It's no disgrace for any hockey player to get deked out of their jock by Pavel Datsyuk.
Marc McNulty joined the long list of victims of the NHL superstar last week at the Detroit Red Wings training camp.
"The first day of practice he put the puck between my legs... it was pretty cool skating with those guys," said the 18-year-old McNulty, who was returned by the Wings to his junior club, the Prince George Cougars.
"The first day when you're in the room with them you're pretty nervous and especially when you get on the ice," he said. "They're great players and I learned lots from those guys."
The Cougars will hit the road today for Portland, Ore., where they open the 2013-14 season Friday night against the defending WHL-champion Winterhawks, the start of a three-game road trip that stops Saturday in Everett and Sunday in Tri-Cities.
The Wings drafted the six-foot-six, 185-pound McNulty in the sixth round of the 2013 entry draft. He left the Cougars two weeks ago to attend their rookie camp and play in the Prospects Tournament at the Wings' practice rink in Traverse City. Mich. The Red Wings went 4-0 and won the eight-team tournament for the first time since it began 15 years ago, defeating Cougars forward Colin Jacobs and the Buffalo Sabres 4-2 in the final Sept. 9.
Twenty-year-old forward Klarc Wilson played for the New York Rangers rookie team in Traverse City and was back at CN Centre for practice Wednesday, while 18-year-old forwards Zach Pochiro (St. Louis Blues) and Troy Bourke (Colorado Avalanche) remain with their NHL teams for now.
Wilson knew what to expect at his second NHL training camp, having attended the Winnipeg Jets camp in 2011. Still, it was a high-intensity two weeks that pushed him to his limits. He played four games in the tournament.
"Playing against 23- or 25-year-olds it's really high-placed, stronger and faster, and I hope I can bring it here," said Wilson. "Battling those guys in the corner, you definitely have to be strong on your skates. Being in shape was definitely key."
Pochiro played 12:42 of the Blues' 6-5 shootout win in Dallas on Sunday. Bourke was in the lineup for Colorado's preseason game against the Anaheim Ducks Wednesday night. The word around the rink Wednesday was Bourke will join the Cougars on the road Sunday in Kennewick, Wash., to play the Americans.
