped a level and keep working hard because you never know when you’ll get the call back up. I’m back in junior B so it feels pretty good to be back here. I think I belong here.”
Adams is currently skating with Matthew Riva and Ryan Donovan on the Canucks’ top line.
“They’re both good players,” Adams said. “Riva is fast and crafty and he has good hands. If you give Donovan the puck in the right area he will score. He’s a good passer too and has very good hockey IQ.”
Adams has taken Andrew Bruno’s spot on that line as Pietrangelo has paired Bruno with Justin Kyle in an attempt to spread out the scoring.
“We’re moving things around,” Pietrangelo said. “We’re not sure how things are going to turn out here. Once we got Justin back we thought we’re going to try some things and see what works.”
The Canucks, 20-6-2-1, have won six straight and play a home-and-home set with the Welland Junior Canadians beginning Friday at the Gale Centre.
“We’ve been focused, which is good,” Pietrangelo said. “About six or seven games ago we lost a game to Hamilton where we had a 2-0 lead after the first period and lost the game at home. We sat there afterwards and said either we’re going to be focused or go through this crap all year. That kind of turned the corner for us.”
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