Vasiljevs happy to land in Vancouver

Originally published on EuroReport.com in 2001

By Lucas Aykroyd

When Herbert Vasiljevs was growing up in Riga, Latvia, he idolized the flashy Soviet winger Sergei Makarov.

So it was appropriate that he scored his first goal in a Vancouver uniform on a tic-tac-toe passing play worthy of the KLM Line. Playing against Colorado on 9 October, Vasiljevs tapped in a perfect feed from captain Markus Naslund at the side of the net. Patrick Roy had no chance and this 25-year-old center had a moment to cherish.

Vasiljevs was already overjoyed to be starting the season with the Canucks when many had him ticketed for Vancouver’s AHL affiliate, the Manitoba Moose.

“It was a great feeling,” Vasiljevs said of the moment when the coaches told him he’d made the cut. “I worked so hard for this, and finally dreams come true, I guess.”

It was also a much-needed boost to his self-confidence. After two seasons in the Atlanta Thrashers organization, he had failed to nail down a roster spot with the big team. He scored nine points in 21 games with Atlanta last season. The Canucks signed him as a free agent in August.

“Vancouver was one of the teams I wanted to go to, and we got talking and got a deal done,” Vasiljevs said. “I wish I’d gotten another chance with Atlanta, because I think I really showed them I could play for their team and at this level. It was a little disappointing that they didn’t resign me.”

But he didn’t pout. His rigorous off-season training program reflected his willingness to do what it takes to become an NHL regular.

“Obviously, I focused on quickness and upper body strength, because I’m a bit lacking in those areas,” said Vasiljevs. “I tried to keep overall exposure at a pretty high level.”

At this point, the 5-11, 185-pound forward is still seeing spot duty. Coach Marc Crawford rotates him in and out of the lineup from game to game, and when Vasiljevs does play, he rarely gets more than five minutes of ice time.

Mentally, it’s challenging for a player who has proven himself as a scorer, hitting the 60-point mark three times in his minor league career in the AHL and IHL.

“It’s really hard, but you do whatever the team needs you to do right now, and good things will happen,” Vasiljevs said. “You just need to stay positive.”

A little window of opportunity may have opened for the Latvian when power forward Todd Bertuzzi received a ten-game suspension for his involvement in a brawl in a 4-0 win over Colorado on 13 October.

“There are opportunities for everyone right now,” said Vasiljevs. “Bertuzzi’s missing and there’s a big hole in our team right now. Everyone has to bring up their game.”

Vasiljevs got a little taste of what fan support can do to elevate a team when he played for Team Latvia at the 2000 World Championships in St. Petersburg. Latvians are known as some of the loudest and craziest fans in international hockey. Their team’s eighth-place finish that year was considered an accomplishment.

“The World Championships are just amazing,” said Vasiljevs. “It’s just like being in the playoffs for us. You just go there and see all the fans so excited about it. It’s nuts.”

While it’s uncertain whether Vasiljevs will get a chance to represent his country again at the 2002 Olympics, he’d love to see Vancouver fans in a similar frenzy this April. The Canucks have stumbled in the early going, which makes it all the more urgent that role players like Vasiljevs perform consistently and get the team back into the playoff race.

“I want to stay with the team and help the team to make the playoffs and do whatever I can do to be part of the team,” Vasiljevs said.

Those are good, solid goals. After all, nobody said he has to be the next Sergei Makarov.