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If Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins center Teddy Blueger wanted to switch positions and become a goaltender, he’d have the mindset down pat.
The 22-year-old rookie has a calmness about him and comes across as one who doesn’t get rattled very easily – an important trait of any successful goaltender. Blueger’s steady demeanor is also evident in his approach to the game, which he bases not on points but details and defense.
“That’s how it should be. At least with myself I focus on the little things,” Blueger said. “If you focus on points that’s when you start cheating and getting away from the basics.”
Perhaps Blueger’s calm and steady approach stems from his days as a teenager when he faced a whole new world head on.
Blueger was 14 when he moved to the United States from his native Latvia. He was by himself when he tackled living in a new country to begin a hockey career full of risks.
But Blueger didn’t look the endeavor as daunting. In fact, Blueger said he really didn’t think about the magnitude of what he was tackling at the time.
“Looking back on it I guess it’s a little crazy, but I just always wanted to go somewhere else and play at a high level,” he said.
Despite leaving his family in Latvia, Blueger wasn’t entirely alone when he arrived in Shattuck-St. Mary’s boarding school where he would spend the next four years.
The small school and its well-known hockey team were a close-knit group, and Blueger found a second family far away from his home in Latvia.
“Sure it was tough being away from my family, but at the same time it was fun because I was always with my buddies. We were in class, at practice, hanging out, and living together. It was exciting,” Blueger said.
And it was also the start of a promising hockey career at the same school where Sidney Crosby played for one season as a 15-year-old. After posting more than a point-per-game every season at Shattuck, Blueger was drafted by Pittsburgh in the second round in 2012 and subsequently began his college career at Minnesota State University-Mankato. He was a regular in the lineup right away and Blueger improved his point total in each of his four years at college.
But, as Blueger notes, points aren’t the focal point.
“All aspects of my game improved in college,” he said. “The coaching staff did a great job of instilling the defensive aspect, and that can really set you apart being able to play at both ends of the rink.”
It wasn’t until after college that Blueger faced adversity, and another beginning. After his senior season in 2016, Blueger joined Wilkes-Barre/Scranton for the final 10 games of the season and another 10 in the postseason. Despite his steady demeanor, Blueger admits to being nervous when he left Minnesota for the pro game.
But he was welcomed by the Penguins’ players and it didn’t take long to fit in.
The experience left Blueger optimistic and motivated in the off-season, and he worked hard to prepare for Pittsburgh’s training camp in September.
And then the injury bug struck, and Blueger would be sidelined during training camp and forced to miss two months.
Perhaps more than any time in his career, Blueger’s mental strength was tested.
“That was tough. I had a good off-season, was playing well in camp and then I get hurt,” he said. “For two months I was limited as to what I could do. It was a mental grind and it made me appreciate it even more when I did come back.”
Now, Blueger is healthy and is an effective two-way center for the Penguins. Since his return to the lineup on Dec. 9, Blueger has totalled four goals, nine points and is a plus-10. He also entered Saturday’s game with three points in two games and a plus-5 in that span.
But the numbers don’t tell the entire story, Blueger said.
“Stats only tell you so much,” he said. “It’s the little things and details that matter, and right now I feel I’m getting more comfortable with that in every game. I don’t think when I’m out there. I just let my instincts dictate what I do.”
Spoken like a true goalie, or two-way center in Blueger’s case.
