For anyone looking to catch up on the ‘Back to School’ series covering the Hurricanes prospects below or just graduating to the AHL level, you can find a clickable menu that includes the previous 18 ‘Back to School’ articles HERE.
Today’s entry in the ‘Back to School’ series is the second from the ‘graduating class’ of players who are moving up to the AHL level. The first graduate was Aleksi Saarela; up today is Steven Lorentz.
Steven Lorentz
Steven Lorentz is a great story as a seventh-round draft pick from the 2015 NHL Draft who beat the odds and earned a professional contract. Lorentz is a power forward who just finished his fourth year with the Peterborough Petes in the OHL. In 2016-17, he netted 29 goals and collected 32 assists in 66 games while also serving as one of the Petes’ alternate captains. He is already in training camp in Charlotte and is slated to spend the 2017-18 season with the Charlotte Checkers.
Interview with Peterborough Petes Head Coach Jody Hull
About the interviewee
Jody Hull has been the Head Coach for the Peterborough Petes since assuming that role in December of 2012. Jody is a Petes alumnus and also a veteran of 831 games at the NHL level. His full bio can be found on the Peterborough Petes web site.
Interview on Carolina Hurricanes prospect Steven Lorentz
Canes and Coffee: Please briefly describe Steven Lorentz’s four-year career with the Petes and what he meant to the team and hockey community both on and off the ice?
Jody Hull: Steve’s career was interesting; he was drafted late by Peterborough more based on his size at the time. He played Major Midget with the Waterloo Wolves and he and his team had a very successful season. During the course of that season we signed Steve to an OHL contract, and he began playing in Peterborough the next season. He was brought along slowly but was given opportunities to play in every situation. As he matured and started to grow, his responsibilities with our team increased. By his last season, he was leading our team both on and off the ice. He was able to lead by example but at the same time kept the team loose, when needed, with his outgoing personality.
Canes and Coffee: Briefly describe Steven Lorentz’s 2016-17 season, highlights and accomplishments.
Jody Hull: In Steve’s last season he was a great asset to our team. He was not only a complete two-way player on the ice, but he was also a great leader off the ice. His two hat-tricks stand out for me during the season. The first was at home against Ottawa in December; the second was a four goal, third period performance in a come-from-behind victory.
Canes and Coffee: As Steven Lorentz moves up to the professional ranks, what are the strengths that will help him succeed? In what areas is there still room for improvement/further development?
Jody Hull: Some of Steve’s strengths will be:
– His work ethic: he’s always working on things that will help his game
– Great reach: when he stickhandles, it isn’t always in close as he can use his reach to evade the opposition
He’ll need to be more consistent game to game, and can be more selfish when it comes to shooting the puck.
Canes and Coffee: Steven Lorentz has a good chance to defy the odds as a seventh-round draft pick and one day play in the NHL because ___________.
Jody Hull: …he can handle adversity and use it to his advantage. He loves challenges and has overcome them at every level in hockey so far.
Canes and Coffee: Is there anything else that the Carolina Hurricanes fan base might be interested to know about Steven Lorentz that is not covered in the questions above?
Jody Hull: He is a pretty funny guy. He’s the team jokester at times. He also makes some crazy animal sounds when called upon.
Interview with Brock Otten from OHL Prospects
About the interviewee
Brock Otten (Twitter=@BrockOtten) is the man behind OHL Prospects, a blog that has covered the OHL extensively since 2008. Here you’ll find draft rankings, player bios, interviews, and other OHL related news.
Interview on Carolina Hurricanes prospect Steven Lorentz
Canes and Coffee: Since we checked in with you on Steven Lorentz at about this time last year, what did he accomplish during the 2016-17 season? What parts of his game saw the greatest gains development-wise?
Brock Otten: I think one of the biggest differences in his abilities that we saw this year was a more explosive skating stride. It made him a lot quicker to loose pucks and really increased his overall effectiveness at both ends. We also saw an increased confidence in using his size to drive the net to open up passing lanes. He really emerged as one of the OHL’s better two-way centers in his OA season.
Canes and Coffee: As Lorentz enters the professional ranks, what do you foresee being his biggest challenge in terms of making the adjustment? What areas of his game still need to improve/develop for him to eventually take the next step up to the NHL level?
Brock Otten: Well it took him four years to get up to speed at the OHL level, so I would imagine that adjusting to an even quicker pro game will be a challenge. He’s made great strides in his skating ability over his OHL career, but he’s still not a burner. Also, the size of pro defenders will likely be a challenge for him too. His game is built off prolonging possession, using his size to drive the net and work the corners. And if he’s not able to do that, he’s not naturally skilled enough to beat guys one on one with dazzling puck skills.
Steven Lorentz: Given where Lorentz is right now as a player, what type of role does he project into at the NHL level if he continues to improve?
Brock Otten: I said last year that I saw some Steve Rucchin/Steve Reinprecht in his game as a rangy, two-way, playmaking center. If his offensive game doesn’t translate, he could probably develop into a decent role player like a Shawn Matthias. If all goes according to plan, I could see him developing into a 3rd line center who puts up 10 goals, 20 assists a season.
Canes and Coffee: If Steven Lorentz is able to make the jump to the NHL level, it will be because he is able to ____________.
Brock Otten: …Continue to improve upon the skating and strength gains he made last season. And increase his physical intensity without the puck to make him an even better checking line player.
Canes and Coffee: Is there anything else that Carolina Hurricanes and Charlotte Checkers fans should know about Steven Lorentz as he moves up to the professional ranks?
Brock Otten: Even though he saw a bit of time on the wing this year, I think he sticks at center because Lorentz was one of the better face-off men in the OHL this past year. That’s a skill that should translate well and help him develop (at the very least) into a decent penalty killer.
For past coverage on Steven Lorentz including a check in on him during the 2016-17, please visit his Canes and Coffee player page HERE.
Canes and Coffee would like to extend a huge thank you to Head Coach Jody Hull from the Peterborough Petes and Brock Otten from OHL Prospects for generously sharing their insight on Hurricanes prospect Steven Lorentz!
Go Canes!
