New Mexico’s Sonya Ewan visited the Colorado Eagles in late February, and caught up with former New Mexico Scorpions defenseman Erik Adams. Ah, Colorado in February. Cool air, packed powder and hockey. Well, hockey anyway. Did someone flip-flop the globe so the northern is now the southern hemisphere? I’ll roll with that. Enjoying the effects of global warming, I trekked up to the Ft. Collins area to see how the Eagles were coping with the pressure of regular-season success.

It’s Friday night and the Bud Center is just like Eagles defenseman Erik Adams likes it: jam-packed with enthusiastic fans. In fact, all the Colorado players seem to enjoy interacting with the fans in the stands and vice versa. “We appreciate the fans, so we do little things to let them know, ‘Hey, you’re part of this program. That’s why we win games – because you guys are cheering loud, making it tough for other teams to beat us in this building.’ It helps,” explains Adams. “There’s not an empty seat in the building. It makes the other team play better and it makes for an exciting game. [The fans] are unbelievable here. It brings back memories of college days.”

For Adams, Colorado is as familiar as home. He attended Denver University from 1998-2002, playing hockey for the Pioneers. “Going to school here, I was so used to the state and the weather. Being an outdoors person and fishing, it offers everything, even just to go out and look at the mountains,” says Adams. “I enjoyed going to school in the US and that’s really helped, coming back here. I got to know a lot of people. Even though I went to Denver, so and so knows someone there who knows someone here.” Adams keeps in touch with his DU buddies and they reconvene in the summer. “A lot of us track back in the summers and train there, hang out, reminisce about the old times.”

A player who doesn’t need to be reminded to work hard, doesn’t demand attention or accolades, Adams also doesn’t fit the standard profile of Eagles glitz. He carries himself as if he’s still adapting to the quality he’s surrounded by. “Obviously coming here, I knew I was coming to a good team,” says Adams. “Once I got my confidence to play with them, it was just feeling comfortable out on the ice. When you’re surrounded by good players, it’s going to lift your game up as well.”

It’s Gotta be Greener
It was the final straw. After last season with the New Mexico Scorpions, who failed to make it to the playoffs, Adams was ready to try the view from the other side of the fence. “I hadn’t ever made the playoffs so that’s one of the big reasons I came here, because I knew they had a winning program,” says Adams. “It gets frustrating. I’ve been on a lot of good teams that have struggled to get over that hump. But here, we find that we’re just rolling and have a good team and everyone’s confident that we have a good shot at repeating the championship.”

Watching the February 24 game against Oklahoma City, it’s obvious the Eagles have what it takes. After a thrilling demonstration of talent by the goaltenders on each end, Colorado wins 3-1. Even with a roster short enough to call an excuse, the Eagles finally wear down the Blazers in the third period. Pushing up in an attempt to get something past Colorado goalie Paulo Colaiacovo, the OKC defense is caught flat-footed as Greg Pankewicz curls by and skates in on goalie Sean Conners. Pankewicz comes to an unexpected, full stop in front of Conners, who drops as Pankewicz roofs the puck – a move I hadn’t seen since my days in the cocky sport of inline hockey. No doubt, the mood was thus set for Round One of the playoffs, a duel that went to seven games before the Blazers conceded to Colorado.

To succeed in Cup fashion, there are several obvious qualities that must be present in a team. Pinning one of them, Adams explains, “This organization is run so professionally, where they don’t let one person go off on their own. They make sure everyone’s close knit. If a person needs help on the ice, you can go up to the coach [Chris Stewart] and say, ‘I’m having trouble with this or that.’ Or even off the ice, it’s really close knit.” Then there’s chemistry and Adams says the Eagles have that covered too. “The guy next to you will do something for you. There’re no glitches and people aren’t mad. There are no negative thoughts or negative comments to other people. Everyone’s trying to push each other. The leaders who have won championships, they can see something they don’t like and that’s something we’ll talk about and turn things around.”

So Close
Sitting with Adams in a room off the main locker room, we can hear other players chatting and laughing. On cue, a piano solo begins on the television as I ask about Pankewicz. A character captain with more NHL experience than your typical CHL-er, Pankewicz is a plus. But unless he’s on your roster, he can be a pain in the backside for the opposition’s defensemen. Adams has experience with both situations and likes his current one better. He confides, “Pankewicz would ask, ‘What do they say about me before the game?’ There was actually a bet of who could steal his mouth guard out of his mouth,” Adams laughs. “But he’s a quality and unbelievable leader. He’ll do anything for his teammates. He leads by example and means what he says in the dressing room. He’s not saying it to hear his own voice. He’s here to win championships. That wears off on us.”

Occasionally during the interview, a player wanders into and out of the room and finally, one can’t resist and interrupts with his Adams plug. “On the blue line, Erik Adams is one of the best.” Adams hears the comment but barely misses a beat, continuing to talk of a championship. I’m betting he could taste it.

Article by Sonya Ewan
sewan26@comcast.net
Images courtesy of Haass Photographics