James Van Riemsdyk is a natural goal scorer, who seemed to flourish under Alain Vigneault towards the latter parts of the season, and he appeared to take his game to another level before his finger injury forced him to shut his season down early (Asides from the Pandemic). Now finally 100%, JVR plans to be a reliable part for the Flyers playoff run, but realizes the sacrifices his family are making for him to chase a dream, “It’s tough. You want to be there for your family. You want to be there for all those little moments and the things that go along with that. Obviously now is a time where things are changing pretty much every day with the little one at home. With that being said, everyone in my family and close to me knows how important this is to me and how important winning a Stanley Cup is. These are sacrifices that families have make in the world of professional sports. Obviously, we are very fortunate to get to do what we do. They are excited to support me. Kind of chasing down a dream.”
JVR is a class act, and he knows full well the two-way player he can be. He also knows that he has to play well defensively under Vigneault, and now this is his time to shine. This is his moment to turn some heads, and it couldn’t happen at a better time while speaking highly of his Head Coach, “The one thing that has really jumped out for me about him is how he really buys into the science of things,” JVR said, “I think as far as any coach that I’ve played for, he’s really into that stuff. I think that’s been a huge difference for us. Obviously, he’s been around the game for a long time. He’s a smart guy. Knows how to manage different things.”
The Winger continues, “He talks to players and stuff like that. I would say the biggest thing is how he kind of does that. I think that has really given us a chance to be successful night in and night out and be as prepared we can for each and every game. It’s kind of came out again in training camp of how he runs things. Know when to push, know when to pull back. Wants to get us in a good spot so when we start playing games here, we’re in a good position to play the best that we can.”
Sports is a crazy business. One moment a player could be down in the dumps, and the next he/she could have a bigger role. Enter Nolan Patrick, a guy that is a second overall pick, with expectations as high as they could come, “I think just as you go through things, you start to realize obviously every situation is a little unique in that sense and different things like the team that you are drafted to, the depth of that team. All these different factors come into play. They are playing for you as well.”
JVR continues on Patrick, “Some things are within your control. Some things are outside of that obviously. There’s some injury factor sometimes. Some people are quicker learners than others. There’s always different factors that come into play. As far as for Patty, coming in at 18 is something that not many guys are able to do. That already speaks a role of him as a player. He was taking steps forward. He’s only going to continue to get better. Right now, taking care of his health is his biggest priority. From there, I think he will really be able to spread his wings. He’s got that confidence now of having a few seasons under his belt. Dealing with this adversity, he’s going to come out on the other side just ready to hit the ground running. I have confidence in him for when he is able to get back and get in the mix here, he’s going to do special things in his career. I am excited to see that whole process come together for him.”
Van Riemsdyk seemed faster towards the latter part of the season. He understood his reason for a demotion earlier in the season. JVR just wanted to help this young Flyers team as much as possible. He thinks the world of Oskar Lindblom, much like everyone on the team does, “It’s unbelievable,” JVR said, “Since I’ve got a chance to know him here the last couple years, he just has a great positive outlook on life. He’s just always great to be around. He’s very well-deserving with his play, aside from all his health stuff. His play finally came on at the start of this year and took a huge step forward for us. I think he is very well-deserving of that new contract. Obviously gets a little security there and lets him get himself back to being the player that he knows he can be. We’re thrilled for him first and foremost. Just getting a clean slate here and getting a clean sheet of health to go from there. I couldn’t be happier for him in that respect. Obviously to have him to join our group is awesome.”
