Van Leusen looking forward to draft day
Posted: Wednesday, June 21, 2000, 9:00 p.m.
BRAMPTON, Ont. – Aaron Van Leusen had to wait until the tenth round to hear his name called at the 1998 OHL Priority Selection and he’s hoping he won’t have to wait that long to hear an NHL team call out his name this weekend at Calgary during the 2000 NHL Draft.
“I’m really looking forward to it,” said Van Leusen who is ranked 91st by the NHL Central Scouting Bureau, after being rated 112th at mid-season. “It will be a great experience for me as well as all the other players on our team that are going out there.”
Van Leusen, who scored 62 points with his hometown Barrie Midgets in 1997-98, came to Brampton as an unheralded 196th overall draft pick with loads of determination.
“It was a great thrill to hear that I had been drafted,” he recalled. “I didn’t know what to really expect, what my role would be with the team or whether I would even make it. I just came to training camp with high hopes and tried to do my best and it has all paid off for me.”
Indeed it has. Van Leusen missed some time in his rookie season with an ankle injury but contributed 25 points (8 goals, 17 assists) and impressed observers with his blazing speed and solid two-way play.
Van Leusen played through adversity in his sophomore year, first sitting out nine games with a thigh injury suffered in a game in Owen Sound on October 30, and then dealing with the death of his father.
“There was a lot of adversity last year and everyone helped me out,” said Van Leusen. “I got a lot of support from our coaching staff, players and family and friends back home which I appreciated.”
Despite all the obstacles, Van Leusen still managed to rack up 37 points (17 goals, 20 assists) in 57 games and also proved to be an important special teams player, leading the team with two shorthanded goals and tying Jeff Bateman and Raffi Torres for the team lead in power play goals with nine. He tied for third, along with Chris Kelly of the London Knights, in the Most Under-Rated Player category of the 2000 OHL Coaches Poll.
“I accept my role on the team,” explained Van Leusen, “and work as hard as I can on the penalty kill or power play and I appreciate the opportunity I have been given there. On the power play I play with a lot of great players, from our defence to our forwards, and I guess I just feed off them. It’s a treat to play with them.”
Van Leusen chipped in with three points in the playoffs and felt that the Troops playoff series against Erie “gave us a lot of confidence so heading into next year to know what we are up against. We have high hopes next year and hopefully everything will come together nicely for us.”
Van Leusen is the fastest skater on the Battalion and admitted that his tremendous speed is a part of his game he works hard at. “I guess I’ve been blessed with a little bit of speed” he said, “but I work on it a lot in the off-season.”
When asked about what he hopes to improve on for his third OHL season, Van Leusen is candid. “Obviously I have to work on my shot,” he admitted. “I get a lot of chances and I know that I have to capitalize on them. I’m working on carrying the puck, and trying to be a little more confident and patient with it.”
Looking ahead to next season, Van Leusen’s approach is simple. “I try to work as hard as I can, day in and day out, each practice and each game,” he said, “and it has paid off for me. I hope I can continue improving on my game and on the things I need to work on. I want to score a few more points and help out a bit more offensively. I’m also going to try to accept a bit more of a leadership role with the young kids. It’s my third year here and I think I should be accepting more of a leadership role too.”
