Back yard: Icing on the cake

Wednesday, Jan. 18, 2006 | 8:39 a.m.

As soon as winter started icing Mississauga, Ontario, Mark Dzieduszycki hosed down every square inch of his spacious back yard. All the neighborhood kids had a place to play hockey, but Dzieduszycki's own frozen pond served a greater purpose.

More drill time for his son, Matt.

"It was a big back yard," said Matt Dzieduszycki, who has emerged as a Las Vegas Wranglers sparkplug. "My dad would have me out there before school and after school, practicing my shot and stick-handling. It's been paying off."

Mark Dzieduszycki took that tutelage to a new level when his son was 8 by starting the Two Way Hockey School. Matt Dzieduszycki, 25, now runs that school during off-seasons in suburban Toronto.

"He started it so I could get more ice time in the summers," Dzieduszycki said of his dad. "And I still do all those drills. Every summer, I go back to those same fundamentals. They fine-tune your game and they make a huge difference.

"My dad pushed me hard, working on my shot and individual skills. Hopefully, it'll pay off and get me to the next level."

Three for all

Dzieduszycki, Steve Crampton and Dan Tudin, whose plus-minus rating of plus 22 ties him with Alaska's Mike Scott atop the ECHL, form perhaps the Wranglers' most dangerous line.

"It's been exciting," Tudin said. "As a line, we've been clicking nicely."

Since day one, according to Dzieduszycki. With good reason.

"Our styles just complement each other," he said. "We each have a piece of the puzzle. Crampton is definitely the mean guy on the ice. He's the intimidator. Dan is probably one of the strongest guys along the boards in getting the puck.

"And maybe I'm a little finesse in there. I'm definitely not a fighter. Early on, my dad said, 'You might as well score goals. You're not going to beat up guys.' The three of us work really well together."

Name game

Dzieduszycki has one of the more challenging names to pronounce. It's "zhay-do-shitskeee." Current teammates call him "Dewey," and he has heard countless variations of his surname.

"Infinity," he said. "It'll be the same thing next year, and the year after. But the announcers make a good effort trying to pronounce it correctly. And they're always asking. That's good. Every year, I get a new nickname."

It's been Diesel and Dizzy in the past.

He was asked who had the most trouble saying his name.

"Our all-star trainer, Mike Hannegan," Dzieduszycki said. "He tries to butcher it all the time."

Also noted

The Duke, the Wranglers' green furry mascot and a fan favorite, also has been voted in. Dave Romleski is the man behind the suit. He had no time for an all-star comment recently because he was busy giving "noogies" to kids.

Savvy Orleans fans have booed or cheered respective victories or defeats by the division-rival Aces when they are announced. Tudin said Wranglers fans have been the team's seventh player at home, where Las Vegas is 17-1-2 this season.

"That's one piece of our identity," he said. "We wanted to take pride in showing the fans a good game. Some games last season we didn't do that. It's all about the fans, and they make a big difference."

The number goalie Dany Sabourin wore last Wednesday for the Pittsburgh Penguins in a 6-1 defeat at Columbus. He played for Las Vegas in 2003-04 and became the first former Wrangler promoted to the NHL. Thursday he was sent back to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the AHL.

5,272

The Wranglers' average home attendance, seventh-best in the ECHL.

85.2

Las Vegas' penalty-killing percentage, No. 3 in the league.

Rob Miech can be reached at 259-4087 or at miech@lasvegassun.com.